# Cheese Slicer



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

Has anyone had the chance to use a cheese slicer for cutting their soaps?  I'm looking on Amazon right now and they are very affordable!  I'm trying to figure out if metal, wood, or marble would be best.  I'm afraid the marble might allow the loaf to slide around a bit but seems the base would be heavier than wood, thus keeping the slicer steady while cutting.  And marble may even be easier to wash in terms of not getting allowing soap to get into grooves like wood allows.  Then again, some marble is kinda "flaky" if you will so maybe wood would (haha) be the best option.  As for metal, I don't know.  Lol!  Any thoughts?


----------



## welsh black (Apr 1, 2014)

I bought a wooden one, so I could mark out measurements 1' 1.5 inches ect


----------



## cmzaha (Apr 1, 2014)

I have used both and they both work out just fine.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

welsh black said:


> I bought a wooden one, so I could mark out measurements 1' 1.5 inches ect



Oooh that's a good idea.  Does your soap slide around on it?  Any problems with the slicer lifting up when you're cutting?  I've never used any kind of cheese slicer like that, just a cheese cutting utensil (for cutting actual cheese).


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

cmzaha said:


> I have used both and they both work out just fine.



Do you prefer one over the other?  Any pros and cons for each?


----------



## seven (Apr 1, 2014)

i have the marble. not my fave. a firm pressure is needed to hold the soap, otherwise it slides. is it the marble? dunno. i have never tried the wooden one, so can't compare.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

seven said:


> i have the marble. not my fave. a firm pressure is needed to hold the soap, otherwise it slides. is it the marble? dunno. i have never tried the wooden one, so can't compare.



Good to know thanks!  I have a marble one and a wooden one in my Amazon cart right now so I'm really banking on input from you guys to help make my decision.  I've watched a few videos and have read a lot of reviews and I've only found one where a customer asked about using it for soap.  Thanks again!


----------



## jkevin (Apr 1, 2014)

I picked up a marble type on at a thrift store for 3 bucks and yes soap has a tendency to slide around. It was cheap so I bought it I'll be on the lookout for a wooden one


----------



## Dennis (Apr 1, 2014)

jkevin said:


> I picked up a marble type on at a thrift store for 3 bucks and yes soap has a tendency to slide around. It was cheap so I bought it I'll be on the lookout for a wooden one



Since you're using it for soap do you think it would help to rough up the surface with sand or emery paper?  Nothing to lose and perhaps the soap won't slide around so much.


----------



## jkevin (Apr 1, 2014)

that's a good idea have to see what I have


----------



## Tienne (Apr 1, 2014)

I have a marble one and I like that it's so easy to clean and you always know that it won't warp from being exposed to soap and water all the time. I stuck a ruler to the side of mine with double-sided sticky tape and it helps keeps the soap in place when cutting. On the other side of the wire, I drew with a permanent marker 1 inch and 1 and a quarter inch lines directly on the marble as measuring points and that works just fine. I mostly use it for round soaps. Mine's no good for tall soaps, it's too small.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

Tienne said:


> I have a marble one and I like that it's so easy to clean and you always know that it won't warp from being exposed to soap and water all the time. I stuck a ruler to the side of mine with double-sided sticky tape and it helps keeps the soap in place when cutting. On the other side of the wire, I drew with a permanent marker 1 inch and 1 and a quarter inch lines directly on the marble as measuring points and that works just fine. I mostly use it for round soaps. Mine's no good for tall soaps, it's too small.



Thanks so much for all of the details!  I do like the fact that the marble won't warp like wood would.  Are you saying that you use double sided sticky tape on your soap or the ruler?  Great idea with permanent marker to mark the thickness of the bars.  I make round soap (I believe 2 1/2") but want to start making "square" bars as well.  I hope I can find one that is tall enough.  Thanks again!


----------



## Tienne (Apr 1, 2014)

No, not on the soap. LOL I used the tape to stick the ruler to the marble. It's stuck on the vertical edge so it's sticking up above the marble surface so it keeps the soap lined up straight when cutting. It's holding up remarkably well. That double sided tape is strong as heck!

ETA: If you place a thin book or something under the cheese slicer on the side where the wire's hinge is to tip up that side a bit, it helps keep the soap in place, even though the marble is slippery, coz the soap will slide up against the ruler and that stops it from gliding off the marble.  I like the slipperyness (is that a word?) because it makes it really easy to move the soap forward.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

Tienne said:


> No, not on the soap. LOL I used the tape to stick the ruler to the marble. It's stuck on the vertical edge so it's sticking up above the marble surface so it keeps the soap lined up straight when cutting. It's holding up remarkably well. That double sided tape is strong as heck!



Lol!  Okay gotcha that makes a lot more sense.  I was like huh??  Anyway, another silly question: if the tape is really strong, do you remove the ruler/tape when you wash it or do you just wipe the cutter down?  You're awesome thanks so much for sticking with me!  Tight budget, not a lot of room for experimenting.


----------



## Tienne (Apr 1, 2014)

Nope! I just leave it on. It stays stuck even when I wash the slicer. It hasn't come off yet. No worries if it does come off at some point though. I have a whole roll of that tape! LOL (I think it's called double-sided carpet tape?)


----------



## cmzaha (Apr 1, 2014)

You have to hold the soap with the wood one also. They will slide. I do not use these as my main cutter, only when I am cutting smaller slices. I put a piece of tape to make the cut line


----------



## judymoody (Apr 1, 2014)

There's a soaper on youtube who uses one but I can't remember which kind it was. It looked effective and versatile.


----------



## jenfrat (Apr 1, 2014)

cmzaha said:


> You have to hold the soap with the wood one also. They will slide. I do not use these as my main cutter, only when I am cutting smaller slices. I put a piece of tape to make the cut line




Yep, soap moves on the wooden one too. I glued down a wood block to the side to keep it in place.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

I just placed an order on amazon for this slicer: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004FS0G84/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

So excited!  No more reject bars (hopefully).  Yay!

I also ordered a single electric burner as my soap space is downstairs and for obvious reasons, we have the stove in the kitchen which is upstairs.  I almost had a mishap with the oils last week when making soap.  I was taking the melted oils back upstairs because the butters started getting cloudy again.  I tripped going up the stairs, and with both hands still on the handles of the pot, managed to plop the pot on the next stair up.  Ya, that was the end of that.  And I ordered a mesh tea baller because the sieve that I used for herbs in my pencil line last week wasn't fine enough and the bar ended up separating because I had to much herb for the line.  :crazy:


----------



## kaliquen (Apr 1, 2014)

I glued down a piece of quarter round molding to keep the soap from sliding. Works perfectly!


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

kaliquen said:


> View attachment 7207
> 
> 
> I glued down a piece of quarter round molding to keep the soap from sliding. Works perfectly!



Genius!


----------



## jkevin (Apr 1, 2014)

just shows there's a will there's a way good idea


----------



## Lin (Apr 1, 2014)

I have a marble one. I had no problem putting marks on it so I can cut differently sized bars. The soap does slide a bit, I'm  planning on gluing something as a bottom edge to prevent the soap from sliding as well as make sure the soap is lined up properly on the board for the handle to not get hung up on the loaf.

ETA: lol, looks like the gluing something idea was already mentioned. Its so interesting that multiple people come to the same idea independently. I haven't gotten around to finding something to glue on to mine yet.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 1, 2014)

jkevin said:


> just shows there's a will there's a way good idea



Absolutely!


----------



## nframe (Apr 2, 2014)

I have a wooden and I asked my husband to fix two bars as a guide.  It works perfectly.  Here is a photo:


----------



## jenfrat (Apr 2, 2014)

nframe said:


> I have a wooden and I asked my husband to fix two bars as a guide.  It works perfectly.  Here is a photo:




That's pretty much what I did!   Yours is prettier though!


----------



## saurian (Apr 2, 2014)

Funny this should come up, I've just taken delivery of a stainless steel one. The steel was around the same price as wood and marble but two things swayed me to that choice, firstly even if the soap is still a touch caustic when its cut the SS shouldn't suffer any ill effects and secondly it came with two spare cutting wires.

Mind you, I haven't had a chance to use it yet so how well it works remains a mystery for now.


----------



## The Efficacious Gentleman (Apr 2, 2014)

One important thing to note, illustrated by the example from Nframe - put the holding guides on the other side from the hinge so that it holds in place better.


----------



## Lin (Apr 2, 2014)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> One important thing to note, illustrated by the example from Nframe - put the holding guides on the other side from the hinge so that it holds in place better.



I'm not sure what you mean? What are you considering the hinge? If you mean the 2 guards, with that method you lose the flexibility to cut different sized bars which is one of the plus sides of this type of cutter.


----------



## cmzaha (Apr 2, 2014)

kaliquen said:


> View attachment 7207
> 
> 
> I glued down a piece of quarter round molding to keep the soap from sliding. Works perfectly!


 
That is a great idea to add a stop. It could also be done with marble


----------



## The Efficacious Gentleman (Apr 2, 2014)

Lin said:


> I'm not sure what you mean? What are you considering the hinge? If you mean the 2 guards, with that method you lose the flexibility to cut different sized bars which is one of the plus sides of this type of cutter.



I consider the hinge to be the part of the cutting aparatus that is connected to the board.  It would be best to have the guide on the other side from the hinge (as in the picture from nframe) because the pushing during cutting will not move the soap as it's already against the guide.

As for an end guide, I would want to cut regular sizes rather than various sizes, so the set up from nframe again is a winner for what I would be looking for


----------



## Lin (Apr 3, 2014)

I'm sure everyone would put the guide opposite the hinge for that reason, so the soap doesn't slide while being cut.  One on the top wouldn't stop sliding as well,  you'd still have to use your hand to steady it up against.  It's easy to make markings to line up with as far as bar thickness,  so that you still have the flexibility of choosing the bar size.  As opposed to a multi wire cutter where you're stuck with the bar size it was manufactured to.


----------



## The Efficacious Gentleman (Apr 3, 2014)

It would be easier to hold it firmer with a second bar - you're pushing it in one direction rather than having to keep it in place and stopping it from going in two directions.  Try it - get someone to push against you from one direction and you stop them.  Now have them try to move you in various directions and you stop them - much harder as you have to react to the direction rather than keeping a constant force in one direction.

Of course, it is then harder to have the adjustable sizes!  So it's a trade off, unless you make some sort of adjusting method for a second guide.................now that would be cool.


----------



## Dennis (Apr 3, 2014)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> It would be easier to hold it firmer with a second bar - you're pushing it in one direction rather than having to keep it in place and stopping it from going in two directions.  Try it - get someone to push against you from one direction and you stop them.  Now have them try to move you in various directions and you stop them - much harder as you have to react to the direction rather than keeping a constant force in one direction.
> 
> Of course, it is then harder to have the adjustable sizes!  So it's a trade off, unless you make some sort of adjusting method for a second guide.................now that would be cool.



Slots or holes drilled in the base would allow the guides to be placed at different horizontal and vertical positions.  This would allow you to lock down the guides wherever you preferred using short bolts, washers and wingnuts.


----------



## jkevin (Apr 3, 2014)

N frame how big is that?


----------



## Lin (Apr 3, 2014)

Its really not necessary to hold it steady in multiple directions, I don't even have the bottom guide on my cutter yet and have nerve damage in my arms/hands and have no problem using this cutter to cut nice even bars. The bottom guide is mostly to make things faster and a little easier, large (dimension not thickness) bars have to be lined up correctly or you can't cut through the entire loaf in one slice.


----------



## nframe (Apr 4, 2014)

jkevin said:


> N frame how big is that?



Hello,

I am sorry but I don't know what you mean by that question.  How big is what?


----------



## LanaBanana (Apr 4, 2014)

N frame-I think jkevin meant what is the size/dimensions of your cutter that you posted a picture of. It looks like a nice large size but hard to tell. It's really nice!
Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2


----------



## nframe (Apr 5, 2014)

Oh!  Sorry!  It measures 26cm x 19cm.  It is not that big really.  The two bits of wood that serve as a guide are really good.  It makes 2cm-thick slices.


----------



## Kathie (Apr 28, 2014)

*Cheese cutter*

I have found that the wire does not stay tight. It slacks and then comes apart from the rest of the slicer.  That has been my experience anyway. 

I made a slicer out of wood, and I use a large dough scraper (some call it a bench scrapper) to do the cutting. Have always been happy with that.


----------



## twinheart (Apr 28, 2014)

*Cheese Cutter*

I use a wood cheese cutter,too.  The only minor problem I've had is that the finish of the cutter has been diminished by coming into contact with the soap loaf.  Nothing to worry about.  It works great and allows me the ability to size my bars as I wish.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 28, 2014)

Kathie said:


> I have found that the wire does not stay tight. It slacks and then comes apart from the rest of the slicer.  That has been my experience anyway.
> 
> I made a slicer out of wood, and I use a large dough scraper (some call it a bench scrapper) to do the cutting. Have always been happy with that.



The dough scraper and miter box thing is what I used for a few years but my bars always got damaged. I understand that the soap was probably just too soft but the cheese cutter caters to my inability to be patient lol! The wire on my cheese slicer hasn't come loose yet, it actually took me a few minutes to figure out how to get the wire setup because it was so taught. Glad you found what works!


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 28, 2014)

twinheart said:


> I use a wood cheese cutter,too.  The only minor problem I've had is that the finish of the cutter has been diminished by coming into contact with the soap loaf.  Nothing to worry about.  It works great and allows me the ability to size my bars as I wish.



I started this thread because it was such a toss up for wood vs. marble. I got the marble since the material is more permanent than wood. They are pretty much the same price as the wooden ones, if you ever need to start looking for a replacement.


----------



## younglivingmargo (Apr 29, 2014)

Hi Herbal Earthling,
I just brought a marble cheese slicer to cut my soap and it does work ok.  Much faster than cutting every piece with a knife which is what I use to do.  Your right, the loaf does more around on the marble. I had to put "L" shape brackets in two places to stop it moving and to buff the soap up against it so I would get the same size piece every time I cut.  If I was to buy another one I would buy wood.  Much easier to screw things into it than the marble kind.


----------



## BabyPickles106 (Apr 30, 2014)

For those that have a marble how did you attach you stop blocks?  I bought one that I've not yet used.


----------



## HerbalEarthling (Apr 30, 2014)

BabyPickles106 said:


> For those that have a marble how did you attach you stop blocks?  I bought one that I've not yet used.



I used clear silicone used for showers that I got at Wal-Mart and quarter rounds. Clamped them down while they dried


----------



## Dennis (Apr 30, 2014)

If you don't want to buy another slicer but want better control of your soap you could put some traction tape on it.  A little would hold the loaf in place.  A search prices from $1.99 and up on ebay and elsewhere.  Look for traction tape, skateboard tape, etc.


----------



## younglivingmargo (May 1, 2014)

*HerbalEarthly*

I had my partner glue the "L" brackets in place with araldite glue.  It works temporarily until I can afford a loaf cutter


----------



## tschwenn (May 23, 2014)

I use a plastic miter box, it has 1" & 2" notches to just slide the knife down.


----------

