Trumpers/Williams - I don't see much difference

I bought a puck of Williams yesterday, I've always had a soft spot for it due it's scent and low cost. I've used it before but that was before I shaved with a straight. As usual with Williams it was a bit of effort to get a good lather and by the time one side of my face and neck were done the other was chalk and had to be redone. Still, I had a nice shave.

I've got a puck of Trumper lime scent I've had for a bit and I used that today. I hadn't used it recently because I find it difficult to create a good lather and it dries out fast. With today being so fresh after my Williams experience yesterday I noticed the time and effort required to get a good lather was about the same and the drying effect was also the same.

So besides price ($1.69 vs $20) and scent I don't see much difference. Is it just me? I can lather other soaps and cremes just fine but that Trumper just doesn't go easy for me.

There should be a noticeable difference between lathering Trumpers and Williams, and the Trumpers shouldn't be drying out that fast either. I'm thinking this is a technique issue. What I do when I buy a new soap/cream is use it exclusively for at least a week (along with the same brush), perhaps more, which allows you to "get to know it". Every product is different and has its own nuances that you have to learn. It sounds like you haven't found the Trumper's sweet spot yet, and once you do I don't think you'll compare it to Williams anymore!

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Originally Posted by Ryan82

It sounds like you haven't found the Trumper's sweet spot yet, and once you do I don't think you'll compare it to Williams anymore!

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Until you find the William's sweet spot.:)

I've shaved with Trumpers probably 10 times but not in a row. Guess I need to play with it more. I've been trying more water, less water, not making much difference though. Today was the best lather but it dried way too fast. I don't mind reapplying though so I can live with it until I figure it out.

Honestly, the best soap I've used so far for lathering is the Palmolive stick, that stuff lathers like nobody's business! I grated it and put it in a tub. For cream it's The Real Shaving Co , that would be my favorite except for the scent which is not bad, just boring.

My experience with Trumpers has made me leery about trying other expensive products, especially when there are so many well reviewed products for much less. Are the other old school British soaps (ie DR Harris and TOBS) of a similar formulation?

just out of curiosity, do you face lather or bowl? and not that it matters so much, but are you using boar or badger?

regarding formulations, i suppose soap is soap...that being said, truefitt and hill's luxury shaving soap is different to lather for me than trumpers...and mitchell's wool fat is different than both of those. i will say that i enjoy all of them more than williams...but that's just me.

Well in my case I use soaps a lot. I have to say that sometimes I use creams too. But speaking abou soaps in my case the Trumpers one is a soap very similar to the Truefitt and Hill they are make in the same place. The sandalwood version in the cream is not the same fragance on the soap version. The most important thing in regards soaps and creams is how creamy and hydratated the formula is in both versions. The best soap for me in regards the hydratation and how creamy they could be is the DR Harris in any of their formulas.
K

[QUOTE=ryanjewell;951044]just out of curiosity, do you face lather or bowl? and not that it matters so much, but are you using boar or badger?

I've tried all combinations, face with boar and badger and bowl with boar and badger. I found the badger better for the face and the boar better for the bowl. My bowl is really smooth though and that is more likely the reason, I find all my soaps and creams are like that not just the Trumpers. Usually I use boar in a bowl for everything, especially now that my badger brush fell apart. I'll get a new one this weekend.

I'm probably not using enough water but when I add more water I can't get a smooth lather, the bubbles stay too large and it's just runny glop. I've tried making a nice lather first then adding water but it just falls apart. Even when I do get a good lather it breaks down really fast. I do have the bowl in a sink of really hot tap water, this may be a contributing factor but it doesn't cause the same problem with my other soaps and creams, or at least not as much depending on the product, none are as bad.

I'll just have to sit around whipping up bowls of lather until I figure it out. As good an excuse as any I can think of to playing with my shaving stuff. :)

Just some things I found that work for me, so take them with a grain of salt:

-Badger I use with a bowl, boar for -face...the firmer backbone of the boar works well for face lathering for me

-put an inch of warm water and leave it on the top of the soap 5 min before you load your brush...it helps soften it up and gets more product on the brush tips

-try and eliminate variables until you get exactly what you want, then change one thing...so on and so forth

-when you add water, just try a few drops at a time.

Happy experimenting!

Hows your water quality? If you have hard water that could be your problem.

the other stuff should lather much better than williams. I have no problems lathering williams but that is because I have worked with that soap for 5 pllus years now. Some others just can't seem to get it down.

I'm going through the Trumpers sampler pack right now and have noticed some of the samples lather better than others. Not sure if this is an issue with samples drying out or what. Would be curious to see if any other memeber have noticed a difference between Trumpers products. The first one I tried Lavender was fairly dry, not as bad as you described, but noticable... then the coconut gave me a great lather. This is using the same cream about 4 times with the exact same process, getting different results with different creams every time.

I've used both - many many pucks of williams over the years and about 1/2 a puck of Trumper's Rose. The scent of the Trumper's is really wonderful. But I also have trouble getting a good lather from it. I'll probably always have a puck of Williams lying around but I doubt I'll buy any more Trumper's soap.

Trumpers has had major QC issues with their soap as of late. I got a puck that was basically unlatherable, despite having the same ingredients printed on the box as a puck I bought four years ago. I contacted Trumpers and they let me know the unlatherable puck was made in 2011. They then sent a replacement that was made in 2008...each one behaves like a completely different soap. The 2011 one was unlatherable, while the 2008 lathered up a storm just like Trumper's is supposed to do. I posted pics and more detailed info on all this on another board where I did a comparison of a bunch of UK made shaving soaps.

To the OP, if you got a dud, which is what it sounds like...it's not your technique at issue. Buy a puck of some other brand like DR Harris if you want a soap that actually works.