This is a great, on the large side, brush from straightrazordesigns. Its got a 28 mm high quality silvertip badger knot, with a 58 mm dense loft.
I've used this brush with Castle Forbes and AOS creams, and its works great. Currently I am using it with MWF soap and its doing a great job with that too. When I first got it, it lost a bristle every now and then, perhaps every dozen shaves. I knock it down one point on the quality for that but its not that bad and that has stopped now that I have been using it for a while.
The cocobolo wood and danish oil finish is really nice. It has a classic and natural look, which for me is a welcome change from the imitation ivory handles which are popular nowadays. When I first got it, occasionally on the last pass I noticed a tiny amount of coloring leaching into the lather from the wood.... no biggie to me, and that has stopped now, but that was another reason why I knocked quality down to 9.
As far as the balance, I really like the way the brush handles, the grip is very good, and I like the feel of the oil finished wood. I like to soak the brush well in hot water before using it, then I shake almost all of the water out, and start lathering. It produces a massive amount of lather, enough for 4-5 passes. I would say it has extremely high latherability.
The bristles are excellent. They're firm enough to easily get plenty of soap off my MWF puck, but really soft when you press it down on the face, very luxurious feeling.
It really shines when used with a scuttle. In between passes, I mash the brush down a little into the scuttle, which heats it up quite well and the brush retains heat for some time as you are applying the lather onto your skin.
As far as the cost, for less than $100, you are getting a lot for your money. Its a steal compared to other higher profile brands, and the quality is there.
Overall, this brush rocks, I highly recommend it.
I've used this brush with Castle Forbes and AOS creams, and its works great. Currently I am using it with MWF soap and its doing a great job with that too. When I first got it, it lost a bristle every now and then, perhaps every dozen shaves. I knock it down one point on the quality for that but its not that bad and that has stopped now that I have been using it for a while.
The cocobolo wood and danish oil finish is really nice. It has a classic and natural look, which for me is a welcome change from the imitation ivory handles which are popular nowadays. When I first got it, occasionally on the last pass I noticed a tiny amount of coloring leaching into the lather from the wood.... no biggie to me, and that has stopped now, but that was another reason why I knocked quality down to 9.
As far as the balance, I really like the way the brush handles, the grip is very good, and I like the feel of the oil finished wood. I like to soak the brush well in hot water before using it, then I shake almost all of the water out, and start lathering. It produces a massive amount of lather, enough for 4-5 passes. I would say it has extremely high latherability.
The bristles are excellent. They're firm enough to easily get plenty of soap off my MWF puck, but really soft when you press it down on the face, very luxurious feeling.
It really shines when used with a scuttle. In between passes, I mash the brush down a little into the scuttle, which heats it up quite well and the brush retains heat for some time as you are applying the lather onto your skin.
As far as the cost, for less than $100, you are getting a lot for your money. Its a steal compared to other higher profile brands, and the quality is there.
Overall, this brush rocks, I highly recommend it.
