Customer Reviews

Conair HLM11CH Chrome Hot Lather Machine

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

When I first got this last Christmas, this was great. The lather was hot and smooth.

But, as I was approaching having this machine for a year, the lather starting getting colder and colder coming out, even when the machine were turned on for longer periods of time.

I just threw the machine in the trash, because today, the lather was as cold as the regular can.

Everyone who tries my hot lather machine wants one, but the problem is they're going, going, gone. Sunbeam, Gillette and other companies have made versions in the past, but they never sell well enough to stay in production. Although this Conair machine is inexpensive, it's well-made and solves some problems of past dispensers. You shake the dispenser before use (which shakes up the can inside), then plug it in and turn on the switch. A red light indicates it's on, and when the green lamp lights, it's ready to shave.You dispense lather by pressing the top black button. The earlier Conair dispenser was white, but this deluxe one is silver and black plastic. It uses any standard 11 or 14 oz. shave cream can (like Foamy), and enhances any shaving routine. Use it with a blade razor (like a Mach III), or dispense the lather into a mug and apply it with a brush. Hot lather also works great with a wet/dry shaver like the Panasonic Sonic III. My suggestion is to get an extra dispenser as a back-up in case yours goes out (my first one did after about a year). Also makes a great gift. The next best thing to a barbershop shave.

Mine produced barely warm shaving cream from Day One and never improved. I took it apart tonight after several months, and now understand why. The design is feeble. The lather moves through a disc-shaped, "flat tube" of metal which is adjacent to (and is supposed to be heated by) another flat, metal disc, which is connected to some simple thermostat electronics and then to the wall outlet.

There are several problems with this design. The first is that the thermostat is obviously inadequate and doesn't allow the disc to get hot enough to be effective. The second is that the transfer of heat from the heated disc to the "flat tube" bleeds off heat. Finally, the "flat tube" itself is made of a metal which isn't that great a conductor of heat. I held it with my fingertips and put a match to it, expecting to be burned and be forced to drop it in the sink in a few seconds, but that never happened; it just didn't get hot.

My guess is that due to the threat of fire, this product is designed to provide warm -- not hot -- lather. Not warm enough for me.

I realize that I've got a tough bristly beard so I'm tough on shaving gear. That being said, this was a big disappointment.

First off, this thing will not work with shaving gel. In my opinion gel gives me more lubrication than foamy cream. To use this you have to use the foamy cream - disappointment #1.

Second, the hot lather was too runny and quite frankly a bit too hot - it hurt my hand the first time I used it. Runny lather (hot or not) is worse than decent gel.

Third, the design is very bad. The power switch on the thing is not in any way moisture resistant - a bad thing for shaving. It's actually a rotating lamp switch that's mounted on the power cord. Then you've got the long power cord hanging in your bathroom. If that's not enough, you have to shake the entire unit before use (with the cord attached). If your bathroom is like mine, that means you're probabaly going to knock something over with the cord.

So yes, it does deliver hot lather - but it's not like what you'd get at the barber shop. My advice is skip it.

I don't know what these other reviewers are talking about.. the machine works exactly as advertised. You just pop of the top of the shaving cream dispenser, insert it into the machine and voila - hot shaving cream.

These people must have had defective units because in my experience not only was the cream NOT warm, it's a little too hot for me. The shaving cream itself cools rather rapidly once it comes out of the dispenser so it's not that big of a deal to me. As for shaking the machine, the machine itself is barely an inch bigger then the can itself, it's not like you have to shake the can to kingdom come - just a vigorous couple shakes are fine. Don't people who don't have this machine normally shake their shaving cream cans anyway?

Lastly, why would somebody buy this machine that clearly states it doesn't work with shaving gel, then complain that it doesn't work with shaving gel?? Am I the only one who thinks this is slightly idiotic? The manufacturers clearly made the shaving gel dispensers slimmer and of a different designs then the shaving cream dispensers so how should one expect this to work with both? Besides, Conair DOES sell a separate machine for shaving gel only.

Hey, this machine is $20, and you get exactly what you pay for. It works great, and gives you nice professional foam. If you want to go out and pay for the machine the barbers have, then feel free to pay over $100.

This worked great for a little over a year and now it just spits out room temperature shaving cream. Even after letting if sit for over 10 minutes, still the same result. From reading other reviews, I guess I didn't get a "faulty unit".

My wife bought me this item for Christmas. I have always been a "mug & brush man" and was somewhat scheptical. However, this machine once you get used to it, ends up giving you a "barbershop shave".

Just read the instructions carefully especially the part about prying off the regular dispensor cap from the shaving cream can before inserting into the dispenser. As the product is hot when it comes out and really expands, you really need to use a light touch on the dispenser or you will get to much lather.

If you use a scented lather like I do, the fragrence really last longer without being too much. A very nice way to start the day!

This machine is what every man (and woman too) should have in their bathroom! Trust me, once you try it you wouldn't want to go back to ordinary shaving. It gives you a long-lasting close shave and a scent that last even longer... My girlfriend loves the way I smell. Also, it is a nice piece of design complemented by the ribbed mirror chrome finish. I highly recommend it!!!

If you want warm (but not HOT) lather, then buy this product. I used it as directed and found that the machine worked fine, but the lather was not hot enough for my taste.

I was using the "Gel" version of the Conair. It was simply a head unit that you put on top of the shave gel & it would heat up the gel as it passed thru. Never got real hot & it was messy as it was top heavy and always falling over & popping the top off and gel going everywhere. It failed, so I replaced it with the chrome one that works with cream only. The cream is much hotter when it comes out than the gel did. It does cool off rapidly. I do like the ribbon it makes, since I had been using gel, I never liked the pile that shave cream made coming out of the can. The cream version works well, does not make a mess & does what it is advertised to do.