Beards have been a symbol of masculinity for ages. Growing a beard is a rite of passage for most men, and it's something that can make you feel more confident and powerful. However, growing a beard is not just about letting your facial hair grow wild. It requires proper grooming, and this is where beard oil and beard balm come in.
Beard Oil and balm are two essential products for any man who takes pride in his beard. Both of these products are designed to keep your beard healthy, shiny, and soft. In this blog post, we will discuss the differences between beard oil and balm and why beard oil is a better option.
What is Beard Oil?
Beard oil is a leave-in conditioning product that is designed to moisturize and soften facial hair. It is made up of a blend of carrier oils (such as jojoba oil, argan oil, and coconut oil) and essential oils (such as cedarwood, peppermint, and tea tree). Carrier oils are rich in vitamins and nutrients that nourish the skin and hair, while essential oils provide a pleasant scent.
What are the Benefits of Using Beard Oil?
The first and most obvious benefit of using beard oil is that it moisturizes and softens your beard hair. The natural oils in the product penetrate the hair shaft and hydrate the hair from the inside out. This makes your beard hair softer, smoother, and less prone to tangles.
When you grow a beard, the skin underneath the hair can become dry and itchy. This can lead to beardruff (similar to dandruff) and a lot of discomfort. Beard oil helps to prevent this by moisturizing the skin and keeping it hydrated. It also helps to prevent ingrown hairs, which can be painful and unsightly.
The natural oils in beard oil are rich in vitamins and nutrients that are essential for healthy beard growth. When you apply beard oil to your beard regularly, it promotes healthy hair growth and keeps your beard looking full and thick.
One of the most appealing benefits of using beard oil is that it makes your beard smell good. Essential oils like cedarwood, peppermint, and tea tree give your beard a fresh and pleasant scent. This can make you feel more confident and attractive, and it can also be a major turn-on for the ladies.
What is Beard Balm?
Beard balm is a styling product that is used to shape and control facial hair. It is made up of a blend of natural waxes (such as beeswax and shea butter) and carrier oils (such as jojoba oil and argan oil). The waxes in beard balm provide a light hold that keeps your beard in place, while the carrier oils nourish and condition your beard hair.
What are the Benefits of Using Beard Balm?
The main benefit of using beard balm is that it provides a light hold that keeps your beard in place. This can be especially helpful if you have long or unruly facial hair that tends to get out of control. Beard balm helps to tame your beard and keep it looking neat and tidy.
Like beard oil, beard balm contains natural carrier oils that are rich in vitamins and nutrients. These oils provide nourishment to your beard hair and keep it healthy and strong.
Itchy and irritated skin underneath the beard is a common problem for men. Beard balm helps to soothe and calm the skin, reducing the itchiness and irritation associated with growing a beard.
Beard balm adds a natural shine and luster to the beard, making it look healthy and well-groomed. The natural oils and beeswax reflect light, giving the beard a subtle sheen.
As of this writing we currently do not have a beard balm but we wanted to talk about the differences anyways. I will recommend you check out Dapper Guru and their Havana Beard Butter if you're in the market for some balm. We love it and know you will too!
In conclusion, beard oil and balm are two popular grooming products that have become increasingly popular in recent years. Both are designed to help maintain a healthy and well-groomed beard, but they offer slightly different benefits. Beard oil is a lightweight, fast-absorbing product that helps to hydrate and soften the beard, while also promoting healthy growth and reducing itchiness. It is typically made with a blend of carrier oils (such as jojoba, argan, or sweet almond oil) and essential oils, which can provide a pleasant scent and additional benefits for the skin and hair.
On the other hand, beard balm is a thicker, heavier product that is designed to provide a more intense level of hydration and hold. It typically contains a blend of carrier oils, shea butter, and beeswax, which work together to moisturize the beard and skin, while also providing a light to medium hold for styling. This makes it a great option for those with longer or more unruly beards, or for those who want a more structured look.
While both products are beneficial for beard care, the choice between beard oil and balm ultimately comes down to personal preference and individual needs. Some men prefer the lightweight feel and fast absorption of beard oil, while others prefer the thicker consistency and styling capabilities of beard balm. It's also worth noting that both products can be used together for maximum benefit, with the beard oil providing hydration and nourishment, and the balm providing hold and structure.
In the end, whether you choose Beard Oil, balm, or a combination of both, taking the time to care for your beard can make a big difference in its appearance and overall health. By using high-quality grooming products and following a regular beard care routine, you can achieve a healthy, well-groomed beard that looks and feels great.
Keep your friends close and your shave closer.
Think about the last time you went to buy a razor. You found the shaving aisle. You’re facing a wall of razors. There’s a lot of pink. And plastic. Pretty packaging, all promising the smoothest shave, and the silkiest skin. Every brand boasting about having more blades than the next.
Why have three blades when you can have five? More is better...right? You grab the package with six blades.
Fast forward to using your new razor. You’re careful - trying to avoid any nicks. It does the job. But after toweling off you’ve got some discomfort. Razor burn here and there. It’s frustrating, but you deal with it. It’s really not that uncommon of a result.
Why is it that these razors promising an excellent shave rarely deliver?
The problem is the blades. All of the extra blades are major overkill - and do more harm than good. We’ve been duped by advertisements telling us what's best. I mean, why wouldn’t a razor with six blades give you the smoothest shave ever?
Multiple blades are detrimental to the quality of your shave, and the health of your skin.
When you have multiple blades, they pass over your skin several times. Advertisements share the purpose is for the first blade to pull up the hair, and the subsequent blades cut it off. This lift and cut system sounds like you’re getting a super close shave.
Turns out...these extra blades start to cut the hair under the skin. This leads to hair getting stuck beneath the skin - causing the dreaded ingrown hair. These irritated skin follicles result in those angry, unsightly, painful red bumps.
Your intent was smooth, touchable legs. Now you have a tender red rash.
What do you typically do when you get a bad case of razor burn? Take a few more days off shaving. The problem is the next time you shave with longer hair - this same problem is even more likely to happen. Your hair is longer and pulls more on your already sensitive skin.
It’s a vicious cycle.
Your shaving experience went from a routine, relaxing ritual to a painful regret.
It’s time to upgrade to one, double edge razor. We promise you won’t miss those pink plastic disposable razors. The MkII Double edge razor paired with double edge blades is sleek and visually appealing. This high quality razor not only adds beauty to your bathroom, but provides that smooth shave minus the irritation.
A single blade gives you greater control over your shave. One pass over your leg skims over the surface of your skin, taking your hair but leaving your skin.
You get the smooth shave you desire minus the irritation, bumps, and redness.
Another benefit? No more clogged blades. Clogged blades accumulate bacteria, especially when sitting in your shower between uses. That’s the last thing you want on your skin when shaving.
If you want to increase the quality of your razor, and the results of your shave - decrease your blades. Try out a double edge razor - we’ll show you what a quality, close shave is really like.
It’s been a long time since any of you here have heard from us. I want to give all of you a ‘State of Battle Brothers Address’ if you will.
During the time of absence, I have been hard at work on some really important developments! Let’s start at the top!
While the daily operations are supported by the wonderful and amazing customers we have, huge investment projects require additional capital. I hit the local entrepreneur scene pretty hard spending time in incubators, working with marketers, manufacturers, engineers, CAD teams, designers, developers, and potential investors. It has been a very busy year so far. I’m excited to say that Battle Brothers Shaving won several pitches to investors, grants, and veteran friendly business groups, securing capital for some huge projects that are in the works.
1st Michigan VetpreneurLabs Grand Prize Winner – MWest Challenge Top 5 Business Ideas 1st place – Business Pitch Award 1st place – Social Impact and Sustainability Award – 1st place – C.E.O. Business Plan Competition – Bunker Labs Detroit 3rd place
I could not be more grateful for all the support that I’m getting from the shaving community. You guys and gals are such great customers! My team and I are constantly humbled by the positive emails and purchases that we keep getting during our first real year (2018) of sales! Nearly all of the profit we’ve had has gone right back into making what we have better, R&D, and innovation to try to develop new products and ways of running things. Some of you have been testing out different products and giving us your much appreciated feedback…so it’s not just all of us in the lab. This community has had an enormous impact in shaping what we as a company have been working on and towards. So thank you so much for all of your insight and input that you’ve contributed to this process.
So what have we been working on and where is all this big capital spending been going?
Well, over the past year we’ve been hard at work developing our first razor that’s made 100% in the USA! We’ve also been diligently working on developing the right tools, building the right team, and investing in the right materials. Like all things Battle Brothers, it’s always quality over quantity, with the highest standards that we believe we can achieve. We’re all so excited to bring something special to the market!
Introducing:
MkII Razor
The MkII Razor is made out of military aircraft grade aluminum. It’s actually made from the same aluminum as the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. The high-strength alloy we use has been tried, tested, and battle-hardened. We believe your day should start with confidence and quality. The new Razor is anodized military specification to MIL-A-8625 type II, class 2 for a smooth low friction coating. The 1st batch, or the founders run, will have a limited edition black on black recessed BB logo. Field strip with ease, this razor only has three parts for cleaning, maintenance and longevity. With care, the MkII Razor will last you a lifetime and may even be something to pass along to the next generation.
Products that are made in the U.S. are valuable. They contain the values of safety, worker’s rights, good wages, environmental quality, and consumer protection. As Battle Brothers Shaving Co. grows, we will be able to make more of our products here in the U.S.! Our long-term goal is to be 100% made in the USA. For now, we are excited to partner with a manufacturer right here in Michigan, that has been developing our MkII razor.
Using the MkII feels just as fantastic as you would expect. Personally, my favorite part is listening to the razor resonate with a beautiful *SHWEEING* as I make perfect glides across my face. Since the metal used throughout is so pure, I can nearly hear every single hair succumbing to its doom! I can also detect when I’m not at the perfect angle, which really ups my shaving game. It’s lightweight, so it requires a little extra situational awareness when using, but the payoff is worth it. After only a few shaves, I feel that I have a greater amount of control than when using razors of a more “standard weight.” Of course, this is a matter of personal preference and opinion. But man, I love the way it feels in my hand and LOVE the way it sounds! We at Battle Brothers look forward to hearing what you think as well! So be sure to give us your feedback when you use it.
More colors and options are coming, but we need sales to make them come alive.
Here is my selfish call to action: Continue to provide your feedback! And share about us, our primary way of growing are friends telling friends!
Remember,
Keep your friends close, and your shave closer!
Battle Brothers Shaving Co.
Founder Andrew
Our development of Battle Brother razor blades was a roller coaster. Partnering, sourcing, manufacturing, packaging.
We determined there are two major factors when developing the highest grade blade possible. The first step was to find the best steel we could get our hands-on. Steel can come in an infinite amount of variations. Good steel actually can have a ‘shelf life’ before processing to put it simply. A steel brand we tried to procure but failed was Hitachi. For those unfamiliar with Hitachi they make some of the world's finniest chef and sushi fillet knives. A company in Japan using some of the same steel used to make samurai Katanas! A razor blade made out of katana steel? Hell yes we said! Hitachi will not sell direct, so we had to go through a middleman. A middleman will only talk to manufacture.
Step 2 – Find manufacture with the latest materials process and blade manufacturing procedures. There is a lot that goes into razor blade manufacturing. I’m sure this is circulating Badger and Blade and instead of me explaining how it’s done here’s the How It’s Made. It’s a fantastic representation of Double Edge razor development and would take far less time understanding it all.
Pretty awesome if you ask me! There are high quality manufactures all over the world. Our goal was to be manufactured in the United States. Contacting every US blade manufacture, they all told us they no longer produce here in America due to the high cost associated with it. We couldn’t believe it, an extremely disheartening chain of events for the team. Not being able to make these here at home made it a company long term goal to bring it back!
Months of research and interviewing manufacturers all over the world we ended up working with one in China. A tough decision because we are well aware that the “Made In China” stamp is often associated with poor quality. The team is confident that once our blades start circulating, we won’t have to worry about that.
Back to step 1 – acquiring the right steel. Working with our new manufacture and their suppliers we looked at several producers and their grades of steel. As luck would have it, we found Hitachi steel! Contacting our Hitachi Rep right before huge purchases we showed him the mill certificate. It was forged! Our rep looked into the archives and found that this steel was over 15 years old and had degraded too much for use. A huge save, as almost half of our capital has gone into the razor blade process. We also inadvertently started an international investigation on this supplier because Hitachi was pissed and wanted justice over selling their name on bad product!
Still, on the search for great steel, we worked with the next best find. If steel could be steak, it’s still filet mignon but a different cow.
Long story short, we are on our way developing our own blade with great steel and a great manufacturer!
The Double Edge blades you see here truly are high performance stainless steel. Mill certified with small, uniform grain. The processing that we use includes Teflon, nitrogen, chrome and platinum coating. Using a scientific measurement called The Vickers Hardness test or HV. This testing is to show how hard something is like a Dimond. The number of the object is then converted to another unit called a pascal. And a shit ton of math takes place. Like math, then see how it works here: Vickers hardness test – Wikipedia
For those who are not so math included like myself, the Battle Brother Blade are hardened and sharpened to 550 HV, which is outstanding. To give you reference, normal stainless steel has a 180 HV. It is important to note that a higher number is not necessarily better. A Dimond is 10000 HV, super hard right? That is why we see a surgeon’s scalpel blade sometimes made from diamonds. Finding the right balance to how sharp the blade should be so it doesn’t peel your face and giving you that super smooth and comfortable shaving experience.
In the end, we are so happy with how Battle Brother Blades have come out! We have had nothing but very positive feedback! I’m not going to share any because I don’t have intentions to be salesy. I want to provide you with the knowledge and process behind our great product so you can decide if these are right for you. I want you to know when we market our blades as ‘High Performance’ it’s not just some marketing buzz word attached to it. These are intentionally designed to be.
Remember,
Keep your friends close, and your shave closer!
Battle Brothers Shaving Co.
Founder Andrew
