grandpa's pine tar soap

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Chris the Cat

Full Member
Jan 29, 2008
2,850
14
Exmoor
Use it all the time mate,great in the field,shampoo with it,mozzies not keen on it,shampoo with it and a nice natural smell!
What Landy yer got? Mines a 110 tdi.
Cheer.
Chris.
 
I've got some and really like it too, but similarly my wife says the soap itself stinks - I like the smell - guess its a bit like marmite !!

I tend to use it in the field for that reason, I also like it in that scenario as it is good for washing skin & hair, and the lather is plenty good enough for shaving too.

I've also read that it is a natural repellent for mosquitos, but seeing as I don't normally attract them much I can't really verify it other than to say it certainly doesn't attract them.

PS. I've got a 90 TD5 now, but my first car was a SWB SIIA soft-top.
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,714
1,960
Mercia
No nag at all - buy whatever you want, however it is worth pointing out the ingredients on this product

Coconut oil, palm oil, purified water, pine tar oil (Pinus palustris), vegetable glycerin

(source) http://www.aviva.ca/shop/products.asp?itemid=3370&catid=159

The role of palm plantations being a direct cause of deforestaion of the rain forests in such places as Indonesia is well documented - indeed members of this forum have commented on it through direct observation

Personally I won't buy a product to use in the great outdoors that uses ingredients that contribute to the destruction of rainforests.

Pine tar soap is easy to make for yourself from sustainable oil bases and stockholm tar.

Just my observations - don't want to get into any arguments about it - just offering the facts

Red
 

the interceptor boy

Life Member
Mar 12, 2008
485
0
Angleterre.
Entirely vegetable-based and extremely helpful in removing the scales of Psoriasis, Dandruff, Eczema and other skin irritations. very good at keeping mozzie at bay and very clean on the skin, dont know much about nit's, also you could try WRIGHT'S Traditional Soap with Coal Tar, comes in a Orange packing system, Soothing, Cleansing, Antiseptic, suitable for all type of skin, from Wilkinson, Pack of 4 bars between £1.80 to £2.10 depends where you live. Also they do a strong lemon scented soap as well. hope this help.
 
it is worth pointing out the ingredients on this product

Coconut oil, palm oil, purified water, pine tar oil (Pinus palustris), vegetable glycerin

Red

Thanks for bringing this to my attention, I wasn't aware of this or I'd have thought twice before buying it. I agree that I don't want my 'leave no trace' activities here to literally leave no trace of the rainforest which gave way to the farms for the soap's ingredients.

I'm not sure about coal tar soap, but what's stockholm tar? and can you point me in the direction of a 'recipe' to make the soap you refer to? and where to source suitable sustainable oil bases?

Cheers
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,714
1,960
Mercia
Hi Bushscout,

I'm glad it was a useful bit of info.

(Pure) Stockholm tar is pine tar. Its sold commercially in equine supply shops (saddelry type places) for use in treating horses hooves. Its pure pine tar the same as used in soap making.

If you want to try soap making, I did a tutorial a couple of years back here:

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25733

Happy to talk you through making a pine tar soap once you mastered a simple one if that helps?

Oil / fat bases are litterally any! Olive oil, suet, lard - you name it. They all produce soaps of differing natures but all work well.


Red
 

Chris the Cat

Full Member
Jan 29, 2008
2,850
14
Exmoor
Yeah,cheers for that British Red,would it be wishfull thinking to hope that its from sustainable sources!?
By the way,nice SM knife-cleaver design,he made me a UBK at the end of last year and it is a superb tool! Need to find a new supply of real pine tar soap,any ideas?
(should make my own realy,but all a bit butter fingers when it comes to that sort of thing!)
Anyhow,thanks for the heads up.
My best.
Chris.
 

lavrentyuk

Nomad
Oct 19, 2006
279
0
Mid Wales
Re the Coal Tar whilst I love it I believe a few years ago they had to stop making it with coal tar and now put some sort of flavouring or essence in. Certainly smells a lot weaker than it once did.

I feel inspired now and might try making some of the Pine Tar soap.

Richard
 

Barney

Settler
Aug 15, 2008
947
0
Lancashire
I bought some grandpa's soap from ray mears site. It was free delivery under a tenner spend . I like the soap, well I did until I read the comments about Palm oil, but it dissolves like crazy if its withing 10 feet of a dripping tap. I have never used a bar of soap so fast.
 

Nagual

Native
Jun 5, 2007
1,963
0
Argyll
Re the Coal Tar whilst I love it I believe a few years ago they had to stop making it with coal tar and now put some sort of flavouring or essence in. Certainly smells a lot weaker than it once did.

I feel inspired now and might try making some of the Pine Tar soap.

Richard


wiki has this to say for it:

wiki said:
The soap is now made by Accantia and is called Wright's Traditional Soap. As European Union directives on cosmetics have banned the use of coal-tar in non-prescription products, the coal tar derivates have been removed from the formula, replacing them with tea tree oil as main anti-bacterial ingredient. Despite this major variance from the original recipe, the new soap has been made to look and smell like the original product, despite differing substantially in composition.
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,714
1,960
Mercia
Yeah,cheers for that British Red,would it be wishfull thinking to hope that its from sustainable sources!?

Unless positively stated so - I fear it would indeed be wishful.

Its really very easy to make your own soap (pine tar is moderately tricky becuase it traces (sets) like lightning!


Red
 

spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
I bought some grandpa's soap from ray mears site. It was free delivery under a tenner spend . I like the soap, well I did until I read the comments about Palm oil, but it dissolves like crazy if its withing 10 feet of a dripping tap. I have never used a bar of soap so fast.

I had this same problem, the answer is to put your bar of soap in one of those washing tablet bags and leave it in there. You can wash with it as it is and then leave the bag hanging up to dry after use. It lasts a lot longer, and I did this with the soaps I got from British Red too. The soap will last a lot longer if you use them this way, and the bag adds an element of scrubbing to your wash routine too!
 

Barney

Settler
Aug 15, 2008
947
0
Lancashire
I had this same problem, the answer is to put your bar of soap in one of those washing tablet bags and leave it in there. You can wash with it as it is and then leave the bag hanging up to dry after use. It lasts a lot longer, and I did this with the soaps I got from British Red too. The soap will last a lot longer if you use them this way, and the bag adds an element of scrubbing to your wash routine too!

Cheers Spamel, not though of that!:D A great soloution.
 

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