Pre shave showdown

I am comparing the pre shaves that I have on hand. The four contenders are: 
Mickey Lee Lime Pre Shave Butter
Van Yulay Pre Shave Oil
Maggard's Pre Shave Oil Eucalyptus 
Shea Moisture Shave Pre Shave Oil
Method: I will use each pre shave twice, once on each side of my face to eliminate handedness bias. During the shave I will compare glide and protection, points will be lost if the razor gets clogged. 

First round: ML vs VY
The first shave revealed little difference between these two, but Van Yulay set itself apart in the second shave. It had more protection and left my skin feeling better.  ML is a bit easier to apply due to its buttery state. I'd still go with Van Yulay in this one. 

Next up: Shea Moisture vs. Maggard's starting tomorrow.

The pre shave comparison switched to a new pairing: Maggard's vs Shea Moisture. My first impression is that both oils felt good going on, with SM providing a bit of warmth. I don't think either oil had much effect on the shave today, but that is why I'm doing this comparison over two days. Tomorrow I'll use a known soap and switch sides with the oils to see what works better.

Pre Shave Oil Comparison day 4
Once again the Shea Moisture offering is thicker and somehow makes my face feel warm - the only one of the four having this effect. I wonder if I am a bit sensitive to one of its ingredients, but it does not cause redness at least. I could smell the eucalyptus in the Maggard's oil better today - its a much less humid day, with fewer allergens, so my nose is more clear. I think I have to give the nod to Shea Moisture in this round, but its close. Neither oil seemed to make a big difference in the shave, but I find the side with SM to be a little bit more comfortable. I predict either of these would fall to the Van Yulay I used earlier in the week, however. I will find out with SM vs. VY tomorrow and Friday.

Good insights. What did you learn about SM and VY?

I'm sorry I did not post the end of the story.
VY outperformed the SM pretty handily. I think the Emu oil is the kicker, plus the slightly thinner consistency.
SM does make an excellent balm and splash, just the PSO does not do much for me.

I haven't used any of the "butter" type products, but I have found that the two Italian preshaves I've used (Proraso White and PREP) perform about the same. Which is to say, redundant if my beard is well hydrated, but useful when shaving and showering at different times.

Good thought - I usually don't have time to shower in the morning, so pre shave prep is helpful for me. If I shave after my evening shower, my stubble would be pretty thick by morning.

Mine grows at an awkward, in-between rate. If I do a 3 pass shave, it's not really ready to shave the next day. If I just do two, the stubble gets annoying by that night.

I always look like I have 5 o'clock shadow! Three passes everyday for me.

I'm sorry I did not post the end of the story.  
VY outperformed the SM pretty handily.  I think the Emu oil is the kicker, plus the slightly thinner consistency.  
SM does make an excellent balm and splash, just the PSO does not do much for me.

Emu oil is an amazing thing! I have yet to use it for a pre shave but I have used it on tattoos which cut down healing time and maintained ink saturation (less weeping of ink) unlike most petroleum and/or lanolin products. I can only imagine how much it hydrates stuble, provides added slickness, and prevents or helps heal any irritation.