The Stirling Exchange

Discussion in 'Shave Soaps' started by PickledNorthern, Nov 5, 2016.

  1. Gnomeo0228

    Gnomeo0228 Well-Known Member

    I think you'll have a riot if you drop it completely lol. There are some good suggestions in this thread for replacement names.

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  2. Mike Brown

    Mike Brown Well-Known Member

    I just completed 42 consecutive days of both face and head shaves using 41 different Stirling soaps. I just had to use one twice! Great shaves were had everyday!! I have some Stirling samples to try now, I seldom buy samples, but traded for these.
     
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  3. Gnomeo0228

    Gnomeo0228 Well-Known Member

    Here's last night's shave. Orange Chill is a VERY nice scent. Great orangyness with a bit of zest thrown in and no stickyness, lol! Fantastic. Now, the menthol is a bit low with this soap, so what do I do....glacial unscented AS and balm to help keep that chill going! [​IMG]

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  4. Yehuda D

    Yehuda D Israeli Ambassador to TSD

    I had a shave fit for a king and a freeze to end all freezes with the Glacial MITA soap. The menthol sensation is definitely three times stronger than what you'd get from the regular version. This soap has that same lovely citrusy, tropical scent and it's so easy to lather.
     
  5. Gnomeo0228

    Gnomeo0228 Well-Known Member

    I love that soap. And the extra menthol didn't hurt the scent very much. Love it!

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  6. Yehuda D

    Yehuda D Israeli Ambassador to TSD

    I find the scent is the same even with the Glacial level menthol. I sniffed at both versions before my shave, but this Glacial version pulverizes you immediately!
     
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  7. Yehuda D

    Yehuda D Israeli Ambassador to TSD

    Frozen Tundra is my choice for tomorrow - the second coldest Stirling soap and it smells so nice, it gives a mountain of great lather with awesome skincare. Don't underestimate its menthol power because it can lay a potent freeze on you!
     
  8. Paul Turner

    Paul Turner outside the quote(s) now

    I pulled up the Sandpiper for my aftershave tomorrow....(full details later today in the SOTD thread).
     
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2017
  9. PLAla

    PLAla Bit Shy of a Full Puck

    I am thinking about using only Stirling in September. It will be SEptember which highlights SE razors. I'll participate in that since I use that type of razor daily anyway. But I may make it Stirling SEptember. I have several full tubs and four or five samples to choose from.
     
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  10. Paul Turner

    Paul Turner outside the quote(s) now

    I'll join you with "Stirling September", putting my Sandpiper A.S. to good use next month. Maybe not every day, but quite frequently.
     
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  11. BaylorGator

    BaylorGator MISTER Fancypants

    Like many here, Stirling is my "staple" soap making up the largest single brand in my (somewhat large and expanding) soap collection. I also have 5 Stirling brushes, which I thought I'd review here:

    Badger - 24mm bulb, 24mm fan, 26mm bulb
    The 24 mm badgers are very good (and some of my favorite badger brushes), but the 26mm is phenomenal. Very soft, very plush, and it is developing "gel tips" only a few shaves in. I own more expensive badger knots and brushes than my Stirlings, but absolutely none of them compete with the Stirling 26mm. The 24mm brushes hang in there with much more expensive brushes, but the 26mm exceeds them. You can't go wrong with any of them, but for an outstanding brush at a value price, I don't think the 26mm brush can be beaten. Period.

    Having said that, I have replaced the handle on one of my 24s and am in the midst of replacing the other two with custom handles, as the Stirling handles are reasonably plain. (Not objectionable, just not "high end"). Installed in a custom handle, I'd put these brushes against any other I've encountered so far. (Having said that, I have not experienced any $200+ brushes, as I think spending that amount on a brush is just silly. -- No judgement on those who drop a lot of money on hight end brushes. This is just a personal thing.) Could these $200+ brushes they be marginally better than the 26mm? Maybe, but I've got a number of well respected knots that don't come close to competing. There is no way you can convince me that any brush is 2 or 4 times as good to warrant the price difference. Just no way.

    Synthetic - 22mm (travel brush)
    I've tried (and own) a number of synthetics (including cashmere, tuxedo, plissoft, plissoft silver tip, etc.). Stirling's synthetics are unquestionably as good as any of these.

    Boar - new Stirling Boar
    This one I'm not that excited about. I love the handle, but I'm just not a big boar brush guy in general. I like soft and not a ton of scrub or scritch. As such, I don't really like omega boars at all, and prefer the slightly softer Semogue in a boar brush if I'm going to use a boar. Either way, I'll still reach for a badger 99 times out of 100 against any boar. (At some point, I'm going to take some more time to see if I can further break any any of my boars to a point where this opinion changes, but I don't foresee that happening.) Anyway, if you like good backbone and scrubby this is a good brush. More in line with an Omega feel, but with a nicer handle.

    Just one man's opinion, but I hope this helps anyone who is looking at Stirling brushes.
     
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2017
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  12. Yehuda D

    Yehuda D Israeli Ambassador to TSD

    I'm dying to get a Stirling Kong synthetic so this way my Plissoft could have some companionship and take a little rest!
     
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  13. Linuxguile

    Linuxguile dating an unusual aristocrat

    Randy, have you tried the refrigerator technique to break in your boars ? To do this you put the brush in a cup water just enough to cover about 2/3s of the knot and put in the in fridge for 3 days. Supposedly by the third day it will feel like a totally different brush. (I have not tried it myself)
     
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  14. BaylorGator

    BaylorGator MISTER Fancypants

    I did try this, Andrew. It took a little stiffness out of the brush, but the tips are still not soft enough for me. I probably need to work on the "split ends" with a hairdryer or just break it in the old fashioned way to make sure I give it a fair chance.
     
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  15. Gnomeo0228

    Gnomeo0228 Well-Known Member

    Mantic59 posted a video on this the other day. Only difference wss that after 24 hrs, take it out and tub the brush back and forth on a dry towel for 10 min, then back to the fridge. I am trying this now and will try it out on my next shave

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  16. PickledNorthern

    PickledNorthern Fabulous, the unicorn

    I get the impression from the feel of it, that once broken in, the Stirling Boar is going to feel much closer to a Semogue than an Omega.



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  17. BaylorGator

    BaylorGator MISTER Fancypants

    Again, I'm not a boar guy, so I would defer to those of you who are on that one.
     
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  18. PickledNorthern

    PickledNorthern Fabulous, the unicorn

    I responded to the wrong post, but mostly meant it as a "Take Heart", it will feel like a Semogue soon.


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  19. Yehuda D

    Yehuda D Israeli Ambassador to TSD

    What a freeze and what a shave - thank you so much Glacial Eskimo Tuxedo soap and Glacial Unscented balm! (and Arctique splash!)
     
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  20. dustmite

    dustmite Well-Known Member

    @Yehuda D, did you ever check out the Canadian sites that carry the Stirling splashes?
     
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