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Thread: Newest horse in the stable
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05-30-2012, 03:53 PM #1
Jaswarb,
I have that same model brush and like it, even though it's a bit scratchy. It works well with soap or cream. I beg to differ with you, however, in comparing that particular horse hair brush to some of the high end badgers. I cannot see that brush being "similar" to or in the same class as the Thater or the Simpson silver tips, both of which I also have. Yes, this Vie-Long has good backbone, nice and full, and it holds water well and lathers well, and it's a well made and quality brush, but then we can't compare it to those coveted silver tips. Each in its own class, I'd say.
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jaswarb (05-30-2012)
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05-30-2012, 11:48 PM #2
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The Following User Says Thank You to jaswarb For This Useful Post:
Obie (05-30-2012)
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05-30-2012, 11:59 PM #3
Jaswarb,
If you can, though, my friend, somewhere down the line, try one of these silver tip wonders. They are a delight to shave with. Now, not all soar in price. Some of the, say, 22 mm. silver tips from Thater, for instance, offer prices that are not scary. Even if you can try a Simpson best badger or super badger, you'll be amazed at how uplifting your shaves will be.
Stay well.
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06-19-2012, 08:40 AM #4
Well, I have one of the unbleached Vie-Long Horses (12705, which indeed smelled pretty bad the first few times). It seems to break in rather fast, as it started out very scitchy but after five or six uses (and a bit longer soaking time than my badgers) it is getting very soft. Not as soft as my Thäter 41925/0, but softer than my Semogue 1460 boar was after a good two months of use and almost equal to my New Forest two-band. It holds as much water and lather as the Thäter, and releases it in the same manner. It's not quite a luxurious three-band silvertip, but beats a TGN three-banded silvertip I used to have by a mile, having much better backbone. It is only just a runner up to my Thäter actually, I really like it that much (very much personal preference, of course).
I didn't expect that, but am very pleased. It's a brown-and-red, inconspicuous looking little monster (knot: 23mm, loft: 60mm), but performs much better than you could ever imagine based on it looks (and price).
Someone did a comparison of Vie Long horse brushes on ArtisanShaving a while back, and apparently the bleached ones are slightly softer and have less backbone than the unbleached ones. They really don't get the attention they deserve, in my opinion they outperform boars by far, as well as some middle-of-the-road badgers. I must add I recently stopped face lathering as I get better results bowl lathering. The horse feels scritchier when using circling motions directly on the face, although that is rapidly improving with every use too (I usually tend to swirl a few times on my face anyway, force of habit I guess).
And indeed Jaswarb, 22mm Thäters, even new, are quite affordable. I got my 41925/0 used, it's knot is listed as measuring 22mm while actually it was closer to 23.5mm.
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07-17-2012, 12:53 PM #5
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Thanked: 88I received a couple of horse brushes in the mail yesterday. One was a qualty brush, and the other was only a couple of dollars and was bought on a whim. Can't wait to try them, but dear Lord do they smell. I lathered them up and rinsed them last night, and I'm leaving them in the sun in a window today. I'll lather them up again tonight, and maybe they'll be ready afterwards. The Vie-Long looks and feels (to the hand) like a quality brush, and the other (Turkish) may have potential on hard soaps, we'll see.
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12-06-2012, 02:57 PM #6
Since I won't be playing golf this weekend (too cold here on Long Island), I took the money I would have spent on the links and ordered a Vie-Long 13061 Premium Horse Hair Shaving Brush from ShaveTools.com. The price was right (I got it on sale for $32 -- I even understand you get a free gift with orders over $30, so I'm curious to see what that is), and from the photos at least, it's a handsome piece.
I've been using hard soaps for years so the extra backbone it promises will be most welcome. I'm anxious to compare it to my vintage badger and my new Mulhle Silvertip. I'm envisioning where I may use the (smaller) vintage brush as a travel brush, the Vie for hard soaps, and the Muhle for shaving creams, which I want to add to the rotation.Last edited by Peter57; 12-06-2012 at 02:59 PM.
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12-31-2012, 02:43 AM #7
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12-31-2012, 11:13 AM #8
LOL - actually it didn't smell, although it did lose some dye the first outing. The brush works well with hard soaps - lots of backbone. The free gift was a plastic stand.
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01-01-2013, 02:40 AM #9
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Thanked: 1184I just got a brush today. It is an old Double Duck m5. I have been buying them because they are cheap and will go good with my collection. I am going to post some pics soon with a ton and half questions for the experienced ones. When I bought the one I got today I thought it was stained from the picture or dyed. Now that it is in my hand it looks just like the hair on a mare I rode for 12 years. RED. It has been used and smells pretty good. Honestly I am not even sure it's horse yet but it sure looks/feels like it to me. I have a badger and boar that I like and looking for a horse I will like to use. I still have 2 to clean and try. If I like 1 of them then my brush adventure will be over.
Glad yours didn't smell. I don't think it's the hair so much as the process of making them.Good judgment comes from experience, and experience....well that comes from poor judgment.