Czech & Speake No. 88 and D.R. Harris Question

Hi. I'd like to know- a. Which soap is harder in consistency? And b. Your general opinion regarding scents. Thanks for your comments.

They are both triple milled, so hardness should be equivalent.

I prefer the Czech and Speake in both performance and scent, but that is just me.  They are both top tier soaps. 
Eventually, most wet-shavers wind up using both brands - they are that good.

My vote goes to C&S 88 on both performance and scent.

Both are very very good soaps. I easily give it to C&S (Valobra) in performance. I'm not saying Harris is bad, but Valobra is that good. 

Scent wise I prefer Harris, with Arlington being my favorite. 

As mentioned before, most will use both as they are both that good.

i agree with others above - C+S is my favourite

I have the DR Harris Arlington scent - it has been growing on me as i use it more (i have had it for about 2 months). The scent to me is more subtle than the 88 but whips up nicely as you lather.
I don't feel any noticeable difference in the ability to lather - both hard soaps and i have tried with various brushes. 
Performance wise on shaving - i am able to get a thicker consistency of lather with the 88 and prefer this. The DR Harris just feels lighter to me - not in a 'poor lather' type way and i get all the properties i need from it, but i like that thick enveloped feeling on my face when lathering - the 'richer' scent of 88 complements this for me.

C&S and it's really not close. Harris is about 1/2 the price though, so there is that.

IMO, this isn't one of those things you have a choice on Every wet shaver needs to try DRH and C&S soaps.

...And LOAD the brush!

Performance are both great but the C&S do edge out the DRH. But there's really nothing bad to say about DRH. It's just that C&S are #1 soaps in the world IMO.

As for scent, it just depends on the day. I kinda like them all. Maybe my least favorite are DRH Sandalwood and Windsor, but I still like them and I believe those are the favorites of some other folks, so definitely YMMV.

Hardness is pretty close as well, but I'm guessing DRH are a little harder than Valobra made soaps.

Thanks your the info.  I own Almond, Arlington, Windsor, and Marlborough soaps. Like them very much.  A No.88 on its way. That's the reason for the sudden curiosity.

As an owner of all the scented DR Harris soaps and both the C&S Soaps, I feel I can give my personal opinion.

Performance wise, C&S is the better of the two, but DR harris is no slouch.

Scent wise, Lavender, Sandalwood, Arlington and Windsor from DR harris are my favourites, in front of the two C&S scents, then come Marlborough and finally almond (the almond in the hard soap is a nutty dry almond, not sweet at all like the cream almond is.

(07-01-2016, 01:24 PM)CHSeifert Wrote: As an owner of all the scented DR Harris soaps and both the C&S Soaps, I feel I can give my personal opinion.

Performance wise, C&S is the better of the two, but DR harris is no slouch.

Scent wise, Lavender, Sandalwood, Arlington and Windsor from DR harris are my favourites, in front of the two C&S scents, then come Marlborough and finally almond (the almond in the hard soap is a nutty dry almond, not sweet at all like the cream almond is.

Hi Claus.  Regarding DRH sandalwood. Is it similar to TOBS sandalwood scent, Proraso, or any other?

IMO, DRH Sandalwood smells like a more medicinal (as in, traditional medicine, like roots, bark) version of AoS Sandalwood (which has some floral aspects that the DRH does not have).
Personally, I prefer the AoS version.

(07-01-2016, 02:15 PM)carvelo Wrote:

(07-01-2016, 01:24 PM)CHSeifert Wrote: As an owner of all the scented DR Harris soaps and both the C&S Soaps, I feel I can give my personal opinion.

Performance wise, C&S is the better of the two, but DR harris is no slouch.

Scent wise, Lavender, Sandalwood, Arlington and Windsor from DR harris are my favourites, in front of the two C&S scents, then come Marlborough and finally almond (the almond in the hard soap is a nutty dry almond, not sweet at all like the cream almond is.

Hi Claus.  Regarding DRH sandalwood. Is it similar to TOBS sandalwood scent, Proraso, or any other?

I own the DR Harris Sandalwood cream, soap and stick. To my nose I get a slightly sweetened sandalwood, and actually this sandalwood is among my favourite sandalwood scents along with AOS Sandalwood.

I also own TOBS Sandalwood cream and hard soap, and they both have a medicinal spicy vibe, that I don't get at all from the DR Harris Sandalwood.

The DR Harris is not like the Proraso Red either, which I find earthy.

CS by far.

Harris is goodd, but it takes A LONG time to get a good lather.

lots of water and lots of patience.

I have all the Dr Harris soaps in the wooden containers plus the refills (Except the lavender), all the Valobra soaps (4 scents), 3 pucks of AOS tallow and the C&S 88 and Cambridge. All of these  soaps are hard pucks. For me, the Valobra/C&S/AOS soaps edge out DR Harris in performance but it is not night and day difference. In my opinion, when it comes to scent, the Dr Harris (especially Arlington) soaps kill the Valobra/C&S/AOS soaps by a wide margin. All of the Valobra/C&S/AOS soaps have this scent that intrudes and is most prominent to me, unfortunately. The first time I opened the Unscented Valobra container to smell the soap I nearly threw up. I actually drowned that soap in cologne so that I can shave without gagging. I wonder if that scent I dislike so much is some sort of clay. Anyway, I don't suggest that you buy the Valobra/C&S/AOS soaps for the scent but only for the performance and for gods sake, stay away from the unscented. When it comes to performance, I prefer the Valobra/C&S/AOS soaps to MDC actually (and the MDC is my desert soap).

Got the No.88 and the Oxford & Cambridge is on its way.  I understand Claus's scent preference regarding C&S and DR Harris.  No. 88 is a dark rose scent in my opinion.  DR Harris scents are milder and fresher in most cases.