A proper shaving cream or soap will FAR outperform anything I've ever used from a can. As previously noted, I've gone retro and just started shaving with DE razors. Got some Proraso and a badger bristle shaving brush. GOOD stuff. Was just in Santa Cruz for a couple days, and used the Proraso, but brought cartridge razors for convenience. I'll say that the twin blade Sensor Excel gave a far better shave with the Proraso than I ever got with any other foam or gel. And I've tried bar soap too.
And while I'm commenting, let me rant on the Save-a-Blade. Actually that's what got me into DE shaving. Wasn't going to pay $19.95 for one, but saw one at a discount outlet for $5 and thought I'd give it a try. Mentioned buying it to my Aussie wife and she asked me to get several more as they were just introduced to Oz via TV and cost a bloody fortune. Discount store was out, so looked for them on Amazon and upon reading the reviews, learned few people have any luck with them. One review in particular touted the overall low cost of DE shaving, and that's what got me going in that direction, being a part-time cheapskate.... Anyway, I looked into the Save-a-Blade I'd bought. First attempts showed zero contact with the blade when inspecting with a microscope. But hadn't read the directions, and had the blade in the wrong position. Tried again, and found contact from the sandpaper along maybe 10% of the cutting edge of one blade after a good 10 second run. My reviews can be found on Amazon if you look up the Save-a-Blade. Piece of crap IMHO, though some reviewers do rave about it. Go figure...
Jon