Printable View
Since I started shaving with a straight, I've been using Col. Conk's shaving soap. It seems pretty good to me, but it is the only one I've used so far. But pretty soon, I'll run out of the one puck I have been using. I've been thinking about maybe getting another brand and/or scent for the next one.
Could you guys give me some honest opinions on how this brand compares to others, and also your opinions on its level of quality compared to other brands?
How about trying some cream for a change? Taylor's of Old Street makes excellent and relatively inexpensive creams with decent scents and nice lather. You can get them on Amazon.
I think the Conk soaps are just about dead average, the Amber perhaps a notch above the rest...
There are just so many soaps to chose from, I would say try a hard milled now that you have been with a gylcerin, and see how you like that, just about any of the English brands should be a differnt experience from the Conk..
Worship at the feet of The Mistress!
Shaving, Bath and Body, Skincare, Home Fragrance, Brushes, Creams, Soaps
You're welcome,
X
I've tried many, many soaps. I agree with Glenn that the Colonel's soaps are mediocre at best. I now use Colleen's soaps (TGQ) exlusively (I do use a few other creams). Her soaps have provided me the best performance I have found. And her scents are clean and natural. They are more expensive than the Colonel's, but well worth the extra cost.
I am a newbie but I have tried 2 Col Conks so far, Lime and amber. I would agree with an earlier post that the amber is a notch above. I didn't really like the lime. To me, Col Conk soaps require more water and a little more work, but I can get a good lather. I have also tried C&E Nomad and Mama Bears's Sandalwood Vanilla and they are awesome.
Zeus, do you find that the amber performs better than the lime or is it just that you like the scent better? I have not tried the amber but I bought the lime and the bay rum. They both seem to perform equally just the bay rum smells better. Before I started making my own soap, I used these soaps exclusively often in uberlather (adding glycerin and shave cream) to improve lather quality. Now, they are pretty much sitting there on my sink. They are ok but not stellar. I have found that I get better performance from milled soaps than from glycerin based soaps anyway. The few creams I have tried have also been good with C.O Bigelow/Proraso, the one that lathers the best but also leaves my sensitive skin feeling like a tuned drum ;-).Quote:
Originally Posted by Zeus
Al raz.
You are probably right that I just like the scent better. Lime was the first soap I ever used and looking back I guess maybe I hadn't learned to make a good lather yet.Quote:
Originally Posted by Alraz
Thanks for the replies, guys.
I did a search for Colleen's name on this forum and read some good things about her collection. I think I might just try her stuff next. And to answer the question, no, I haven't tried any of the available creams, though I just might try some of Colleen's. They're fairly inexpensive, so I may just get both.
I do happen to like the Taylor of Old Bond Street aftershaves and cologne I have, so I might try their stuff in the future, as well.
And again, thanks.:)
I am still pretty new at this, and based on advice I got somewhere (not here, I cannot remember to be honest) I tried the Col. Conk soaps. It has been the 'elephant in the room' in regards to my shaving, and it is a bit of a relief to see others here with similar problems. I feel like my lathering technique is good, I have a good brush, but I was just not achieving what I thought was the 'uberlather' that some people describe. While I don't have a wealth of experience to measure against, I feel as though the Col. Conk soap could be missing from the perfect equation.
The kind I tried was lime; to be fair it was VERY cheap (4 dollars for a puck?) but to me it smelled like the scent was devised by someone who had their nose removed in a horrible accident.
The lather does not seem to be especially thick or rich, no matter how much you work it, nor does it provide that much lubrication on the face.
I will also say that one morning I made up a mug of lather and was then called away by my room mate for something sort of important, so I left it in the sink (in hot water) for maybe 10-15 minutes. When I returned, my lather was nearly gone! It was as though it had evaporated or the very tiny bubbles had popped or something. I know this is off topic, but has anyone else experienced such a phenomenon?
Regardless, the aforementioned experience plus what other people are sharing has me on the lookout for another product.
I think I'll try both the cream and the more reputable soap from Colleen(?) and see which I prefer.
I have not had it dry up in the mug, but it does dry rather quickly on my face, faster than other soaps I have tried.
Well, I would not go that far. I think these soaps are ok but not stellar. I have managed to produce decent to good lather with them, and if you combine them with glycerin and cream to form uberlather, they do the job. I imagine that you have a dilution problem going on if it is not working right. Perhaps these links would help:Quote:
Originally Posted by ES331302
Illustrated Guide to Making Basic Soap Lather - Straight Razor Place Wiki
Illustrated Guide to making Überlather - Straight Razor Place Wiki
Illustrated quide to making basic cream lather in three different ways - Straight Razor Place Wiki
http://straightrazorpalace.com/shavi...ard-water.html
If your lather dry out in your face, it could be indicative that the lather is not ready yet, same if it dries in your bowl. The lather should be thick but it should be wet. The key is to keep rubbing the brush against the bowl (see my post in the last link ) until you start getting large bubbles as you rub. At that point, you know you are done lathering for that amount ot soap. If you stop adding water before, you end up with a very thick lather that would have a tendency to dry out. A final tip to prevent lather from drying in your face is not to cover the whole face with it. I usually only apply the lather to the section of the face that I am going to shave. I do this not only to prevent the lather from drying but because I want to minimize exposure to the soap as my skin is VERY sensitive. Now, if the lather dries out in your bowl, I think you were far from getting the optimal lather; you may have had just suds.
You guys may want to try soaps that are not glycerin based to test the differences, they have some advantages.
Al raz.
I like Conk soap and break out the Bay Rum puck from time to time but if you limit yourself to just one flavor of soap/cream/brush/razor you won't get the full shaving experience.
Live a little and try some other brands...you should get PLENTY of ideas on this forum. And if not post a "if you had to choose only one soap/cream what would it be" type message. I'm sure you will get plenty of ideas. If I could only have one soap/cream it would be Proraso cream...but BOY would I miss some of the others!
:gl: