The perfect bushcraft soap

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irishlostboy

Nomad
Dec 3, 2007
277
0
Eire
riveting DIY thread here Red.
when you have an ingredient list done up and finalized put it up. we might be able to send you some organic herbs, and plant extracts. depending on what you need. my mom keeps a well stocked garden and greenhouse. we also keep bees, so i can send you honey (bees have no artificial feeding or treatment) and possibly beeswax too. sourcing as much of the ingredients from forum members and people you know seems the best bet for quality control.
 
only just seen this thread , i dred to think what i miss on here by pressing the new post button,
The tea tree soap sounds great , I also use the soap greg mentioned reminds me of the swimming baths when you used to get free soap in the showers as a kid :)
I think I will have a look into making some myself sounds like a good project and the smells sounds great give the wife some nagging practice :D
 

makeitmyself

Member
Dec 3, 2007
15
0
59
manchester
Hello just thought i would let you know i tried your bar of bushcrafters body soap on the dog. She has fleas and i had to shower her in something. Hope your not offended but she came up a treat and and it has a silky lather. I think she is flea free now but Greg is not impressed with me. Anyway i wondered if u could invent a flea repellent soap as the dog flea shampoo is rubbish. Regards Lin
 

makeitmyself

Member
Dec 3, 2007
15
0
59
manchester
only just seen this thread , i dred to think what i miss on here by pressing the new post button,
The tea tree soap sounds great , I also use the soap greg mentioned reminds me of the swimming baths when you used to get free soap in the showers as a kid :)

Hello what are you on about i saw that big bag of baby wipes in your ruck sac
 
only just seen this thread , i dred to think what i miss on here by pressing the new post button,
The tea tree soap sounds great , I also use the soap greg mentioned reminds me of the swimming baths when you used to get free soap in the showers as a kid :)

Hello what are you on about i saw that big bag of baby wipes in your ruck sac
well Lin I don't wash with soap when I am out , you know how bad I smell , specially after eating black peas followed by spice stew thing Paul made ;)

Hope Greg stays flea free as well :) good to see you took the plunge and joined :)
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
Hi Lin - not offended at all:) I don't wildly like chucking loads of chemicals in my soaps but if I can figure out any natural ingredients that work thats the way I would go. I will have to look into whether normal insect repellants work on fleas - if so then citronella and lavender should work. If not, then I'll have to do some "Frontline" soap for Greg and the dog!

Red
 
She has fleas and i had to shower her in something. Anyway i wondered if u could invent a flea repellent soap as the dog flea shampoo is rubbish. Regards Lin

My collie dog kept catching fleas and I tried almost everything that you could buy to shampoo on, spray or let the dog wear to try and control them. This was backed up by the most rigourous hoovering and cleaning program in the house. I couldn't understand it but after 4 or 5 visits to the vets as nothing would work as the dog kept picking up fleas, the new vet finally suggested and prescribed systemic flea killer.

But hey what was the problem? Where were they coming from...doh, the next door neighbour is an alcoholic and his wee jack russell is was covered in fleas and it kept sneaking through the hedge to play with my dog!

The systemic flea killer works great to kill the fleas that land on my dog but an effective dettrent for dog and folk would be a great contribution to doggie owners if it worked!

WS
 

irishlostboy

Nomad
Dec 3, 2007
277
0
Eire
trap the neighbors dog, and give it a good bath. the poor thing is probably driven mad by them. lol. might be an idea to do the same to your neighbor....:)
 

EdS

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
been trying Red Soap for a week now.

Mild olive oil, give a luxurious silky lather - all a bit decadent, non of this hard scrubbing wit hthis one.

Oatmeal scrub - what can I say, tried it last night after changing the Disco wheels and gutting a deer. Oil/grease and blood combination, oatmeal scrub and hot water left me with nice clean arms. It is not too abrasive and doesn't dry the skin out like many soaps.


Re: flea adding some mugwort into the soap might work.
 

firebreather

Settler
Jan 26, 2007
982
0
49
Manchester
Hi Lin - not offended at all:) I don't wildly like chucking loads of chemicals in my soaps but if I can figure out any natural ingredients that work thats the way I would go. I will have to look into whether normal insect repellants work on fleas - if so then citronella and lavender should work. If not, then I'll have to do some "Frontline" soap for Greg and the dog!

Red

Hey hang on I DONT HAVE FLEAS the dog does :eek: :nana:
I have been using the bushcrafters soap for a few days and its great. The aroma is a little much for everyday use especially if i am going into work.
The pine tar soap gets me squeaky clean. It takes a bit to lather up but when it does it is silky smooth and very nice.
The olive oil "shaving" soap is probably the best shaving soap i have ever tried. I had to use less water on the soap and brush than normal but it was very very nice to shave with. The best way to describe it would be a satin like feel in the lather and the razor just glides over the skin.
I have yet to use the oatmeal bar yet as I have been so impressed with the others.

I told you that nothing is sacred in this house...........even my soap gets used on the dogs.......life is just not fair :banghead: :nana:

Cheers Greg
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
Thanks all for the feeback - I really appreciate it. I'm delighted you like them.

I'm not entirely happy with the pine tar soap - it works but its done using the same olive oil base as the pure olive oil soap (this was done because people expressed a desire for a very hard soap). I personally think it would be interesting to make a pine tar variant of the bushcrafter soap so that it lathers more freely - what do you think?

Red
 

BorderReiver

Full Member
Mar 31, 2004
2,693
16
Norfolk U.K.
Thanks all for the feeback - I really appreciate it. I'm delighted you like them.

I'm not entirely happy with the pine tar soap - it works but its done using the same olive oil base as the pure olive oil soap (this was done because people expressed a desire for a very hard soap). I personally think it would be interesting to make a pine tar variant of the bushcrafter soap so that it lathers more freely - what do you think?

Red

Would that not make the bar too soft if carried "wet" for a while Red?

The commercial stuff goes soft and iffy if kept in a closed soap dish but is fine if left open.IMO the hard bar would be better for carting about.
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
Both bars are hard Mike (as I hope the guys will agree) - its more a question of "lathering" or "creaming". The olive oil base makes a sort of creamy liquid that gets you clean but only has small bubbles etc. The body bar has a much more "free lathering" effect with large bubbles. Neither should go "mushy" though. Its more a question of which people prefer

Red
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
Proper Lye is theoroetically easy to make from hardwood ash (its basically potassium hydroxide solution). The reality is more complex to get a safe and consistent strength. I have promised a tutorial to Weaver when I do a batch.

For domestic use, pure caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) works as a substitute - but you must be very careful with exact measurements and safety gear - its dangerous in the raw form

Red
 

clcuckow

Settler
Oct 17, 2003
795
1
Merseyside, Cheshire
Red I ordered some from US ebay last night for my own experiments not found a UK source yet. I am thinking of mixing it with rosemary as a natural repellent. I might add it to some homemade candles for my UCO lantern (I am a bit of a tight **** and made a latex cast of one of the candles and now make my own)

Maybe not the best thing for Cat owners though :D
 

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