Well, stearic doesn't lather well, but what lather it makes is dense/creamy. Coconut lathers really well, but what lather it makes is loose/fluffy. If by "explode" you mean the lather is not dense enough to suit your needs, then yes I'd think more stearic would be a good direction to go. I suspect Eric or another shaver/soaper will know more about what you mean, so maybe they can confirm or suggest a better route to go.
My first shaving soap is a success!
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wetshavingproducts
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That or add a third oil into the mix to cut into the coconut oil.
LBussy
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That's it exactly. It's not that it's not good lather, I'd just prefer it a little denser.
Tallow would seem to be the obvious choice. I may call the butcher and see what I can score.
Thanks folks.
I've used it cold, it's not a problem. I've also used it with a hot scuttle. It deflates a little bit between passes so you want to swirl it with the brush again, but that seems to be universal.
That initial looser lather settles down just fine with continued application of the brush. What I usually do is just keep loading anyway, scooping the loose lather up w/ the brush or a finger and putting it back in the action.
If your experience is anything like mine, you might find it easier to pick up some lard from the grocery store. No one around me sells tallow.
Shea, cocoa or kokum butters are also good 3rd oils for shaving soaps.
LBussy said:
If your experience is anything like mine, you might find it easier to pick up some lard from the grocery store. No one around me sells tallow.
Shea, cocoa or kokum butters are also good 3rd oils for shaving soaps.
LBussy
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Yes, I did notice that as well. It's a great soap, I just wan to tweak a bit.
I'm planning to render some down ... I started another thread asking a couple questions of those who might know.If your experience is anything like mine, you might find it easier to pick up some lard from the grocery store. No one around me sells tallow.
I have a little lanolin and shea in this now. I'm not sure I want to add any more of those so tallow it is.
I did a little searching and it looks like lard and butterfat a have similar properties to tallow. I was surprised about the butterfat but I guess that makes sense. Palm oil seems to be closest on the vegetarian side.
I would be wary of using butterfat as a sub for tallow or lard. What the soap calcs don't consider is the very short chain fatty acids such as butyric, capric, and caprylic. Butterfat (aka milkfat and its very close relative ghee) has all three of those, which will increase the solubility and fluffy lather above what the soap calcs suggest. Also butyric soap has a distinctive cheese/bread/beery odor that can be off-putting unless you are prepared to fragrance the product appropriately. I don't mind it in a bath soap, but if I was a guy, even I might not care for the butyric scent right under my nose for the time needed to shave.
LBussy
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Good to know, and that make sense. Not having my shaving soap smell like vomit seems like a good goal. :think:
Crombie
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How about using a silicone cavity mold - like a half cup-cake size with straight edges (the size of the loofah foot soaps) ?? Would that work?
LBussy
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It would probably work better with NaOH than with KOH. Most of the KOH soaps I have used are semi-soft, we call them "croaps" as they are between a cream and a soap. I think to un-mold any of them you'd have to freeze. The commercial ones I have seen seem to be piped into the screw-top container and artisanal soaps just seem to be spooned/mushed in.
These are popular containers for instance:
the people over in barrister and mann said they have to use hp due to the amount of stearic acid in theirs, so i'd say thats a safe conclusion.
LBussy
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Got the fiance's review. I'm not sure about the policy for curse words on here, so I'll just say that he liked it *a lot* and immediately threw out the one he had been using. And now he needs a brush as nice as the soap.
Stacie, a brush is a very personal thing but this gentleman makes very nice brushes. I own one as do a good many people on Badger and Blade:
http://ultimatependesigns.com/
No affiliation other than I purchased one from him after he was VERY nice about helping me through the decision process.
Or, if that's not in your price range, tell us what he has, what likes and does not like about his current brush and we might be able to guide you to what he may like better. While you can drop $300 on some fancy brushes, one need not spend more than $30 in most cases for a fantastic brush that will last years.
Stacie
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I looked at that site and I don't see prices, which seems like a bad sign for the budget, which is low. He uses a very cheap brush. He's only been at this for a year and a half and thought the whole pricey and fetishized shaving accoutrements thing was silly. I think he has had an epiphany with is wonderful soap that perhaps there is some value in the nicer products. I will ask him what he doesn't like about his brunch, but I'd imagine anything would be a step up.
Alas, I don't know about the shipping, but I bought one from The Traditional Shaving Company in the UK which was reasonable indeed.
ETA - Stacie, if you don't mind me asking, what recipe did you settle on in the end?
ETA - Stacie, if you don't mind me asking, what recipe did you settle on in the end?
LBussy
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I would imagine his brushes start at $75 or so ... and yes they go up from there steeply.
Never fear though! There are a lot of very nice brushes out there which do not cost an arm and a leg. This one:
Omega 00065-100% Boar Bristle Shaving Brush-YELLOW
$10.99
... is s great 100% boar brush. A boar brush does need a couple "shampooings" to get rid of the funk (it's a natural product after all) and does take a break in period to get nice. The hairs will split making a much softer experience as it does so.
I also like horse hair brushes, and this hair is collected during the grooming process. I have a brush similar to this one and like it a lot:
Vie-Long 12750 Horse Hair Shaving Brush, Butterscotch
$39.99
I don't know of any economy priced badgers, mostly because I was a boar and horse hair guy before getting this custom brush made.
Do talk to him, find out if he likes to lather in the bowl, on his face, what he's using now and what he doesn't like about it. We'll get you pointed in the right direction.
wetshavingproducts
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Answering this question first.
That's not a good idea. Hair has a shelf life and it's measured in years, not really decades. What he probably actually wants is a vintage handle with a new knot. All you need is to find the handle, drill out the old knot, and install a new one. If you don't want to do it yourself, there's a few people out there that will do it.
Answering the other questions. Full disclaimer, I do sell brushes. Boar is the cheapest and best bang for the dollar. It will soften up with use and a lot of people really don't see the point of badger if they love boar enough. Good quality badger is about 6-10x the price.
Moving up, you have clipped badger hair, usually mixed with goat hair. Basically leftover hair. This option is usually a few dollars more than boar. I don't use this hair.
Moving up, there's black badger/pure badger. It's a little scratchy, but it's basic badger.
Moving up again, fine/best/finest badger. Then silvertip, then exotic hairs.
Here's a hierarchy and description of most badger hair grades. The names change with supply/demand & customer expectations (aka every brand uses their own names). http://wetshavingproducts.com/badger-brush-hair-grades/
LBussy
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What he said ... and vintage sources are the same as others ... antique stores, Etsy and eBay. Here's one that is popular with those that restore:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Collectible...712?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a3f4f0530
And yes, re-knotting (what it's called when you replace the bristles) is going to be necessary with a vintage one.
