Arko Shaving Soap In Bowl, 90 Gram

First about the scent, that’s up to each to decide. Personally, I neither love nor hate it. It’s okay. Some have mentioned it as Ivory soap, soap flakes from the day or household cleaners. It seems to be a bit of all that to me but it’s okay. You rinse with hot then cold water when finished correct? It goes away.No for the shave part of the review. My go to soaps are Mitchell’s Wool Fat and Tabac. Peroso and Cella get turns now and again. This soap is as good as any of them. The little container would fit nicely in most travel kits too.I’ve shave 2X with it now. Fist was using a 1956 Gillette Super Speed (red tip) and a Derby Premier blade. The results were out standing. 2nd shave, I used a Dovo Bismarck straight razor and the results were even better.I use primarily bore brushes (just like them better than badger or synthetic but will try at some point with both). After loading the brush I worked up the lather on my face. It was slick enough and wet enough for 2 perfect 3 pass shaves and clean up for some problem spots. It’s easy to lather. The lather hold up nicely and it just the right wet/slippery combination. Top it off with the after shave of choice and Bob’s your uncle.I will use this from time to time and when it’s gone but more. Frankly if your just thinking of starting wet shaving. This is a perfect starter soap. It does it’s job and it won’t set you back a lot of cash.One last thing about the odor, your not going to walk around smelling like Pledge all day so get over it. This stuff produces a damn fine shave which is the whole point.

I purchased this shave soap for my boyfriend and after we had the double disaster of his shave cup breaking with the last of his shave soap in it. When we got the soap I initially had low hopes, as the packaging is very old fashioned and quite cheap, but I was very pleasantly surprised with the quality of the product.Here is what he has to says about it: "Arko is a no-frills soap for someone with a tough beard and not a lot of time. The soap is incredibly quick to lather to whatever consistency you prefer and has a masculine scent that I can best describe as lemony sawdust - I find it very pleasant, though some may find it a bit challenging. As someone with very difficult facial hair I have found that Arko works better than any other soap I have tried at preventing razor burn and promoting a close shave. Ten minutes from start to finish even after a few days without shaving, and I smell nice to boot."As I noted before, the packaging of the product leaves something desired and while the shaving soap does come in a bowl, the soap puck is also the size and height of that bowl so if you plan to use the bowl it comes in to lather the soap be prepared for it to make a bit of a mess. If you're okay with that, the bowl is quite adequate and served our purposes well. If you plan to transfer the soap to a cup, just be aware that the puck is about six inches across so it may not fit all cups. I've used it a few times on my legs an underarms and find it also gives a nice close shave that I really can't complain about, though it certainly isn't marketed to me, it gets the job done.Overall, Arko Shaving Soap is a great product at a very fair price. Don't judge a book by it's cover!

I keep hearing mixed reviews on this stuff. Some people really love it, others really hate it. Doesn't seem to be any real middle ground. But for $5, I didn't mind the investment to find out for myself.That said, this is the best wet shave you're gonna get...for 5 bucks. It's all business, gets the job done really well. Lathers very rapidly, and the lather itself is full bodied and provides fantastic protection. And it's gentle enough on sensitive skin like mine that doing multiple passes with the blade won't result in redness or irritation, at least not in my experience.The scent is...ok. Like others have said, it is lemony and somewhat disinfectant smelling. But not overwhelming so to the point where it's off-putting. Doesn't smell any worse than any of the drug store junk we all learned with when we were 13. It's not terrible, but it's nothing to write home about. And it doesn't linger after the shave for too long, so if you shave in the morning before work the scent will probably have faded by the time you get there. Or at least by lunch.And for a tallow-based shave soap, it doesn't have quite the same moisturizing properties I would normally expect. So while post-shave moisturizing balms/creams are normally optional, I'd say it's more mandatory for Arko.Lastly, it's great for travel. It's smaller than most other containers like you get from Barrister and Mann or Taylor Old Bond, so it won't take up too much space in your dopp kit. And if you accidentally leave it at the hotel or something, you won't be crying about the $5 needed to replace it.All in all, this stuff is pretty good. But for the price point, it's amazing. There are certainly better performing and more pleasant smelling shave soaps out there, many of them. But not for five bucks.

First off, the thing most people will tell you about Arko is that it smells like citronella urinal pucks. It's really not as bad as they say it is and after using it and letting it dry again, the smell mellows a lot.Performance wise, this soap works up very quickly to produce a cushioning and slick lather. Protection for the face is also really good. It doesn't dry out quickly, if you hydrate it sufficiently.Post-shave, your skin will feel hydrated and nourished. I have very sensitive skin which I've found to be irritated by strong perfumes or certain formulations, like TOBS Sandalwood and St James. That's totally not the case with Arko, so you can shave without fear of getting a contact dermatitis rash.IMHO, at the price these soap pucks/sticks are going for, I don't think Arko can be beat when it comes to the category of "best value for money" in shaving products.