Taylor's Sandalwood Cream

What is your opinion on fine shaving creams and hard soaps? Do you like Trumpers, Coates, Taylors, Truefitt & Hill? Post your reviews and opinions here!
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Quarterstick
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Taylor's Sandalwood Cream

Post by Quarterstick »

Christmas brought a pot of this stuff to my home. This is my first experience with any Taylor's product and I could not be happier. Admittedly I was a bit concerned when I opened it as the scent was almost overpowering. Not unplesant, but strong. As expected from all the posts I have read here, the smell mellowed to a very pleasant scent when I used it. Speaking of lathering, this stuff is easy to work with and produced an absurd amount of lather with little to no effort. It was not too thin, watery, or airy either. I was very pleased with the performance as well; provided a comfortable base for my shave.

Preaching to the choir I know, but there is clearly a reason they have been in business for over 1 1/2 centuries.

Are the creams in the tubes the same as in the bowls? I would be interested in trying the different scents, but given how little you need to use it will take a decade to get through a bowl.
Andy

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Post by Gareth »

Indeed, they have survived so long simply due to the high quality of the product. Taylor's creams are also very good value for money as you've discovered.

A tub will provide 3-4 months of daily shaves. As far as I'm aware, the cream that they use is the same regardless of whether it is sold in a tube or a tub.
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Post by Quarterstick »

Thanks for the input.

Not that the bowls are terribly expensive as you pointed out, but for a variety of reasons the tubes looked like a good way to try the various scents to see which I prefer. If they performed or smelled different, it obviously would not be a good method for comparing. I could see the formula needing to be less thick to work in a tube.
Andy

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Post by Gareth »

I tend to buy tubes over tubs these days, mainly due to the fact I travel frequently for work and pleasure. Most tubes fall within the 100ml liquid/cream security restrictions for air travel, so this works well for me.

As you point out, tubes do allow you to sample a greater number of scents for less of an 'investment'. With Taylor's, however, the gap in price between tube and tub is fairly small when compared with, say, Trumper's.

With Taylor's creams, it makes more sense to buy the tub when possible.
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Post by Squire »

Andy I have to agree with Gareth on this, a pot of Taylor costs less than a tube of the other top English creams so even if you don't use it all up you're still ahead.
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Post by Sam »

Gonna be about a year before I use up my Coates Sandalwood, and worried what I will do about that scent. I liked the Trumper soap sandalwood, but it is not a pronounced scent. I know that Vulfix makes one, Taylor, and I read that Art of Shaving is a pretty good one. I can get that locally and around $24 I think, so not bad. I dont think I have ever smelled the Taylor version
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Post by Squire »

It smells good Sam, if you like Taylors sandalwood cologne or aftershave.
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Post by Quarterstick »

Sam the scent is fantastic, but it is not a straight sandalwood (not sure how it compares to Coates).
Gareth wrote:With Taylor's creams, it makes more sense to buy the tub when possible.
Squire wrote:Andy I have to agree with Gareth on this, a pot of Taylor costs less than a tube of the other top English creams so even if you don't use it all up you're still ahead.
Point well taken. The tubes are only half the size and are typically only a few bucks cheaper.
Andy

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Post by Squire »

Few bucks more on the sites I checked. Pot of Taylor for $14.00 and a tube of Truefitt-Trumper-Harris $16.00+.
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Post by paddy »

Gonna be about a year before I use up my Coates Sandalwood, and worried what I will do about that scent.
sam, truefitt & hill's scent of their sandalwood cream is practically identical to coates'.
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Post by TRBeck »

Not anymore. It's a cologne-scented thing with a big calone note in it now.

The scent changed about a year or so ago.
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Tim

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Post by Squire »

Go bold Sam and order the new Trumpers Spainish Leather cream, be the first kid on the block.
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Post by jww »

Funny -- even though it is less expensive to buy tubs in the long run, I have pretty much gone totally to tubes for the few creams that I own simply because they travel much better. Also the same reason I have more sticks than cakes of soaps these days. Excluding, of course, MWF. :D
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Post by paddy »

Not anymore. It's a cologne-scented thing with a big calone note in it now.

The scent changed about a year or so ago.
really? well it definitely was the same anyhow. i could hardly tell the difference in a blind sniff test. i only have a pot of the old t&h to go by. pity that these things keep changing.
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Post by Squire »

Change, repackage and charge more. At least it keeps their marketing people in jobs.
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Post by Quarterstick »

Squire wrote:Few bucks more on the sites I checked. Pot of Taylor for $14.00 and a tube of Truefitt-Trumper-Harris $16.00+.
True across brands. I was referencing Taylor's tube at about $10-12 to Taylor's tub at around $14. At $2-$4 for twice the product the TOBS tub is the way to go if you are talking price per ounce. Yet there is the convenience of the tubes for travel. They also take up less space so I can fit more different soaps, creams, blades, ect. (and since the Missus gets more real estate in the bathroom... and pretty much everywhere else come to think of it). Alas, I am overthinking the whole thing. Too bad they do not have a sampler.
Squire wrote:Change, repackage and charge more. At least it keeps their marketing people in jobs.
And somebody's cousin gets to keep that job in R&D.
Andy

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Post by John Parker »

Have a tub of TOBS Sandalwood cream long enough for that left toward the bottom to have dried. Not a problem! I just lather it like soap now, and it works great! Also bought a cake of TOBS Sandalwood soap. Scent is like the cream except milder. Makes a fabulous lather.
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Post by Gareth »

John, yeah you can do that if they start to go a little firm with age. I remember doing the same with a tub of Coate's a couple of years ago.
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Post by ThePossum »

jww wrote:Funny -- even though it is less expensive to buy tubs in the long run, I have pretty much gone totally to tubes for the few creams that I own simply because they travel much better. Also the same reason I have more sticks than cakes of soaps these days. Excluding, of course, MWF. :D
Wendell,

I have a couple tubes of creams mostly because that is the only way the come. Tabac for one and then C&E SAO which I will buy in tub or tube just to have it.

When I travel I ususally take my stick of Tabac but will soon be looking to make me a "FAT" stick to take along for variety. Just do not want to bother with a bigger mug in the carry-on bag for the creams. The soaps I don't really need a mug but I have a small one that fits in my shave kit. I always face lather with my soaps.
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Post by JayTrek »

I do not have a wide variety of experience with different creams. I have generally stuck with Taylor's these last few years because of the price.

I do not order Taylor's without including a bowl of the Sandalwood in my order. Love the scent.
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Jason

Upon Further Review...
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