Pre Shave Oil or Pre Shave Soap?

Q: A friend suggested I use a pre shave oil to help me get a better shave, I also saw pre shave soaps on your website. What is best? I'm age 45 with a heavy growth, I'm a cop and I need to shave daily.

A: For me, pre shave soaps are a far better option that a pre shave oil.

I've used both over the years but I'm now firmly in the pro Pre Shave Soaps camp.

A pre shave oil has a tendency to clog up the razor, not an issue if you're using a cut throat razor but if you're using a Mach3 type cartridge blade then you almost certainly will clog the blades up. The same applies if you use a safety razor.

I have also noticed that the oil does affect my Super Badger Hair shaving brush whenever I've used a pre shave oil, the hairs even after rinsing, post use, in warm water (never hot water) had a tendency to stick together.

The exception being Castle Forbes Pre Shave Oil which is water based and therefore does not negatively affect the brush. A pre shave soap on the other hand will not damage the brush.

Here's how to use a Pre Shave Soap

Wash the face in warm water, gently rub the puck or bar of soap into your bristles. This will leave sufficient soap residue on the face.

Gently rub the soap into the bristles to soften them up and lift them off the face.

With the webbed part of your hand between the pointing finger and the thumb, gently wipe off the excess lather. Doing this will leave a thin film of the pre shave soap on your face.

Apply a good quality shaving cream directly on top of the pre shave film of soap. This will provide additional razor glide and lubrication.

My Recommendation

Claus Porto of Portugal make an amazing range of body soaps, shaving creams and best of all their famous Musgo Real Glyce Soaps which contain glycerine which is superb for providing the razor glide and lubrication guys need for a comfortable shave.

Match the pre shave soap up with a shaving cream with the same scent for a touch of decadent shaving! The range includes Orange Amber, Real (as in Real Madrid), Oak Moss and Spiced Citrus. The puck is long lasting and is a wonderful face and body soap as well as a pre shave soap.

Others I can heartily recommend include Fitjar Nysha Black, and Tallba Pine Soap from Sweden, like Claus Porto Musgo Real this soap is packed with Glycerine. Arran Aromatics too are worth a mention, their Enriching Soap and their Exfoliating Soaps both do a grand job.