Thread: Opinions Please: Col. Conk vs. Other Brands

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.

Originally Posted by Zeus

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 ;-).

Al raz.

Originally Posted by Alraz

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 ;-).

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.

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.