Shave Soap Do I need to line my cylinder mold for a dual-lye shave soap?

[AliOop]

I'm about to try my dual-lye shave soap in my ABS cylinder mold for the first time, instead of using my round cavity molds. For my CP bar soaps, I never line or grease the cylinder mold, because the log always releases easily. Worst case scenario, I put the mold in the freezer for a bit, then pull it out to let condensation form for about ten minutes, and then tap the end of the mold gently on the ground. The CP logs release cleanly every time.

However, I am concerned that the greater stickiness of a dual-lye shave soap (v. CP bar soap) makes a liner more imperative for the former. I would appreciate any feedback from those of you who have tried this. FWIW, I do use sodium lactate, as well as lanolin, in my shave soap recipe.

 

[Ford]

Hi, I line all my molds. Helps with unmolding. No bumping on the ground. Slide out pretty slick. So you only need about an inch. Of liner above mold. Too much paper gets in the way.
I cap mold first, then slide liner in. Got less wrinkles. Keeping liner separate from cap. Keeping the seam/overlap on the upside. As you pour.

 

[AliOop]

Thanks @Ford, the wrinkles are why I would rather not line if I don’t have to. My regular CP loaves come out very easily without a liner, but I’m guessing that won’t be the case for a semi-soft shave soap.

I’ll have to try your way and see if it works better than what I tried before.

 

[Obsidian]

Last time I made dual lye in a abs mold, I had to freeze it hard and force it out of the mold using canned veggies.
Even though paper leaves wrinkles, I wish I would have used it

 

[AliOop]

Last time I made dual lye in a abs mold, I had to freeze it hard and force it out of the mold using canned veggies.
Even though paper leaves wrinkles, I wish I would have used it

Thanks, that's exactly what I feared. I'm going to line for sure.

 

[AliOop]

The batter wasn't as pourable as I hoped, even after adding a squirt of SL. That did loosen it up a bit, but I ended up spooning it into the cavity molds after all. I'd like to do the cylinder mold so I'll try more water next time.

 

[Kcryss]

The batter wasn't as pourable as I hoped, even after adding a squirt of SL. That did loosen it up a bit, but I ended up spooning it into the cavity molds after all. I'd like to do the cylinder mold so I'll try more water next time.

If you find a way to make it pourable please share.
I've been trying to get mine to be even somewhat pourable and have failed every time. I'm using 30/70 NaOH/KOH and 5.5:1 water/lye ratio
45% stearic

 

[AliOop]

Goodness, it seems like yours should have poured for sure! Are you doing a full HP, or modified CP? I did the latter, which I think helped since I didn't cook off a bunch of liquid. I did realize about halfway through the spooning job that it was more pourable than I'd thought. It probably would have had a few air pockets if poured, but who cares about that when the pucks are going in a bowl to be mashed around anyway? At least I wouldn't have had to lop off the "rustic" tops of each puck. Next time I'm definitely pouring!

FWIW, I used Recipe #10 from Carrie Siebert's copyrighted book. Obviously I can't share the exact recipe, but I will say that it was 60/40 KOH/NaOH, 27% lye concentration, 5% SF, and 50% stearic acid, plus lard, cocoa butter, shea butter, coconut oil, castor oil, and glycerin. Also, I did add a shot (probably 1-1.5 T) of SL towards the end, which did loosen it. What helped the most was walking away for about a minute. That's when it turned shiny and was the most fluid.

A quick lather test from scraps at the sink showed a fairly tight, creamy lather, but way too many bubbles for a shave soap. I'm going to try a bit each day to see how it changes over time.

 

[Ford]

Use pringles cans and cut them off maybe. one time use?? might be another approach.

 

[AliOop]

Then I'd have to buy Pringles. Oh wait, that's not a bad thing...

 

[Ford]

Any cardboard tube will work. Just choose a diameter that works for you. MMMM, the water from the batch would probably soften the tube. And make removal easier. My pvc tubes are only 12 inches long. Seemed to be a good length. To long would be awkward and hard to fill. My hat goes out to the young lady. On ytube trying to fill 6 feet of pvc pipe.

 

[psfred]

I usually just use parchment paper wrapped around a soup or tuna can and taped up to hold. I make a small batch though, 500 g of oils at a time though. Bigger batch may need a better idea.

I would definitely use a liner in a large mold though -- shave soap is always a little sticky for a few days after making, and I don't know if I would make it CP

 

[Christa10]

On youtube I saw a lady that uses poly tubing instead of a paper liner. She buys whatever size diameter will fit into the 3 inch pvc pipe and pours into that. It looked pretty easy, didn't stick in the pipe and she just cut away the poly tubing when she was ready to unmold the soap. It looked tempting.

 

[AliOop]

@Ford and @Christa10 I’ve seen those videos, too. Great idea! If I ever reach the day when I need to make that much shave soap at one time, I will be delighted to buy a big roll of polytubing.

Till then, I’ll muck around with some small-time solutions. @psfred taping the paper around a can is brilliant, as that's the exact size of the inside of my ABS pipe! I might try that for my next small batch. If I do, I’ll let you know how it goes.

 

[Kcryss]

Goodness, it seems like yours should have poured for sure! Are you doing a full HP, or modified CP?

LOL, I totally agree so not sure why it will not pour.
Yes, I do HP. I'm not sure how to do a modified CP with this recipe. I know that when I add the stearic ... it's done. Zap free instantly and thick.

 

[AliOop]

LOL, I totally agree so not sure why it will not pour.
Yes, I do HP. I'm not sure how to do a modified CP with this recipe. I know that when I add the stearic ... it's done. Zap free instantly and thick.

So you add your stearic after the other ingredients? I melt mine all together because the stearic melts much faster that way. But even if you are adding it last, you should be able to make it CP by eliminating the cooking phase.

 

[user 49910]

When I was making soap pucks I used sheets of clear acetate. You can get them from Amazon.
4 mil thickness in 12"x12" size. Perfect for your 12" mold. BTW... 4 mil means .004" not 4 millimeters.
Plus these are reusable. 15 pack for $7.99

https://www.amazon.com/ZHluja-12-In...1650880898&sprefix=acetate,aps,96&sr=8-9&th=1

 

[AliOop]

Those look awesome! I have used oven liner, which is washable/reusable, but it is a bit thicker and gives the slightest texture to the surface of the soap.

Do you cut these to fit the inside of the ABS pipe, or do you overlap the edges and just live with the divot it makes in the soap?

 

[user 49910]

Do you cut these to fit the inside of the ABS pipe, or do you overlap the edges and just live with the divot it makes in the soap?

The divot is hardly noticeable. I just overlap, the weight and density of the soap helps to push it tight.
One thing I do is to push the overlap in tight against the outer layer of acetate and then use a small piece of Scotch tape to temporarily hold it on both ends and then pouring in the soap. After the soap sets, just use a small knife to cut the tape and unwrap. There is a slight adhesion to the acetate, but I found that the longer the soap sits the less sticky it is.

These sheets are glass smooth and you can wash and reuse them too.