Does anyone use ordinary bar soap?

Discussion in 'Shave Soaps' started by white_feather, May 29, 2013.

  1. Paul Hunnisett

    Paul Hunnisett New Member

    I can get a perfectly useable lather with Proraso, but, imho, there are far better products out there. Compared with most of the market, Proraso is a very poor product - imho ;)
     
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  2. ohpaos

    ohpaos Smiley Provider

    Have any guys had success using hair conditioner as shave gel? (Just thinking about what else the OP can try that may be around the house)

    Just looked them up. The prices are reasonable & there's a 20% off sale currently. (Curse my shave purchase sabbatical!) Thanks for letting us know about them.
    http://www.hugonaturals.com/products/categories/handcrafted-soaps/
     
  3. HolyRollah

    HolyRollah BaconLord

    I've used hair conditioner as a shave lube a number of times. It's not my personal preference, but in a pinch with no shave gel, foam or shave soap present, I've opted for the conditioner. On the plus side, it does provide better lubrication and tends not to dry out the face unlike regular bar soaps. Plus you can find the little 3oz bottles for travel. downside is it can clog your razor if you're not careful with the rinsing. Most bar soaps deplete your face of any moisture and you'll wind up with dry, irritated skin post-shave if you don't apply some sort of balm or lotion afterwards.
     
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  4. Queen of Blades

    Queen of Blades Mistress of Mischief Staff Member

    Moderator Supporting Vendor
    Slipperyjoe likes this.
  5. PanChango

    PanChango Not Cute

    When I shower shaved, I would use bar soap all the time. Since I have switched, I have tried it a couple times outside the shower with mediocre results. I never really invested much time in trying to make it work better. Williams while not a favorite, works really well if you take your time with it. It is about a buck a puck and well worth it in my opinion over using bath soap if possible.
     
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  6. Slipperyjoe

    Slipperyjoe Rusty Metal Tetanus

    Three butters eh!..that stuff must be murder on the ol' cholesterol count..:p
     
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  7. Mouser

    Mouser Well-Known Member

    I've used that Swedish Dream bath soap, a few different Pre de Provence bath soaps, Black Soap Musk and Sports. None of them are ordinary but they are bath soaps. Worked ok, You just have to change the water ratios, and work up a new lather for each pass,....in some cases.
     
  8. Mouser

    Mouser Well-Known Member

    But that said, the best answer for budget shaving is Williams. Value wise it is the best product out there. period.
     
  9. swarden43

    swarden43 "It's your shave. Enjoy it your way."©

    Nope. VDH is. :duel:

    (as we pause and wait for someone to say Arko :D)
     
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  10. Weeper Warrior

    Weeper Warrior Well-Known Member

    ARKO!!!!
     
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  11. Mouser

    Mouser Well-Known Member

    actually, you're right. it's not only cheap as dirt but it lasts and lasts.
     
  12. Sara-s

    Sara-s This Pun for Hire

    I have occasionally used my shower soap to shave my legs. (Usually it was because I forgot to take my shave soap into the shower & didn't want to get out of the shower to get it.) My shower soap lathers pretty well. It runs a very close second to the stuff I make for shaving.
     
  13. VictoriaRose

    VictoriaRose New Member

    I associate bar soaps with dry itchy skin, and don't have them around for anything. Now I'm curious to see how my arsenal of shower gels would lather, though. And whipped soaps; a couple of my whipped soaps say they can be used for shaving I think..
     
  14. HolyRollah

    HolyRollah BaconLord

    I believe that ANY regular shower or bath soap's limitations as a good shaving lather would greatly benefit from a decent application of pre-shave oil. I know thats more challenging for shower-shavers (one of which I used to be) to apply, but it would reduce the amount of dryness & irritation many soaps can cause.
     
  15. Queen of Blades

    Queen of Blades Mistress of Mischief Staff Member

    Moderator Supporting Vendor
    There are better soaps out there than what is available at WalMart.

    I like Ginger's Garden soaps.
     
  16. ChrisC1977

    ChrisC1977 Well-Known Member


    A lot of good advice here. But I agree with picking up a puck of Williams. It's a scant over $1.00. If you have not used Williams before, it can be a bit tricky to lather. Soak the puck, drain water and lather in the same mug the puck. Looks foamy at 1st, but if you are patient, you get a nice slick lather. I am a fan of Williams. Not my favorite, but the razor glide provided by Williams almost always leads to a comfortable BBS!
     
  17. Mouser

    Mouser Well-Known Member

    See, ymmv again. I have no problem lathering a dry puck o'williams with a wet brush... kaboom goes the lather. you may have hard water.
     
  18. kingfisher

    kingfisher Active Member

    Victoria,
    Good bar soaps are a whole lot LESS likely to dry out your skin than a liquid soap or gel. Commercial bar soaps dry out the skin because the makers have removed the glycerin from them so they can sell it as glycerin for a larger profit. Artisan soaps and quality soaps can almost be moisturizing if they are superfatted. For a cheap experiment, go the Dollar General or The Dollar Store and buy one bar of Yardley bar soap in a scent of your choosing. It's only a buck. It's not the nicest soap in the world, but it's a large step up from commercial bar soap.

    When you get ready to step up to the good stuff, send me a PM and I'll give you a list of awesome soaps that'll make it so you never want to use a liquid or gel soap again.

    I'm talking here about bath soap for bathing, not for shaving.
     
  19. richgem

    richgem suffering from chronic clicker hand cramps

    I've tried it on rare occasion with soaps that had tallow listed and once in an emergency. It wasn't a pleasant experience although the job got done. One to avoid, at least for me.
     
  20. VictoriaRose

    VictoriaRose New Member

    I'll be on the lookout for that brand next time I shop there, thanks. =]
     

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