This little, stinky stick o' tallow has received so much notoriety that I'm pretty excited to use it tonight. I don't mind the smell at all, so that won't be an issue. I can't believe I've had this in my den for a couple of months and haven't used it yet, but then I have a couple of dozen soaps and creams that I haven't used and I'm slowly working my way them. So...is there anything out there that is similar to the Arko stick or will this be a totally unique experience?
I think the Tweex stick is very similar.....so much so, that I probably will not buy any more as I have enough Arko to last me some time!. I think you should be very impressed with the shave.
I'm paraphasing from another thread: "Derby is also made in Turkey, but has a much less pronounced scent. Think Arko without the overpowering citrusy smell and more of a woodsy, earthy scent. The lather is almost identical, with the edge perhaps given to Derby." If you want to read the full thread: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/277250-Derby-Shaving-soap-stick
I like Arko a lot , been using it for years. I don't know of anything similar thats tallow and as low priced. Currently Arko is third behind Cella and Vitos Extra Super in my daily tallow soap rotation.
I haven't read that review yet but I will say....Arko Shave Sticks are of historical importance....they have been the bomb as far as lather goes for many many years, and have always been so inexpensive....I love them...You should be trembling with anticipation.....I'm sure you'll love it....
Nope, the only way I'll touch an Arko stick is if one shows up in the travel box. I can't stand the smell of Williams and from what I read, Arko smells the same but stronger. There are too many products out there that are cheap enough that I like, for me to trouble with ones that I'm already predisposed to hate.
Its a been a year since I had a puck new Williams so I can't remember that well but I liked the scent , as you quoted originally it maybe a more muted Arko . I am sure you know that back in the day Williams was presented for double use as a bath soap, and the scent of new Williams still makes think of that but not Ivory soap like Arko. In the past I thought English Ingrams and Williams made a good superlather basically because the scent combo of the two , they seemed complimentary.
I don't mind the smell of Ivory soap, but to me Williams smells like a citronella candle. If I keep hearing good things about Arko, I might try it one of these days. I eventually tried MWF and really liked it. It took a couple years though.
When I open an Arko Stick, I cut away all the paper covering except for about 1/2" at the bottom for holding it. In a week or 2 most of the scent dissipates. This may be sufficient for those having difficulty with the scent.
To expand on that, this is from my SotD Wow! My first time using Arko. I got a crap-ton of lather out of this and made the mistake of adding water until I got the volume I wanted, not until I got the consistency I wanted and as I left the first lather on my face for a few minutes, it started drying up. Adding more water solved that and further increased my lather volume. Super lather, super slick. Yowza! I don't hate the scent but it's not my favorite either. It will probably grow on me. I left the partially unwrapped stick on the counter last night and this morning when I went in the scent hit me so I moved it to my cabinet. I may have to set this out in the garage for a spell. I may have to put this in a bowl. Shaving every day, my whiskers just don't get long enough to scrape much soap off a stick, be it this or La Toja. Then again, you don't need much Arko for lots of lather.
One Arko user who didn't like the scent would do just as your suggesting, he would put a stick in his garage and let the scent dissipate. Also one Turkish barber video on youtube showed a simple trick, the barber would rub the stick of soap back and forth onto the shaving brush itself and load it with soap, I have tried this and it works well.
Another trick I have used is to lay down a very light coat of Arko on the face, followed by a wet brush loaded halfway with a favorite soap, like Tabac. This makes a wonderful superlather on the face with little Arko scent.
I like the smell of the Arko Stick....but sometimes I'll rub a wet Stick ATG and load my whiskers with soap....Then wet the brush and put a dap of a favorite cream in the center of the brush and hit my face lathering.....What a great Uberlather, and by picking your cream you can pick your scent....The Arko scent backs down and dissappears no matter what cream you use.... BTW.....the Arko Stick really excells at face-lathering.....just rub a wet stick ATG and load your whisker and hit it with a wet brush.....getting maximum lather is childs play.....A chimpanzee could do it.... As far as comparing Arko to Williams....I can't...I never liked Williams back in the day (sorry Williams lovers) so I haven't used it in too many years....but I seriously love Arko.......Might have to give Williams a spin again.....too many people I respect dig it....
iv been using Arko for a few weeks now being new to de razer shaving i found it excellent for lather and dont have a problem with the smell
