DeLong Badger brush

It says silvertip and it might be, although I suspect it's a silvertip mix rather than 100%. How else can they offer a brush this cheaply? I've only been using it a couple of days and have not noticed a single lost hair. It is very soft, even softer than my Jagger Best Badger brush which cost me $10 more. It loads incredibly well and as of this writing I'm sold on Delong. Just following up 6 months later and this is still performing wonderfully!

My experience with the Delong “silver tip” brush is not as positive as those above. Prior to ordering the DeLong I had been using a #05 Omega boar brush which I am perfectly happy with. Once broken in, it has been a terrific brush. The only real problem with it, is it takes a long time to dry out, so if you use it everyday it never has a chance to fully dry. So I thought it would be good to have a second brush to alternate with and why not make that second brush a badger. That way I can see what all the fuss is about, since many claim the badger is the way to go.

Like many here I wondered if Delong could really be offering a “silver tipped” badger shaving brush for $21.00 shipped. So I decided to take the gamble and find out. I bought mine from an Ebay seller. The shipping was fast, roughly about three days from payment. The packaging it came in was minimal but who cares, if you are potentially getting a “silver tipped” brush at a bargain price. But the old adage “you get what you pay for” certainly applies here, because this turned out to be no bargain.

Immediately I noticed that it was a prodigious “shedder”. The handle was nothing special, but not bad either, the shape afforded a good grip. Applying the dry brush directly to my cheek I felt a “prickly” quality that didn't bode well for this experiment. Giving it the benefit of the doubt, I thought perhaps this is the result of it being a dry brush, not being broken-in and/not being full of lather. So I rinsed the brush in water and on a positive note noticed it didn't have very much of the “dead animal” smell that some describe when first using a new brush. I used this brush three days consecutively. The brush itself seemed dense enough and don't think it was too floppy and it lathered well. There is no way for me to prove, or dis-prove the “silver tip” claim. But my guess is that it is not of “silver tip” grade and that is where the big problem for DeLong's alleged “silver tip” lies with me. It was very uncomfortable to use, I found it prickly and downright harsh. After using it for each of the three days it literally felt as if I'd scrubbed my face with sandpaper. This sensation lasted well after the shave itself and if I didn't know better I would have thought this brush might be made of porcupine instead of badger.

In summary, I took a gamble and lost. My advice is to avoid DeLong's alleged “silver tip” brush and the temptation of a $21 bargain. If you have only $20, or so to spend, you will be better served to invest in a quality boar brush. If you must have a badger, bite the bullet, spend more and get something that is more likely what it claims to be. I did, and ended with an outstanding badger brush I'm very happy with despite it's only “pure” grade rating.

As always, YMMV.

DD

Ok... I post this brush alot. But honestly it is a fantastic buy for the shaver on a budget. You can't beat the price, you can get it shipped to you for under 20 bucks!
This is my daily brush, obviously not my most expensive. I feel the hair quality is good but not as dense as a brush over 100bucks. Exfoliates well with the right stiffness to softness balance, much softer than my more expensive best badger.

Overall this brush is it when it comes to shaving on a budget. You wont be disappointed.