Thread: First brush - How good $$$ should I go?

I truly recommend Semogue boar bristles (1305, 1800 are those i have and i love them).
Takes about 3 weeks to break them.

Originally Posted by grover

This is getting better and better...I didn't know you could make your own brushes. I am a tinkerer but I don't have a lathe.

Can you tell the learning curve is very steep at the beginning?

If you don't have much for tools, you can also restore an old brush, if you can find a good one at an antique store or flea market, you can drill out the old knot and put whatever grade of knot you want in it. A cheaper for badger brushes than buying new.

I have been using a $15 Tweezerman for 3 years now with great results on all soaps and creams I use, so you don't have to spend lots of money. I have seen many nice brushes I'd like to have, but can always find something more important to spend money on. There are many potential AD's in this hobby. I like to spend what money I have on razors when I can.

I have to be the odd man out here and say that you get what you pay for.
From the start i had a bluebeard brush that was a hand me down from my brother.
I thought it was perfect until i coughed up £90 for a Edwin Jagger silver tipped brush recently.
It was a great investment.
The cheaper brushes seemed to make the lather in the bowl , where as this expensive brush holds the lather withing the bristles alowing me to make the lather on my face.
I appreciate my new brush so much that i gave up pre shave oils because i didnt want to oil up the bristles.
We can all make do with cheap brushes but i think you get what you pay for in the brush department.

I am with Bob. I have a big, tall Pro Omega with a sweet handle. A good boar is tons better than a cheap badger and a good Omega is cheap enough and a fine boar brush as well.
Even as you later get some nice 2 banders, you will still reach for the Omega on occasion. It does it all. JMO

Yes, I "upgraded" my brush from the $20 generic badger one I received with my starter kit, got a nice Kent brush, put it away after three weeks, liked the short, stubby one that really dug in much better.

Originally Posted by JOB15

I have to be the odd man out here and say that you get what you pay for.
From the start i had a bluebeard brush that was a hand me down from my brother.
I thought it was perfect until i coughed up £90 for a Edwin Jagger silver tipped brush recently.
It was a great investment.
The cheaper brushes seemed to make the lather in the bowl , where as this expensive brush holds the lather withing the bristles alowing me to make the lather on my face.


I appreciate my new brush so much that i gave up pre shave oils because i didnt want to oil up the bristles.
We can all make do with cheap brushes but i think you get what you pay for in the brush department.

Oddly enough I use my cheap Omega boar brush to face lather as well as my Simpsons LE Manchurian badger but I will admit they feel differently on the face in use being different types of knots. I can generally load either with enough soap from a puck to get me through 3 passes but sometimes i flub it with either and had to reload some more soap.

Now there is a fairly big price gap between the two but both will do the job. Which I prefer depends on my mood and the day of the week. I do not use a pre shave with any of my small rotation of 6 brushes. I just can't bring myself to say that you automatically get better performance by paying more. You will get a different type of performance for sure and possibly a performance you enjoy more. From that standpoint it may be worth paying more but strictly speaking is not necessary to get a proper face lathering.

If you can afford to spend more by all means do so but do not feel that it is an absolute must is all I am saying.

Bob

Originally Posted by BobH

Oddly enough I use my cheap Omega boar brush to face lather as well as my Simpsons LE Manchurian badger but I will admit they feel differently on the face in use being different types of knots. I can generally load either with enough soap from a puck to get me through 3 passes but sometimes i flub it with either and had to reload some more soap.

Now there is a fairly big price gap between the two but both will do the job. Which I prefer depends on my mood and the day of the week. I do not use a pre shave with any of my small rotation of 6 brushes. I just can't bring myself to say that you automatically get better performance by paying more. You will get a different type of performance for sure and possibly a performance you enjoy more. From that standpoint it may be worth paying more but strictly speaking is not necessary to get a proper face lathering.

If you can afford to spend more by all means do so but do not feel that it is an absolute must is all I am saying.

Bob

You are rite , i think we are all rite.
I could probably get by without a brush (i'd figure some thing out)
But i would say if one day you can treat yourself, do so, it wouldnt be just a waste of money as i once thought.
Unless i just got lucky buying an excellent make of brush.
Im really impressed with my expensive brush.

Gotta add my two cents (or current day's equivalent) to this mix. Don't overlook synthetics. I have a vintage synthetic that is quite stiff and a new synthetic from the Body Shop that is soft. Both of them needed no breaking in and perform quite well. Not my only two but I go back to them quite often. And horsehair is also good.

Originally Posted by JOB15

You are rite , i think we are all rite.
I could probably get by without a brush (i'd figure some thing out)
But i would say if one day you can treat yourself, do so, it wouldnt be just a waste of money as i once thought.
Unless i just got lucky buying an excellent make of brush.
Im really impressed with my expensive brush.

No, not a matter of being right or wrong at all. I am not saying paying more is a waste of money either. I am not suggesting to not use a brush either. Just saying there is no need to feel hard done by if you don't have the cash flow to spend more. Conversely, you could also say you might have just got unlucky with you first brush.

Bob