Thread: Thater 2 band vs 3

I have my own test for floppiness. I take the brush and put pressure from the hair straight down on the palm of my hand. Depending on how crushable the hair is I know immediately if it's going to be floppy and how floppy it will be. I don't have to use it or wet it.

I don't think I've ever encountered a floppy brush that was prickly. That's a quality you usually find with the stiffer hairs.

An example of how individual the appreciation of brushes is can be found all through this thread. For example, Stefan (mainaman) describes the current Simpson Chubby Manchurian ;

to be For me the best combo of backbone and tip softness comes with CH 3 Manchurian.

I had that brush, and a Simpson Manchurian Polo from the same time frame, that were way too stiff for me, and not scritchy enough.

I had so many Thaters come and go because I was trying to get a scritchy one, and no soap (pun intended). Same with the Shavemac with the D01 (or whatever it is) hair. I only tried one of them, and it was a 3 band as luck would have it, but no scritch. The Rooney Heritage line the same thing. I still have two of those, and they are good brushes, but no scritch.

I had some Somerset made Simpson Supers and some Rooney Finests from 'back in the day' and foolishly sold them. They were scritchy. I sold them because I had a bucket full of brushes and figured the availability of scritchy brushes would never end. That is what I get for figuring. Going back to the theme of individual likes/dislikes for brushes.

I sold 3 Rooney finests to 3 different people some years ago. I asked each one, after they had the brushes awhile whether they found them to be 'scritchy'. Two of the three said no, and the other fellow said 'a little bit.' Now these were scritchy to my face. So it isn't only that a brush has certain characteristics inherently, but what might be scritchy to one guy, might not be to another.

Funny thing is, in about 1973 I was in Hoffritz For Cutlery and bought my first shaving brush. I used that little brush, a badger @ $80.00, for over 30 years. My one and only brush. It worked. I never thought about whether it had backbone, was soft or scritchy ( it was soft but not floppy). I came to shaving forums in '07 and read all this stuff about the optimum brush, and suddenly my humble Hoffritz was not good enough, and the race was on ;



Sung to the tune of "House Of The Rising Sun" ........... Mother, tell your children, not to do what I have done. spend your money on shaving brushes when one is as good as a ton .......... All but a couple of those pictured are gone, in other shave dens now .........

Ain't that the truth. I could describe a brush one way give it to another person and they would describe it another way. That is the trouble with all reviews of brushes, soaps and creams, far too subject. You really just have to try serveral to find one that suits you.

I used a boar brush on and off for over 40 years before joining shave forums and being "educated" on why certain badger brushes are "best". I bought a few badger brushes till I found what I liked but in the end they lather up a soap or cream about as well as my old cheap badger brushes. They may feel different but both get the job done and done well.

Bob

So it seems the consensus is 2 band=more backbone. More than what? Buy a 3 band to find out. I got 6 pucks of Williams so I think I'd better fortify the spine all I can.

On a serious note though, all the replies have been really helpful.

Well 2 band, here I come!

Originally Posted by Maxx

So it seems the consensus is 2 band=more backbone. More than what? Buy a 3 band to find out. I got 6 pucks of Williams so I think I'd better fortify the spine all I can.

On a serious note though, all the replies have been really helpful.

Well 2 band, here I come!

Another general 'rule of thumb', shorter lofts for soap pucks and face lathering, taller lofts for soft creams. Some of each type work well with soaps or creams, but that was the general consensus years ago and is pretty much what I've found in my journey through badger land. YMMV.

Yea, again I'd have to agree with Jimmy on the loft settings but I have a far more limited experience. I think a good all around loft setting for soaps and creams is the loft at 2X the knot size, ie a 24mm knot at a 48mm loft give or take a few silly mms either way. At least that has been the case for the 2 banders I have and use.

Bob

Well I ordered the 4125/2 26mm *2 band* off SRD, hope the 54mm loft doesn't give me too much trouble whipping up a lather, just added Dr Harris Marlborough and green mountain to my queue, got mwf and razorock xxx waiting for me to finish off the Williams.

Originally Posted by Maxx

Well I ordered the 4125/2 26mm *2 band* off SRD, hope the 54mm loft doesn't give me too much trouble whipping up a lather, just added Dr Harris Marlborough and green mountain to my queue, got mwf and razorock xxx waiting for me to finish off the Williams.

Actually 54mm is a good compromise between the two. Especially with the 26mm knot. If you ever go from hard soap to soft creams that will still be in the ballpark for either/or. I hadn't ever thought of what Bob said about doubling the size of the knot to get the loft but that is a great idea.

Yea, you are in the ballpark and should be good to go for whipping up your lather. Let us know what you think when you have used that new brush.

Bob

Wow!

I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but the difference with this and my omega stripey is night and day. Just an incredible feeling on the face. The way it holds lather, how it retains shape (what you guys are calling backbone I suppose), the water retention. ...this thing is incredible from soak to finish.

Absolutely love it, hard to think of my old brush as a brush at all, what a tremendous difference. I will say it is smaller than what I pictured, but the size suits me just fine when loaded up.

Today was the Thater loaded with TOBS and mowed down with my new 8/8 Koraat, what a stupendous experience. Between the new brush and new razor my shaving just got bumped to heavenly bliss.


That brush is so fun!