Hey guys now that it’s too hot to check out any pomades that aren’t heavy holds I will only be reviewing heavier ones for a while. It’s the opposite of my normal route of reviewing pomade lines, but it has to be done. I don’t want to go the whole summer wear pomades that will melt really easily. Plus I won’t get to see how the pomade truly works, because it will melt in 5 seconds out here. So I’m only checking out stuff that might work. Today’s pomade, well pomades, is Rob’s Chop Shop slick w50. I will be doing another side by side review since I have the old and new versions of this one as well.
They both come in a 4oz stainless slip cove tin. There is a lid label and can label on each. The lid label is a black background with silver lettering and a bright colored center design. In the center is a barber pole, two flags(a checkered one and a Texas one) and the Rob’s Chop Shop logo, plus a red banner at the bottom that says “pom-aid.” Above that it says “SLICK W 50,” around the design are four sayings. “Flat it,” “Mop it,” “Duck it,” and “Pomp it.” I’m not sure what “mop it” means though. At the very bottom it says “sleaze and greaze Texas style” and has the weight info. The can label is an oval label kind of like the High Life labels. This one is also a black label. On either side in a circle is “slick w 50.” In the very center in baseball style lettering is “Rob’s Chop Shop.” Pretty cool label I think, definitely unique.
Opening them up you see two completely different pomades. Hmmmm, I wonder why the pomade changed…. I guess we will see soon! The old one looks a lot like Murray’s Superior. It has that tan color and the same textural look as Murray’s. it even smells kind of similar to Murray’s too, but this one is sweeter smelling than Murray’s. Kind of like sweet honey. The new one is kind of a mint green in color and has a waxy look to it. The smell of the new on is very clean smelling, it reminds me of floral soaps. I’m liking both scents quite a bit and for different reasons.
Just like the last review, I am starting with the older one first the I will move on to the newer one. As I dug my finger into the tan one, I wasn’t surprised by what I pulled out at all. It scoops exactly like Murray’s superior or DAX wave and groom does, but it does feel a bit thicker than those do. I have a feeling it’s going to comb and hold like those do as well. The scent stayed about the same as I got it out of the tin, but it’s still a nice strong and sweet scent. The new one really surprised me when is scooped it out, unlike the old one. This one came out in a whole round disc of pomade, huh?! It literally came out a disc of waxy pomade, pretty wild. I’ve never had that happen before. So I took a scoop from the disc and you can see it is a pretty waxy pomade. This one I think is going to hold pretty good by the feel of it. Unlike the old one this one gets a little stronger once you scoop it out of the tin. Lets get to it!
Starting with the old one. In my hands it broke down very similar to Murray’s, only it was more difficult to spread and got a little thicker as I dispersed it in my palms. It became very tacky and had almost a waxy feel to it, like microcrystalline wax. As soon as I ran my hands over my hair I knew it was going to be difficult for me to comb this stuff. It went in like a heavier Murray’s superior and it wanted to stay just on top like some waxy pomades do.
And just as I thought, this stuff was really hard for me to comb through and disperse evenly in my hair. It took me over 7 mins just to get it in my hair evenly and ready to where I could start styling my hair. However, once I got it dispersed in, it became very easy to comb. So this stuff just takes a little working with. Once I started to comb my pomp I was very happy. I was able to get a pretty tall bulbous pomp and I was able to comb it in just a couple minutes.
Old Rob's slick W50
I was really pleased with how well this stuff worked once I got it worked in. It was really easy to comb a pomp, and my pomp looked great. And my hair was pretty shiny, which as you all know, I love. And who doesn’t like a nice tall, round, shiny pomp?! I kept getting compliments on my hair all day long, which was really cool. I like it when people comment on my hair. I did notice that this stuff did soften a bit and kind of droop when I was outside for a while. Not as much as Murray’s and DAX do though. I was able to recomb my hair very easily, but I wasn’t able to get the height I did the first time I combed it. But I was still able to get a nice medium shiny pomp when I re-combed it.
The next day I didn’t have to add hardly any pomade at all. 95% of the pomade stayed in my hair! So I only added a very little amount to spruce up my hair. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? You’ll have to decide the for yourself. Personally I don’t mind it, it means that my pomade is going to last that much longer. Just like the first day I had a tall, round, shiny pomp going on. The second day it held a little better though. It didn’t quite droop as much as the first day. The more I used it the better it held and the less pomade I had to use. By the fourth day I didn’t even need to add any pomade in the morning, I just combed my hair.
Being such a tough pomade to work in, I knew it would be hard to get out of my hair. But luckily I make Atomic shampoo that takes it out in one wash. I’d say its about like getting DAX or Murray’s out of your hair. I am thoroughly pleased with this pomades performance. The only thing I didn’t like was how damn hard it was to work into my hair. However, that’s a small price to pay for a great looking pomp that stays in place and is nice and shiny. Let’s check out the new one shall we?!
This one broke down like a nice medium pomade, but also had the microcrystalline wax texture/feel to it when it was spread around in my hands. Applying it was very reminiscent of High Life medium, the old one. And this one combed way easier than the old one does. However I made the mistake of having my hair a little too damp when I applied it and I got some wax flakes from this one. Nothing a little combing can’t fix. Make sure your hair isn’t too damp or you’ll have to comb a little more than normal.
New Rob's slick W50
I wasn’t able to get quite as tall of a pomp with this as I did with the old one. I was still able to get a nice round pomp with this stuff though. It was more of a medium pomp, but it still held really well. With this one being more waxy the shine wasn’t as high, but it did have some sheen to it. I really liked the scent of it once it was in my hair and my pomp was combed. The air kind of helped the scent get a little more pronounced without being too strong. And it’s a really nice fresh scent, I got a few compliments from my friends on the scent. General consensus is that this pomade smells great. I wore this pomade on the first day of my new job which is quite a bit of work outside. Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite hold up as good as the old one did. But I wasn't in the sun a lot the first day I wore the old one, so let’s see how this holds up the second day.
Unlike the old one, some of this one came out of my hair while I slept and also while taking a shower. So I had to add about a quarter finger full to the top and a little bit to the sides and back. I noticed a little bit more shine the second day and a bit more hold as well. I didn't have to be out in the sun as much this time and I noticed that it held quite a bit better than the first day. I did noticed that both on the first day and the second day my hair began to droop over my right eye. I’m not quite sure why my hair did that in that one specific area, because it held really well everywhere else. But I was able to recomb my hair and put it back where it used to be very easily.
Kind of like the old one this one builds up really great and the more you use it the less you have to add. However this one was a bit easier to get out of my hair than the old one was. Overall this stuff is a pretty decent pomade. I do wish it held a little better, like the old one did. But I loved how much easier this one went in and washed out. Plus the AZ heat just brutalizes pomades, especially if you’re out in the sun a bunch. So this one is a pretty good pomade.
So my comparison is I like the hold and shine of the old one, but the ease of use of the new one. The scents I like equally because they’re good in different ways and are completely different. I would say the old one for sure holds and shines better for the heat, but the new one holds good too and makes your hair look really good. So I’d say if you come across the old one, snatch it up quick, fast and in a hurry! And I’d buy the new one as well if I were you. It’s a good pomade and worth checking out and having in a collection.
Sleaze and greaze guys,