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The 4th "Annual" Williams Mug Soap 3017 Challenge!
- Thread starter Spider
- Start date
The best recreation of vintage Williams tallow soap is CBL’s Tonsorial. His journey to re-create it is how he got into the soap making business.
EMG06
"TSC's Bingo Admiral"
Agree ! Sadly I’ve used up my supply of tonsorial pucks on hand.
So, the common wisdom is to bloom or soak your pucks prior to use. The general thought is that the pucks have dried slightly sitting on the shelves in their not air-tight boxes, and benefit from a good soaking.
I've generally heard of folks soaking their new puck for several hours, often overnight, prior to first use, and then soaking for several minutes, generally while showering, prior to subsequent uses.
What are your thoughts on blooming? Do you do it? Do you find any benefit.?
I've generally heard of folks soaking their new puck for several hours, often overnight, prior to first use, and then soaking for several minutes, generally while showering, prior to subsequent uses.
What are your thoughts on blooming? Do you do it? Do you find any benefit.?
I do it. Both on opening (several hour deep soak) and then again in the shower prior to shaving (blooming). Works great for me.
I never bloom or soak my vintage. I get good loading with a damp brush, (so far on every puck ive tried at least) and a really good lather build just face lathering.
The modern stuff, I honestly have never gotten a decent lather from no matter what I do. Best I could ever get was something that looked like you took Mitchell's and very very heavily over watered it. Slippery, but no cushion that way. The one puck I tried to soak for a couple hours turned to jelly, and blooming never seemed to help me get a good load on the brush.
It is one soap that i could never figure out. I do love the vintage stuff though.
I did start last night. I'll have to get a photo of my puck later as a starting reference.
The modern stuff, I honestly have never gotten a decent lather from no matter what I do. Best I could ever get was something that looked like you took Mitchell's and very very heavily over watered it. Slippery, but no cushion that way. The one puck I tried to soak for a couple hours turned to jelly, and blooming never seemed to help me get a good load on the brush.
It is one soap that i could never figure out. I do love the vintage stuff though.
I did start last night. I'll have to get a photo of my puck later as a starting reference.
HMan
Doften Savant
Mine's been sitting there for a good year without being touched. No problem just lathering like normal. In fact it was super easy to lather, and I forgot how great the soap is. I can't speak for 'modern' though.
Although not in the challenge this year, as i have done every year since the BB days, I am using today, in tribute to you brave souls, as a do every month or so. As to blooming, even on a brand new puck i only use about a teaspoon of water on the puck while showering, then hand load on the puck in my palm, face lather adding water slowly. Never had an issue with the old or modern pucks getting a perfect lather. I am down to 4-5 pucks and in preservation mode
My tribute to you intrepid voyagers
I like to bloom/soak overnight the first time then bloom/soak while I shower from then on. I like using a mug so I can soak my brush in the bloom water to really get all that sudsy goodness in the brush. The first couple days I will also leave the unused lather in the mug, this seems to help soften the puck more and helps it stick to the bottom of the mug.
Apothecary mugs are great because they are a perfect fit for the puck but my preference is to use an old old spice mug. Something about having extra space around the sides of the puck seems to help it lather.
That's the whole point in doing the 3017. It was made up so folks would spend the time necessary for them to experiment with technique, brushes, and water to be able to find the methods that allowed them to finally figure the soap out and get great lather and shaves.
I love the vintage Williams Tonsorial (barbershop) soap. @Spider PIF’d me one years ago and I fell in love. Since then I’ve been able to buy a couple rolls of both Williams and Colgate tonsorial soap. I can’t say for sure that the formula is any different but I feel like they might be. The pucks are larger though, so I know they are finished differently. I honestly believe (with all my heart) the “time” is a key ingredient. Old nasty dried up soaps tend to be the best. Sure, they lack all the fancy ingredients added to today’s soaps but my face never cared about the fancy stuff.
I WILL say, unless the old soaps (or newer Williams) is lathering easy for me I don’t gave lathered it. If the soap is being difficult it CAN be easier to build a lather directly on my face but the extra time working the soap on my face tends to irritate my skin.
Typically, I start with the overnight soak as well. This time, I was a bit rushed and did a quick shave upon returning from my Vegas trip. I only had time to pre-soak during my shave. I noticed no real difference. This morning, I forgot to pre-soak while in the shower and only soaked it for about a minute prior to shaving. Still no difference. Able to get a wonderful shave regardless.
Teaspoon on the puck, palm lather. Have not used this puck in a long time, and a tribute shave to you guys