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Best/Finest Badger in Wooden handle

I'm fairly new to wet-shaving (done correctly).

I've already started using an Omega boar brush, and for my second I'd like to try out a badger.

My research tells me the Best or Finest grade are good entry points, so I'm asking for suggestions from the experienced shavers here. I only have 2 conditions for the brush:
  1. Badger hair cannot be clipped at the tips. I understand most Pure Badger has clipped ends, and this makes for unpleasant sensations. So I'm keeping a watchout for Best Badger where the tips are clipped, and Pure Badger where the tips are not clipped.
  2. No plastic handles please. I guess that leaves mostly wood handles (are there even real horn handles?).
I welcome all suggestions. So far on my radar is the Semogue 2020 Best Badger. But I read it's actually a combination of pure and super bristles?
 

musicman1951

three-tu-tu, three-tu-tu
I'm more interested in face feel and performance than construction specs, so I hope this is helpful.

Semogue SOC badger is a very nice 2 band with a very nice wood handle. It has plenty of backbone for face lathering, but the tips are soft and face friendly. Good value for the money.
 
So... Semogue is the only big name manufacturer that has a lot of wood handle options. Zen Shave makes/made some very nice wood handle brushes, but I'm not sure he's still making brushes. Beyond that for a wood handle brush your probably going to have the most luck on Etsy. Lots of artisans making a wide variety of styles across a wide price range.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using Tapatalk
 
No plastic handles please. I guess that leaves mostly wood handles (are there even real horn handles?).

I'm curious...why no plastic handles? If you're worried about it looking/feeling cheap or plasticky, you should know that all plastic handles aren't created equal. A nice turned resin handle (like, say, a Simpson's) is going to feel a lot nicer and weightier than the plastic handle you've probably experienced on your Omega boar, and look a lot better to boot. (If it's environmental concerns or something like that, please disregard all that.)

There are real horn brushes, though they're a bit unusual. I have a horn-handled Kimson brush, though their knots aren't the greatest, and I believe Rudy Vey will turn brushes in horn (and wood too). There're also metal and stone brush handles -- companies like Zenith and I believe Mondial have some metal-handled badgers, and I believe Elite Razor makes stone and wood handled brushes (though I haven't ever ordered from them or used their brushes, so I can't attest to their quality).
 
I'm curious...why no plastic handles? If you're worried about it looking/feeling cheap or plasticky, you should know that all plastic handles aren't created equal. A nice turned resin handle (like, say, a Simpson's) is going to feel a lot nicer and weightier than the plastic handle you've probably experienced on your Omega boar, and look a lot better to boot. (If it's environmental concerns or something like that, please disregard all that.)

There are real horn brushes, though they're a bit unusual. I have a horn-handled Kimson brush, though their knots aren't the greatest, and I believe Rudy Vey will turn brushes in horn (and wood too). There're also metal and stone brush handles -- companies like Zenith and I believe Mondial have some metal-handled badgers, and I believe Elite Razor makes stone and wood handled brushes (though I haven't ever ordered from them or used their brushes, so I can't attest to their quality).

I think you mostly hit it on the head. Nothing environmental; just I've always considered to be a cheaper substitute to whatever the "official" material is. So I've always avoided it in favor of more natural products in anything "quality" that I buy.

I've read about the difference between hand turned acrylic/resin/etc vs. injection molded. So you can probably make a good case that quality "resin" is on par with wood or horn; I guess it's just one of my irrationalities.

BTW the Omega handle I have is Palisander wood ;)
 
Since I'm getting a badger brush to try out, I'd like to hit somewhere in the middle of the price-quality spectrum. I already mentioned Best grade badger, and I'm thinking a price in or not too far out of the $30-50 range.

I think I'm being realistic that at this price point I wouldn't be getting the densest, widest, softest, most luxurious feeling badger brush, which I'm totally fine with. Just something that lasts a good while (is 10 years unrealistic?), can work with soaps like the Proraso I'm currently using, and feels "badger enough".

My current list (thanks to contributions of the gentlemen above!) is Semogue, Zenith, and Chinese maker Ace Shaving (on eBay). I have little doubt that Semogue and Zenith will satisfy in reliability and durability, but do you think the Ace brush is a big gamble?

Specifically this: 100% Silvertip Badger Hiar Shaving Beard Brush Metal Handle Stand Holder for Man | eBay
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Comes with a brush holder, which I don't yet have. It's slightly less pricy than the European brands, so these are all the price considerations going for Ace. Quality-wise, Ace seems to get OK feedback on this forum. Some say the bristles are less densely packed than say a Simpsons, but do you think this will affect durability and function in a major way? Thanks.
 
I think you mostly hit it on the head. Nothing environmental; just I've always considered to be a cheaper substitute to whatever the "official" material is. So I've always avoided it in favor of more natural products in anything "quality" that I buy.

I've read about the difference between hand turned acrylic/resin/etc vs. injection molded. So you can probably make a good case that quality "resin" is on par with wood or horn; I guess it's just one of my irrationalities.

BTW the Omega handle I have is Palisander wood ;)

Huh...didn't know Omega did wood-handled brushes. Assuming it's this one, I guess I never noticed because my own irrational dislike is banded boar...I've never understood dyeing the boar to look like a badger in this day and age, now that (I assume) most people buying boar brushes are buying them because they're boar, not as a cheap replacement for badger. Probably missing out on some good boars that way, but something about dyed boar just rubs me the wrong way.

It's interesting...for me, it was fountain pens that made me think about the whole "plastic as a cheap substitute vs a good material in its own right". Like, there are metal and wood pens, but it turns out plastic is just a good material for fountain pens...it's durable enough and not excessively heavy. I think a similar thing is going on with shave brushes...it's not so much that plastic is substituting for something, it's that plastic is light, durable, waterproof, and easy to maintain, so even most top-of-the-line brushes have plastic handles. In your current price range, I do agree that wood or metal is more likely to get you something high quality, but you might consider giving resin brushes a try eventually...if nothing else, a lot of really nice hairs (like Simpson's Best) are only available in resin handles.

Some say the bristles are less densely packed than say a Simpsons, but do you think this will affect durability and function in a major way? Thanks.

Depends on what you're using it for. Dense & backbony brushes are helpful in face lathering, both in that they help face feel and that they help you control the brush so you don't have a mop-like brush flopping around your face, and they also help in lathering hard soaps, since it's easier to load from a soap if your brush has some firmness to it. However, you've already got your boar for face lathering & soap duty (plenty of backbone there), so if you do much with bowl lathering or creams, having a less dense brush could be a decent complement to your existing boar. And, of course, even floppy brushes can be used for face lathering and hard soaps, they're just not ideal.

What I'd be more worried about than density is the face feel of the hair. Best/finest grades can vary a lot, with the worst being little better than skritchy, prickly pures and the best being wonderfully soft and just a bit scrubby, with most falling in the middle somewhere. I don't have any experience with Ace myself, but I'd probably look for reviews that mention how the brush feels on the face, since that's going to have a big impact on how enjoyable the brush is to use.
 
I'm a big fan of ACE brushes and knots. I'm also a big fan of plastic handles. I have one real horn brush and several faux horn brushes and prefer the lack of maintenance and durability of the faux horn ones. The better ones look very realistic too. Real horn needs occasional oiling so it won't crack. Wood handles eventually have their paint wear off. Plastic needs no maintenance.

I have a habit of gifting someone who has done me a big favor with a shaving brush that I have assembled. I have probably given away three dozen or so counting some of the already assembled ones. I buy most of the knots from ACE. Of the 50 or so brushes in my heard, about 30 of them are brushes I have made and still the predominate knot I have used is from ACE. I also have some from Virginia Sheng, Frank Shaving, TGN, Heaven Horse, and others. ACE is my preference most of the time.

Three of them have wood handles, one of them turned from an Almond tree from my back yard. Plastic is still my preference.
 
I'm more interested in face feel and performance than construction specs, so I hope this is helpful.

Semogue SOC badger is a very nice 2 band with a very nice wood handle. It has plenty of backbone for face lathering, but the tips are soft and face friendly. Good value for the money.

+1! Semogue makes great brushes! :a14::a14:

You might consider a custom horn or wooden brush. (The less PC option would be an antique ivory brush.)
 
Huh...didn't know Omega did wood-handled brushes. Assuming it's this one, I guess I never noticed because my own irrational dislike is banded boar...I've never understood dyeing the boar to look like a badger in this day and age, now that (I assume) most people buying boar brushes are buying them because they're boar, not as a cheap replacement for badger. Probably missing out on some good boars that way, but something about dyed boar just rubs me the wrong way.

It's interesting...for me, it was fountain pens that made me think about the whole "plastic as a cheap substitute vs a good material in its own right". Like, there are metal and wood pens, but it turns out plastic is just a good material for fountain pens...it's durable enough and not excessively heavy. I think a similar thing is going on with shave brushes...it's not so much that plastic is substituting for something, it's that plastic is light, durable, waterproof, and easy to maintain, so even most top-of-the-line brushes have plastic handles. In your current price range, I do agree that wood or metal is more likely to get you something high quality, but you might consider giving resin brushes a try eventually...if nothing else, a lot of really nice hairs (like Simpson's Best) are only available in resin handles.

Thanks for the advice. One thing I can never predict is what my taste will be in the future. I agree 100% that boar dyed to look like badger is tacky, but compromises I guess. (The way I see it, handles last longer than the hair, so I'd rather get a great handle even if the hairs are not 100% ideal)

Just out of curiousity, do the quality resin handles feel weighty or flimsy? If dropped on tile floor is there risk of cracking? You make a good point about pens; incidentally the Visconti lava rock (one of my favorites) is half plastic I understand.
 
I'm fairly new to wet-shaving (done correctly).

I've already started using an Omega boar brush, and for my second I'd like to try out a badger.

My research tells me the Best or Finest grade are good entry points, so I'm asking for suggestions from the experienced shavers here. I only have 2 conditions for the brush:
  1. Badger hair cannot be clipped at the tips. I understand most Pure Badger has clipped ends, and this makes for unpleasant sensations. So I'm keeping a watchout for Best Badger where the tips are clipped, and Pure Badger where the tips are not clipped.
  2. No plastic handles please. I guess that leaves mostly wood handles (are there even real horn handles?).
I welcome all suggestions. So far on my radar is the Semogue 2020 Best Badger. But I read it's actually a combination of pure and super bristles?

It looks like you are on the path to a high end brush. I would suggest that you take a detour and try some of the low cost options alone the way. I did this and that each one of the brushes had a unique lesson for me. Some of the lessons were good and some were bad, but all were valuable. I bought the VDH badger pure. I learned the beneficial characteristic of badger hair and appreciation of scritch of pure. I had a Omega Hi-Brush Syn. that was considered to springy. It settled down into fantastic brush after a year in use. The Hi-Brush defines the good performance in the new syn category. I find the new syn's to be too soft bordering on cosmetic brush performance. Time will tell on the new syn's. My next adventure is focusing on the Omega bore brush's. I don't want to miss anything that the boar's have to give.


Matthew F Marzec
 
I'm a big fan of ACE brushes and knots. I'm also a big fan of plastic handles. I have one real horn brush and several faux horn brushes and prefer the lack of maintenance and durability of the faux horn ones. The better ones look very realistic too. Real horn needs occasional oiling so it won't crack. Wood handles eventually have their paint wear off. Plastic needs no maintenance.

I have a habit of gifting someone who has done me a big favor with a shaving brush that I have assembled. I have probably given away three dozen or so counting some of the already assembled ones. I buy most of the knots from ACE. Of the 50 or so brushes in my heard, about 30 of them are brushes I have made and still the predominate knot I have used is from ACE. I also have some from Virginia Sheng, Frank Shaving, TGN, Heaven Horse, and others. ACE is my preference most of the time.

Three of them have wood handles, one of them turned from an Almond tree from my back yard. Plastic is still my preference.

Thanks for the input! It sounds like you have no issues with Ace Shaving badger, in terms of hair falling out, too rough etc.

Have you tried the ACE with stainless metal handle?
 
It looks like you are on the path to a high end brush. I would suggest that you take a detour and try some of the low cost options alone the way. I did this and that each one of the brushes had a unique lesson for me. Some of the lessons were good and some were bad, but all were valuable. I bought the VDH badger pure. I learned the beneficial characteristic of badger hair and appreciation of scritch of pure. I had a Omega Hi-Brush Syn. that was considered to springy. It settled down into fantastic brush after a year in use. The Hi-Brush defines the good performance in the new syn category. I find the new syn's to be too soft bordering on cosmetic brush performance. Time will tell on the new syn's. My next adventure is focusing on the Omega bore brush's. I don't want to miss anything that the boar's have to give.


Matthew F Marzec

Good points. A synthetic is likely to be my third brush, although I wouldn't plan that far ahead! AFAIK synthetics dry way faster than natural hairs. Any other performance advantage in favor of synthetic?
 
Good points. A synthetic is likely to be my third brush, although I wouldn't plan that far ahead! AFAIK synthetics dry way faster than natural hairs. Any other performance advantage in favor of synthetic?

I am a beginner, but I found out that I was handling my cheap badger brushes too hard. They had a lot of scritch and I wanted the smooth feel. I was mashing them during cleaning. The result was the center of the knot was breaking over the glue bump. The brush developed male pattern baldness. When the brush was wet you could see a hole in it. The unintended lessons were brush handling, glue bumps and knot height assembly theory. All this from a $5.99 brush.
 
Just out of curiousity, do the quality resin handles feel weighty or flimsy? If dropped on tile floor is there risk of cracking? You make a good point about pens; incidentally the Visconti lava rock (one of my favorites) is half plastic I understand.

A good resin handle (like the ones on Simpson's brushes...I kind of have a Simpson's problem, please don't judge :tongue_sm) will feel relatively weighty and solid...I mean, not as heavy as a solid metal handle would or anything, but a lathe-turned resin handle is a solid chunk of high quality plastic, and it has a bit of heft to it. I don't think I have any brushes I'd be too concerned about cracking, except maybe the real horn ones.

Now, don't get me wrong -- I've seen brushes with lathe-turned resin handles that did look and feel cheap. (I had an early brush from the now-defunct New Forest brushes, and it left me with a bad impression of the company for long after expressly because the handle looked & felt cheap.) You've got to watch out for quality in those, too, just like anything else. But they can be high quality, unlike a lot of plastic goods out there.
 
Thanks for the input! It sounds like you have no issues with Ace Shaving badger, in terms of hair falling out, too rough etc.

Have you tried the ACE with stainless metal handle?

I have not. I use a lot of their knots and have bought several plastic handled brushes in both Finest and Silvertip. I suspect that Finest would be what you would rather have. I must say that their $29.95 Promotional Silvertip may be the best bang for the buck in the industry though. I enjoy it as much as my much higher priced Kent BK8 Silvertip.
 
UPDATE: I ended up getting the Chinese Ace silvertip brush. Just used it for the first time.

It lathers much easier and more voluminous than the boars I have. Feels softer than boar. However it must have lost 20+ bristles in the first use. Obviously it's not going bald any time soon, but my questions are:
  1. Is losing 20+ hairs the first time typical of (silvertip) badger brushes?
  2. Is losing 20+ hairs typical of Chinese made badger brushes?
 

Graydog

Biblical Innards
That is a lot of hair , hopefully it will stop shedding for you
Maggard sells a wonderful 2 band badger knot that is really nice and
priced nicely .
 
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