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Bourbon Country Shave Journal - Dave in KY

Hey Dave - I'm sorry Mother Nature got in your business, but thankfully you are holding things together. We have two Goldens. One of them is the most confident, outgoing dog you could wish for, but he melts any time thunder bumpers roll through. One of his nicknames is "Thunder Wuss".

Anyway, I have some 411 on Murphy and McNeil and the soap bases. They started out with a Tallow base and a Tallow and Duck base. The T&D base was called Éisteacht. I own and like both bases, but it turns out there was a fly in the ointment as far as Éisteacht goes. After a while, some guys - and I am one of them - noticed uninvited stuff growing in their Éisteacht soap jars. To M&M's credit, Bill over at M&M did a first class job so far as I know of replacing the jars with the new(er) Aon base. He explained that the Aon was designed to be firmer and more stable. I have three Aon jars - Ouroboros, Claddagh, and Garda Siochána. I got them all in September of 2019, and they are firm enough to be called soaps. I have had no problems with them, although - not wanting to walk on the wild side here - I have scraped them off the puck and spread them into a bowl, thereby helping them to stay dry and critter-free. They are soaps, but soft enough for the scrape-into-the-bowl approach. Beyond that, I have stopped keeping track of M&M, but only because there are so many artisans to keep track of, and I am already so over-soaped (unlike any of you guys lol).

In any case, I will say this: I am fed up with the base-of-the-month phenomenon too. Yes, it facilitates progress, but OTOH it facilitates screw-ups, not to mention budget-busting if you let it.

Stay dry and safe my friend.
 
HighSpeed said:
Hey Dave - I'm sorry Mother Nature got in your business, but thankfully you are holding things together. We have two Goldens. One of them is the most confident, outgoing dog you could wish for, but he melts any time thunder bumpers roll through. One of his nicknames is "Thunder Wuss".

Anyway, I have some 411 on Murphy and McNeil and the soap bases. They started out with a Tallow base and a Tallow and Duck base. The T&D base was called Éisteacht. I own and like both bases, but it turns out there was a fly in the ointment as far as Éisteacht goes. After a while, some guys - and I am one of them - noticed uninvited stuff growing in their Éisteacht soap jars. To M&M's credit, Bill over at M&M did a first class job so far as I know of replacing the jars with the new(er) Aon base. He explained that the Aon was designed to be firmer and more stable. I have three Aon jars - Ouroboros, Claddagh, and Garda Siochána. I got them all in September of 2019, and they are firm enough to be called soaps. I have had no problems with them, although - not wanting to walk on the wild side here - I have scraped them off the puck and spread them into a bowl, thereby helping them to stay dry and critter-free. They are soaps, but soft enough for the scrape-into-the-bowl approach. Beyond that, I have stopped keeping track of M&M, but only because there are so many artisans to keep track of, and I am already so over-soaped (unlike any of you guys lol).

In any case, I will say this: I am fed up with the base-of-the-month phenomenon too. Yes, it facilitates progress, but OTOH it facilitates screw-ups, not to mention budget-busting if you let it.

Stay dry and safe my friend.
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HS, thanks for the info. Not sure anything is growing in it but will keep an eye on it as it had some graininess to it. I bought mine July on 2019 at Pastuers Pharmacy in NYC. I wish mine was in the firmer base......... I appreciate the breakdown on the history. Also glad you found your way over here. Hope you stick around and get into the conversations. 👍
 
Patelliott said:
So on M&M's website it says that Naid is in their Aon firm base. However the second picture looks like a cream. It also says that Trinity is in the same base but Trinity's second picture definitely looks like a former soap (and I can guarantee it is). A lot of people are going nuts over their Kodiak base so maybe they'll be switching everything over to that. Its weird that Naid is a cream and Trinity is more of a firmer soap like Ethos Pineapple Noir.
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The Kodiak base is a nice base and has, for me, acceptable firmness. I purchased a Nantahala soap and AS set and like both the Kodiak base and the scent. Nantahala in the Kodiak base will remain as my one M&M representative.

M&M is now offering their scents in Kodiak on a revolving basis in a 3 oz size (mine is in the larger size)--the current 3 oz Kodiak offering is Nantahala for $19.99. It took a little will power for me to pass up the 3 oz Cliffs of Moher soap in Kodiak a few days ago as I really liked that scent in the sample I have in their regular base. I actually really like the idea of a 3 oz soap size--I think it is ideal. If I were to advise someone about purchasing M&M I would advise them to get some samples to find out what scent they like then wait for what they like to pop up in the Kodiak base.

Of course none of this will help Dave solve the soft soap saga.
 
Southsider said:
The Kodiak base is a nice base and has, for me, acceptable firmness. I purchased a Nantahala soap and AS set and like both the Kodiak base and the scent. Nantahala in the Kodiak base will remain as my one M&M representative.

M&M is now offering their scents in Kodiak on a revolving basis in a 3 oz size (mine is in the larger size)--the current 3 oz Kodiak offering is Nantahala for $19.99. It took a little will power for me to pass up the 3 oz Cliffs of Moher soap in Kodiak a few days ago as I really liked that scent in the sample I have in their regular base. I actually really like the idea of a 3 oz soap size--I think it is ideal. If I were to advise someone about purchasing M&M I would advise them to get some samples to find out what scent they like then wait for what they like to pop up in the Kodiak base.

Of course none of this will help Dave solve the soft soap saga.
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Honestly 3 ounces for $20 solves my M&M problem just fine. That's a hard pass for me !😎👍
 
"O" is for One Percenter

Wednesday April 15, 2020
2020 Shave # 112 ( 527 Consecutive Shaves )
Razor: TNNSER 3D Print Razor
Blade: Gem Personna (?)
Brush: Stirling Synthetic
Soap: One Percenter
Aftershave 1: Humphrey's Alcoholado Maravilla 70
Aftershave 2: Skin Bracer

Had a nice shave with the razor once I realized I had a old junk blade loaded and switched to the one that was in my Gem G bar razor. Video of the shave and will be uploaded when/If we ever get internet back. Lost Sunday evening and working on day 3 with most of the town without it.........

Have a stupid fun day Cadre !!! 😎
IMG_20200414_122615157.jpg
 
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Graybeard57 said:
Yes, that's a steep price. It would need to be the best soap ever for me to purchase, better than CBL, LNHC, and Shannon's.
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It's good but not that good. Add to that the revolving changes in their soap base. Nope for me. After 24 hours of my Naid sitting uncovered it hasn't firmed up any. Zero difference. Shame as I love the scent but I'll probably trade if someone wants it or throw it out.
 
Another great shave Dave! Nice to see you pulling out soaps that I haven't seen before! I guess that is the advantage of an ABC shave! Hope your internet gets up soon.
 
Maryland998 said:
Talk to the hand :cool:
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Thanks for reading Ken.

I said in the video I'd post the scent notes in my journal and forgot:

A masculine mix of Cuban Tobacco and Oak Aged Bourbon.
Scent Profile: Starting with top notes of Tobacco, followed by an opulent blend of pure and sultry notes of Oak Aged Bourbon. You will notice subtle undertones of Cedarwood and Tonka Bean.

Scent Notes: Opening notes of Pipe Tobacco with undertones of Exotic Cedarwood, Tonka Bean and Oak Aged Bourbon.
 
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