Foolishly Defending Preconceived Notions
A short while ago, I authored an article on Sharpologist.com, which compared Martin De Candre (MDC) shave soap to Williams -- arguably the Rolls-Royce of shave soaps to the Toyota Yaris of shave soaps.I got some push-back comments from two readers trolling the article. Normally I try not to respond to cranks and trolls, but their comments kind of pissed me off due to their carelessness and stupidity.
Both criticized the pseudo science of my approach. In reality, I simply laid out my methods and my observations. I made and still make no claim of scientific method, which I actually understand, and those blockheads clearly don't.
One of the trolls took issue with my unusual lathering methods. But in reality, I merely loaded my warm, wet brush with soap from a soap cup and then face lathered. Not so unusual, eh, Sparky? What may have confused the simpleton troll is that I explained how I heated my water in a microwave oven rather than letting the tap run (and run and run) waiting for the water to get hot. Obviously this guy wouldn't score high in reading comprehension.
The other troll suggested that he goes through a puck of Williams in 35 shaves, while MDC lasts waaaaaaaaaay longer. Hmm. Okay, well, Williams pucks are 50 grams, while MDC comes in 200-gram quantities. Not much of a shock that MDC lasts waaaaaaaaaaay longer -- although I seriously doubt that any normal Williams user uses up a puck in 35 shaves. That joker must be really wasteful.
Or else his and the other troll's opinions are not at all objective and are primarily influenced by reputation and cost. My over-riding point of that Sharpologist article was that price doesn't always suggest quality. As someone who has a degree in marketing (among other subjects), I'm all too aware that brand image is greatly influenced by price. (For example, I think some apparently failed shave-soap brands such as Pyrate Cove Soap Works were not successful because they were priced too low! I have re-evaluated three different pucks of this soap brand, and I find them to be every bit as good as MDC, though they were not much more costly than Williams, when you compare cost per ounce. I believe that if such soaps were more expensive, they would have been deemed higher quality and more desirable in the marketplace.) Anyway in this Rolls versus Yaris case, I didn't see much difference between the two soaps -- a conclusion that I didn't originally anticipate.
Since that Rolls-Yaris comparison, I've actually been doing similar comparisons with all my shave soaps, and my conclusions are contrary to my previously stated opinions in this blog. At this time, I believe that virtually all of my hard and semi-hard shave soaps perform about the same. The only major difference is in fragrances.
Once I go through my extensive inventory of shave soap (which may take a long time), I may just go with Williams because it's readily available and inexpensive.
It never ceases to amaze me how some persons react when their preconceived opinions are challenged by someone merely stating his own, individual opinion. Sheesh!
My Infrequent Straight Shave of This Morning
I haven't had a straight-razor shave in a while, and on a whim I pulled out my Parker PTB this morning. I did a very basic 1-1/2-pass shave that was surprisingly easy given my general use of DE razors much more than my barber or classic straight razors.
Though I'm still a committed DE user, it was fun to have a go with a straight on my beard. (I normally, every week or two, shave the back of my neck with the PTB.)
Happy shaving (and trolling if that's your thing) :-D
WOW! I went back and read your article and the comments. I can see how you would feel. Some people really need to engage their brain before they start driving their mouths! I have to admit, I was laughing to myself and shaking my head as I was reading their comments. Hopefully I never come across like that, if I do, it's never intended!
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy your articles and the thoroughness you put into them. Always informative and thought provoking. And I can try your ideas out without having to spend a fortune on the things you use.
Williams, for me is one of those bitter sweet things. I was elated when I finally learned how to get a good lather without a lot of effort. The stuff is slick as "snail snot on a door knob" and gives a really close shave. The problem I have with it is the after the shave effect. I have sensitive skin, and I find that unless I "scrub" the residue off my face, it dries it out horribly and the skin begins to crack from the soap. I have the same problem with Stirling soaps. So I tend to shop for those that have natural and the fewest ingredients in them. If I had to choose from supermarket soaps, I would have to go with VDH. It doesn't shave as close, but my skin likes it better.
I will say, that over the past few months II have become a big fan of the soap made by The Shaving Guy. It's gentle, gives me consistently close shaves and has never irritated me. Not quite as slick as some would prefer, but with a wet razor, it works great for me.
https://www.amazon.com/Premium-Shaving-Well-Groomed-Guy/dp/B01LXWRID4/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1520950684&sr=8-1&keywords=the+shave+guy
I looked at those 4 comments from apparently 4 different people. They are critical, but that doesn't make them all trolls. Take the 1st comment, for example, by "Brian Fiori (AKA The Dean)". He made valid points about how you might want to consider broadening your approach to find what method works best for each soap. His final paragraph doesn't sound like a troll to me:
ReplyDelete"Another way to go about looking at products would be to find how they perform best—then compare them using the best method for each. In other words, if you adapted to the product, instead of making a square peg fit a round hole, you might have reached a different conclusion. I’m not suggesting you actually do this for yourself. I also tend to use products that fit the way I prefer to shave. Just be aware how limited the relevance of your review is for others, who may prep/shave using dramatically different methods."
The 2nd commenter was brief and negative about analyses like yours in general. (I suppose that any broadly negative comment can be classified as trolling, but that seems like a stretch to me.)
The 3rd commenter was rudely negative with a little "cheap" name calling thrown in. Whether that's considered trolling or not, he should stop with it.
The 4th commenter is the one that said that a 50-gram puck of Williams lasts 35 shaves for him, while a 200-gram jar of MDC lasts "hundreds of shaves" for him. You watered down the commenter's opinion by saying that he said that MDC lasts "waaaaaaaaaay longer". If it's true that MDC lasts hundreds of shaves for him while Williams lasts 35 shaves for him, then the commenter's point about cost is quite valid. The commenter's points about ease of lathering with Williams vs. MDC and the change in the Williams soap formula might be true or false, but they didn't sound like trolling, just a guy wanting to share his thoughts. Unfortunately, he opened and closed with too much negativity, in my opinion.
It looks like you've overreacted to some of the criticism to your article. I can understand. You put a lot of time and effort into your research and writing. Keep it up and don't let a few negative comments throw you off, but please, don't let your emotions get the best of you. They've seemed to have clouded your judgment.