Soap cutter reviews?

[Lanie]

This is very old thread but still useful so I will put my question here. I am wanting to get a quality single-bar soap cutter. Sounds like Bud’s cutters are excellent. I also saw a highly rated cutter at adminSoapgirlequip on Etsy. Here is the link :https://www.etsy.com/shop/adminSoapgirlequip

Does anyone have experience with this cutter?

Thank you!

 

[Ford]

Mmm, both are well built. Materials, wood vs metal. How often will you be using it? I used a homemade, single bar quite often. Until purchasing a multi bar cutter.

 

[AliOop]

I absolutely love my multibar cutter from Nurture Soap; it's easy to clean, and cuts like a dream. My retired finish-carpenter husband says the construction is top notch. He rarely says that about anything so when he does, it's the real deal.

 

[Lanie]

Mmm, both are well built. Materials, wood vs metal. How often will you be using it? I used a homemade, single bar quite often. Until purchasing a multi bar cutter.

Thanks! I am only making 5-10 bar batches every week or so. In my soapy dreams I will need a multi bar cutter one day! But not yet.

 

[Lanie]

I absolutely love my multibar cutter from Nurture Soap; it's easy to clean, and cuts like a dream. My retired finish-carpenter husband says the construction is top notch. He rarely says that about anything so when he does, it's the real deal.

I absolutely love my multibar cutter from Nurture Soap; it's easy to clean, and cuts like a dream. My retired finish-carpenter husband says the construction is top notch. He rarely says that about anything so when he does, it's the real deal.

That is quite an endorsement! Unfortunately Nurture Soap no longer sells them.

 

[Tammyfarms]

Thanks! I am only making 5-10 bar batches every week or so. In my soapy dreams I will need a multi bar cutter one day! But not yet.

Just something to think about- I am a casual maker and average less than one batch of 8 bars a week. Getting a multi bar cutter was a game changer. I REALLY didn’t want to spend the money for a good one but it has been totally worth it. Initially I used a miter box with a cutter or a knife, then I bought a single bar cutter from Amazon. The problem I had with all of those was getting consistently sized bars. I bought a Buds cutter from Etsy and love it. I don’t regret my single bar cutter and use it occasionally if I need to cut something that’s not a 10” loaf.

Now on to your question, this is the cutter I bought https://a.co/d/dkiXbW7, for about the same price you could get the SoapGirlEquip cutter you posted and it looks like a much nicer cutter. Buds cutters are super well made. I love my multi bar cutter from him.

 

[not_ally]

I have a single bar Bud cutter and I love it as well. I don't sell, so don't need to cut a bunch at once, and I like looking at each slice as I cut and being able to quickly cut slices of varying thicknesses from a single loaf. But the cutter you've linked to seems good as well.

 

[A-Polly]

I love my single-bar Bud cutter, too. However, if I were just now looking to buy, I might think hard about that Hercules from Custom Craft Tools, just because it can be a log splitter as well as a single bar cutter. I know several members here have one, and wonder if any of you would recommend it as a first purchase instead of a regular bar cutter?

Also, I am amazed at the number of inexpensive soap cutters that show up on Amazon these days. I'm sure my Bud cutter is more durable (and easier to clean, since it's not wooden), but it would be hard to ignore those prices — some are even less than $20. That's not much more than the cheese slicer I once used!


Edited to add that, like @not_ally, I love the cutting process and looking at each bar as it appears!

 

[dibbles]

I have a single bar cutter from Custom Craft Tools, and it is awesome. I had a Bud cutter that was made of wood (I think that has changed) that I liked, but found limiting if I was wanting to cut a loaf horizontally - for example, cutting a 9" loaf into three pieces 3" long as in a Taiwan swirl, etc. The screw and plate for the stopper can easily be completely romoved from the CCT cutter, which is a big plus over what my Bud cutter could do.

I bought my single cutter from CCT before they introduced the caterpillar/hercules. I did buy a caterpillar and love that too, but when I'm just cutting a loaf I always reach for my single cutter first. If I could only keep one (or didn't have one and was looking to buy) I think I would have to choose the caterpillar as the ability to split slabs is a huge bonus.

The only problem for me with a multi bar cutter is that there really isn't any flexibility in the size of the bars. This is only occasionally an issue, but still something to consider. I don't sell and enjoy cutting soap, so I'm not dealing with large quantities of soap that needs to be cut. In that case, I can see the appeal of a multibar cutter.

I think I remember Katie at Royalty Soaps trying out and endorsing a relatively inexpensive single bar cutter she found on Amazon. You could check her YouTube videos - I saw one recently where she was using it (I think when she was using a Bramble Berry kit).

 

[Lanie]

Haha yes, I love the cutting process too! I could watch Holly at Holly’s Soapmaking cut soap all day long!! I have heard several people say the cheap versions on Amazon problematic and not really worth it. I will definitely look at the Hercules. Do you know it also planes or bevels?

 

[dibbles]

Haha yes, I love the cutting process too! I could watch Holly at Holly’s Soapmaking cut soap all day long!! I have heard several people say the cheap versions on Amazon problematic and not really worth it. I will definitely look at the Hercules. Do you know it also planes or bevels?

It does not bevel. You could probably use it to plane a whole loaf before cutting into bars. The Caterpillar can be set in increments of 1/8" and the Hercules in increments of 1/4". I think trying to plane individual bars could be very fiddly as they can vary slightly in height and you would be adjusting and readjusting. If absolute consistency isn't a concern, you could probably make it work, but it won't take the place of a planer IMO.

 

[Lanie]

Thanks for all the great info. Just looked at the Hercules and Caterpillar. Both are beatiful. Great reviews. Have to think this through w/ costs, current use, future potential, etc. I am gathering that the acrylic cutters are easier to clean than the all wood cutters?

 

[Ford]

To be honest. I have been looking at the Hercules. To replace my home made single bar. It has so many other uses also. The Hercules isn't much more than a single bar bud's cutter. It would save you from buying. A log splitter down the road.

 

[AliOop]

I do have a Hercules and love it, but I don't use it to cut regular loaves, as I am not that great at cutting equal-sized single bars (hence the multi-bar cutter).

If I had to do it over again, I would buy the Caterpillar, due to the ⅛" cutting increments, as opposed to the ¼" increments on the Hercules. There have been times where that would have made a nice difference so I didn't end up with two different-sized loaves.

 

[bookworm]

I absolutely love my multibar cutter from Nurture Soap; it's easy to clean, and cuts like a dream. My retired finish-carpenter husband says the construction is top notch. He rarely says that about anything so when he does, it's the real deal.

I’m going to second that, mine still looks new after 100’s of batches cut, it’s strong and sturdy and the wire tension has never required adjustment after a few years of use.

 

[Geetika]

as we are on cutters, which is a good cutter available in INDIA? Thanks. Geetika

 

[not_ally]

I would kind of like a log splitter, but am happy with my single bar Bud cutter otherwise. For those of you who have both a single bar cutter that you are happy with and a Caterpillar/Hercules, is it worth buying one of the latter if you don't make/split slabs much? Ie; as mentioned above I love my Bud single bar cutter and Bud also makes a log splitter for $60.00, which is considerably cheaper than either CC cutter. I can't figure out if buying one of those would be worth it except for the space saving aspect of having the two functions in one cutter (which is, admittedly, a big plus). Are the CC ones that much easy to use when splitting loafs?

Bud splitter: https://www.etsy.com/listing/150587950/adjustable-log-splitter?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=american+workshop+log+splitter&ref=sr_gallery-1-2&sts=1&content_source=753efe7f41aef0934f8ee557bf9b6af1f94061c7%3A150587950&search_preloaded_img=1&organic_search_click=1

 

[dibbles]

@not_ally, the CCT is a lot easier to use than the Bud style splitter. Changing the wire height is a big pain, and over time making adjustments weakens the wire and it can tend to break more often than a regular cutter. At least that was my experience.

You have to decide if it is worth it to you to have a splitter when you don't use slab molds much. Other than dividing slabs, I will use it to even out a wonky top on a loaf for uniform bars or cutting a bit off of a very ashy top. I will also use it to split a loaf that requires a horizontal cut (ie, Taiwan Swirl, Mantra Swirl, etc). All of that can be accomplished with a single bar cutter, it just takes a lot more fiddling around.

 

[AliOop]

I had a Bud splitter. It was well made, but I hated it for the reasons @dibbles mentioned. Buying the Hercules was worth the difference in price for me.

However, if you knew that you would leave the splitter wire at the same height most of the time, I could see where that might be a good option for someone who doesn’t need or want the other things that the Hercules can do.

 

[not_ally]

Thanks, @dibbles and @AliOop. I wish we all lived in some fantasy soaping community where I could just pop over with cookies in exchange for borrowing your cutters! Soaping every day! And cookies!