Thread: Melting mitchels wool fat soap.

Originally Posted by TTfireman

Do any of these processes work with Edwin Jagger soaps? I'm pretty sure it isn't glycerin based, but I don't know what it actually is.

And well, for that matter, fccexpert, will your method work on any soap?

It has worked on every soap I have tried it on. It is after all how milled soaps are made. Triple milled soaps have gone through this process three times.

So called glycrine soaps (the ones that are clear or at least mostly transparent) have also gone through this process, but with the added step of being rebatched with alcohol.

There is really no such thing as a glycerine based soap, glycerine is produced during soap making and can also be added as an extra ingredient, but all soaps are fat based.

Originally Posted by BigIan

Has any one else here had problems with melting thiis soap?

I got some of this this morning for my birthday. and i`ve just tried melting it into the shaving boowl, but the stuff won`t melt!

its been in a pan of simmering water for 45 mins now and its soft but its not melting.

It will not melt without wrecking it....

You can take a grater and shave it down to fit.

Since it is a big puck you may want to shave off some
then smash your grated bits into your bowel to use and wait
for next time to fit the puck in.

If you have a bowel larger than the puck just grate
some Mitchell's into the bottom. Get it wet enough
to soften and then press the puck into it to glue it in
place.

i have good luck with simply grating the soap and pressing into its new container.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

It will not melt without wrecking it....

You can take a grater and shave it down to fit.

Since it is a big puck you may want to shave off some
then smash your grated bits into your bowel to use and wait
for next time to fit the puck in.

If you have a bowel larger than the puck just grate
some Mitchell's into the bottom. Get it wet enough
to soften and then press the puck into it to glue it in
place.

Please define "wrecking"

I melted/milled/rebatched some williams mug a while ago. I was trying to make a silk purse out of a sows ear by adding other ingredients (it didnt work). Anyway it can be done, it really wasn't that hard. I think that the Williams and MWF are similar enough for the comparison to be valid, I believe they're both milled soaps.

Edit: to clarify, the rebatching went fine, making Willams soap better didn't

Originally Posted by fccexpert

Please define "wrecking"

Fragrance lost. MWF has a fine subtle fragrance.
Glycerin separates, water is driven off,texture changes.

It does not melt at any acceptable temperature. At
the expense of a loss of fragrance it may be possible
to mill the soap one more time... The first step in milling
is to grate and grind....

If you must just grate it, after a very light spritz
of water press it into its new container. As the container
permits leave as much of the original puck untouched.