Out of curiosity thought I would post a poll about what type of knot and loft heights u guys use and like..
- BAdger
- finest badger
- super badger
- silvertip
- synthetic
- loft heights
- 40-48
- 53 or higher
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Out of curiosity thought I would post a poll about what type of knot and loft heights u guys use and like..
- BAdger
- finest badger
- super badger
- silvertip
- synthetic
- loft heights
- 40-48
- 53 or higher
Silvertip hands down.Lofts? far to many variables to pick one.
There are so many good ones out there.
My favorites are:
Old Rooney's Finest
Plisson's High Mountain White
Simpson's Manchurian Badger
Simpson's 2-band. for larger brushes
Thäter's 2-band Silver-tip
Lofts depend on knot size and type of badger
The only problem is there are no real standards in the industry as far as badger is concerned. Super is not a grade at all and Silvertip can come in two band which is a variation. Some outfits call one grade one thing and others call the same thing something else. Only the pure badger is pretty standard stuff.
What exactly is a super badger golden nib lists it as a treated silvertip? Treated with what and y? Its also 20 bucks more than a silvertip standard
The Industry is miniscule,thus no set standards,I have bought hundreds of knots over the years Enc the so called best hand tied knots from some of the great british firms (are no longer available) TGN has attempted a grading system that for the most part works well,you get what you pay for with them.Quote:
Originally Posted by thebigspendur
Treated knots are I belive bleached some how to lighten the color and make them look more like the best silvertips.
I only use the grade A knots unless the customer wants something else,Why? because they are over hand stuffed and hand trimmed and are truley the finest badger hair money can buy.
True silvertip is in class of it's own.It is harvested from prime winter pelts and the best comes from the neck area of the animal.
That hair is hollow to afford heat retention that keeps the animals brainbox warm in winter (in extream conditions badgers will hibernate)
The hollow true silvertip hair also retains water, which for our use is optimal
Add to that, from what I've heard the brush mfgs, like pipe makers, batch grade their new stock. IOW, the 'best' in the batch will be the highest grade but that may vary from batch to batch.Quote:
Originally Posted by pixelfixed
Plisson calls their high end HMW for High Mountain White. Next grade down is European White. Rooney used to call their high end "Finest" and their Super was a step down. Not sure what the pecking order is now. They say they can no longer get the Finest quality knots. Simpson called their high end Super and the next grade Best.
Some guys preferred the Best. I always liked the scritchy feel of the Super. They also made a limited run of Super Super and 'Manchurian'. I believe the Vulfix outfit that bought Simpson has reintroduced the Manchurian but not sure how it compares to the Somerset made brushes.
I would have to say Silver tip since most of the brushes I buy are made by folks on the SRP. The last three I received were TGN Grade A and I can attest to their quality.
Oddly enough the badger brushes that I have, 3, are all silver tips of one version or another with lofts varying by knot size. By version I mean a Muhle silver tip, a SOC 2 band and a Simpsons Manchurian. All feel slightly different but great all the same.
Bob
I'm not one to worry about loft height as long as it has backbone...can't stand a floppy brush. After that, as long as it's a soft badger I don't care.
WRT loft height, I always just went with what the brush manufactures supplied with a particular knot size. On the basis that they have been making brushes for a good long while and should know what works best with what size. Seems to have worked so far.
Bob
I guess I am going through a shaving "awkward stage."... I have a super-badger brush that used to be my favorite until I bought a scraggly turn-of-the-century horsehair brush. The knot is about 2 1/2" high and less than 1" wide. It gives me, bar none, the best lather I've ever had--never too foamy, never too dry, just right, and it lifts my beard wonderfully while transferring all the lather to my face rather than retaining 1/2 of it.
Attachment 129217
I know, I'll get over it, but for now I'm loving it. :-)
So true,the mass producers make brushes best suited for the masses.for the followers,not the leaders.Quote:
Originally Posted by BobH
It is also written that there is no need to break trail when others have already done that for you. OTH if you feel the need why not but it is not like you are pioneering anything you just might wind up at the same place anyway.Quote:
Originally Posted by pixelfixed
Bob
I use a 23mm Vie long horse hair brush. I also have badger hair brushes, but the horse hair is my favorite.
An amendment to my previous post:
What I like best about my horsehair brush is that thanks to its stiffer bristles, it lifts ALL of the cream from the bottom and sides of the bowl and whips it into a lather. With softer brushes I sometimes get clumps of cream that keep sticking to the bowl, even after my regular 3 minutes of whisking. The Art of Shaving cream I mostly use is rather firm and sticky, to be sure, but I do find this annoying when it happens--sometimes even after I soak the cream in the bowl with hot water for a minute or so.
I thought horsehair would feel much rougher on my face than soft badger, but I found out that its firmer feel does nothing to irritate my skin or give me any less of a great shave.
You know that old Johnny Cash song about the guy who works in an auto assembly plant and over the years smuggles home every part needed to assemble a car (in his lunch box) and finds none of the parts go together but makes them fit.Quote:
Originally Posted by pixelfixed
A wise man once told me.: "The masses are Asses." You can move forward from there.
I like my brush a little on the scrubby side. The loft is only important in relation to the size of the knot and how densely packed the hairs are. Increasing density and shortening the loft have similar effects so those are variable for me. But I like best badger for soaps and silver tips for some soaps and creams.
No bodger (boar/badger mix)? :(
