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Hello!, I'm fairly new to this game and in a rush to get started a while back i bought a VDH boar brush, and, while it has built quite a few lathers for me thus far, i find myself yearning for more... gentlemen, I do believe it's time for me to step out of the realm of cheap and into the realm of badger. That's not to say boar brushes don't have their place in line, but I'm looking for suggestions. What is everyone's "go-to" brush and why?
I alternate badger brushes of all types in & out of my rotation. They are all good. I suggest you keep an eye on our classified section for brushes, the vendor's section & sponsors of the site. Choose an affordable brush & start the brush journey from there.
I'd like to be more specific Harley, but I just can't,,,,,,:shrug:
Looking at the "fairly new" aspect and in the interest of economy, have you thought about a good synthetic?
IMO, the old synthetics were only good for touching up paint on a garden chair, but the latest generation comes quite close to badger, is not too expensive, makes whipping up lather easier than badger, and performs really well - better than any boar I ever tried.
My clear favorite in that line-up is the Mühle Silvertip Fibre® XL (25 mm), but I have been tempted to give the Omega Hi-Brush line a try too.
Going for a real silvertip, I would try Shavemac and (again) Mühle, but then again, I am a creature of habits and had my best experiences with these two.
B.
If you are looking for a badger that will not break the bank and that has good back bone yet soft tips The Semogue Owners Club 2 band badger is very decent. Some info here Semogue Owners Club Two-Band Shaving Brush .
Bob
The only AD I don't have is brushes.
My starter VDH Piggy is still my loyal travel brush after three years.
Home it's a 1800 and recently I added a 1305 just to have an every other day brush.
I hear they are nice (those badgers) but I dare not try one...
Smooth shaving...
I think one of the questions you need to figure our the answer to is what qualities are you looking for. There is the question of face or bowl lather and the question of soap or cream. Next soft or scritchy. I have a brush made by Bill aka Pixelfixed that is my favorite and was sort of made to order, actually a gift from a friend. There are quite a few custom brush guys here that make nice brushes, and most of them are very reasonable to downright bargains from what I have seen.
I started with inexpensive brushes from Parker and frank shaving. Frank shaving silvertip is a lovely large brush with a very affordable price tag at Maggards or eBay. Thater entry level brushes are soft and nice but their $100+ brushes are really nice. Bull goose has a nice beehive from Vie Long.
All that being said I like my Kent BK4 so much I bought the bk8 and b12 as well.
I started with a cheap silvertip from Larry @ whipped dog. Quite a nice brush to use, just in a cheap handle. Since then I have moved to 2 other brushes from gssixgun. One is a high mountain white knot with wood handle to match a razor he restored for me (not sure of the other knot as it was a gift from him but is also great to use). The high mountain white is now my everyday brush, as the razor it matches (post 1035)is the most used in my collection. Absolutely lovely brush and a very fair price considering the craftsmanship. But if I were on a budget I certainly wouldn't complain about having to use the one from whipped dog everyday.
Everyone needs at least one Simpson
I totally agree but avoid pure badger and go for best or super unless you want a really scrubby brush. I sold my pure badger because it actually made my face bleed more than once before shaving :(Quote:
Originally Posted by Euclid440
Your brush made your face bleed???Quote:
Originally Posted by JTmke
You gotta kill the dang badger first,,,,,:rofl2: ,,, they get a little pi$$ed when you just snatch them up & smear cream on them,,,,:shrug:Quote:
Originally Posted by JTmke
Yup. Dead badger stuffed in a duke 2 handle. Made my face bleed twice while putting lather on. Not face lathering, just applying lather
Harley,
An excellent brush into the badger world is the Simpson Commodore 3 in best badger. This is an all-around brush, well made, and it will serve you well. The price, I believe around $70, is reasonable.
Thats incredable.Quote:
Originally Posted by JTmke
Indeed. Either there is a wire hidden in there for a joke, or your skin is thin??Quote:
Originally Posted by pixelfixed
I have the SOC 2 band and enjoy it for face lathering, but I would also second a cheap Frank's shaving if you just wanna dip your toes in. Star Shaving sent me a great brush by Frank's shaving and quite honestly it is one of my favorites. I have a Dovo, but it is insanely floppy.
I am also new to this obsession and very confused about the types and grades of brushes. Currently I am using the same cheap brush as HarleyD to start with and yearning for an upgrade. I feel your pain Harley. So what's the deal with horse hair? Not much talk about it but it seems to be as affordable as boar bristle. How does it stack up compared to boar and badger?
I would say an excellent second brush for any guy would be a Semogue boar! I went down the badger path first and then hit up boar brushes. I only have two boar a Semogue and an Omega. They are both great and so reasonably priced it's nuts. Hands down though the 2000 is my favorite boar and once broken in it's as nice as most badgers.
thanks for all of the replies. i guess what i am looking for is a live badger, with boar hair:hmmm: as i face and bowl lather, with soap or cream depending on the day, though i mostly face lather creams. i've toyed with the idea of simpson brushes, i was just never sure which would suit me best.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JTmke
Plus One: A quality Boar beats a pure badger every time.
thank you all, after careful consideration i decided to buy 2 brushes (don't tell my wife:jedi:), the Commodore 3, and a semogue 2000. i went with the 2000 because it seems everyone who face lathers with one loves it. and couldn't find a bad review for the commodore 3
Most of my brushes are the old original two banders and they are all great. I have a couple Manchurians and they are pretty close to the two banders or at least as close as you can get these days. The one working silvertip I have is a small really thickly filled Kent which performs pretty much like the manchurians but that's because of it's size and fill and low loft. I'll take any of them on any day though the two banders are my favorites.