This is part one of a two-part review. Several of us had noted that the knot sizes of the Duke 3 and the Commodore 3 were almost identical, and of course both came in Simpsons remarkable best badger hair. But the Commodore is about 25% less expensive, and we had wondered about the reason for this. As it happened, Darjeeling has a Duke 3, I have a Commodore 3, and so we coordinated a head-to-head experiment: Darjeeling sent me his Duke for two weeks, at the end of which I am sending him my Commodore for the same. Since Darjeeling generously let me go first, his review will follow in a few weeks.
First, the appearances. Theres no escaping it: the Duke looks and feels like a higher quality piece than the Commodore. The handle is heftier, the knot feels denser, the printing is better. Maybe its just my example, but the burned-in printing of the name Commodore has a lot of trailing flashing, melted resin that hangs over the wording. It just looks cheap. The only area where the Commodore edges the Duke is in the hair appearance, where the Commodore shows three bands, the Duke only two; in terms of hair quality, they are identical in feel and performance.
I say the Dukes knot feels denser. Im not sure it is denser. While the knots of the Duke and Commodore are the same diameter and loft, they have very different shapes. The Duke is a tight, emphatic bulb shape; the Commodore is a fan, and it splays out more. The intro photo shows it clearly.
Interestingly, while the Dukes shape is very different from the Commodores, its size and shape is almost exactly the same as the New Forest 2201. And at almost the same moment in time, my New Forest 2211 showed up: Fidos new brush with the silvertip hair. Below is a side by side by side by side photograph; from left to right: Commodore, Duke, NF2211, NF2201.
[A side note: not only does the Duke knot look a lot like the NF2211, the NF2211 gives a shaving experience much like the Dukes. I have posted a separate NF2211 review.]
On to density. In appearance, the Commodore seems less dense than the Duke, but I think thats an artifact of the fan shape; the Commodore splays out more. If you massage the knot to the same diameter as the Duke, the density seems identical. See picture below (Duke on left, Commodore on right). For comparison purposes, I also included a top view of the four musketeers. Clockwise from top right: Commodore, Duke, NF2211, NF2201.
The handle shapes are optimized for different uses. The Commodore is more adapted to a fingertip hold and bowl lathering; the fatter, shorter Duke handle is more adapted to a "palming" grip and face lathering. In fact, with your fingers around the Duke, it can be somewhat hard to get enough action room in the shaving bowl to whip up a good lather.
In use, the Duke still seems more tightly packed. The difference is subtle. But it's enough that it threw off my lather technique for several days. The Duke holds more water, hence needs a better draining before building lather. However, once I discovered the sweet spot it exploded.
The Commodore does a great job beating up lather. In fact, it looks like it beats up more than the Duke. I dont think it really does, it just shows it more.
In terms of impact on the face, the Commodore feels very smooth indeed, and lathers up the face a little more easily than the Duke. The Duke seems to hold onto its lather more stubbornly, probably because it stays more tightly packed; the splay-fanned Commodore gives up the lather a little better. On the other hand, a face-latherer never has to re-lather the Duke -- just dip it in water and work it over your face again. Three passes, four, five, plus a touch-up, no problem. The Commodore is always soft, not floppy like some of the Vulfixes, but pleasant. It has decent backbone, but isnt scrubby; soft tips, but its a little harder than the Duke to control; I almost always end up with lather in my ears. The Duke, once you get the lather right, better combines backbone for scrubbing (probably due to the greater effective density; the bristles support each other better), and in painting it feels like a heavenly road paver is laying down a bed of lather on your jaw. I know, that doesnt sound like a very pleasant sensation, but trust me, it is. Smooth. As. Silk. Overall, I give a very slight usage edge to the Duke.
My recommendation would be: if youre a face latherer, get the Duke; if youre a bowl latherer, either will do just fine. Personally, I think Ill stick with my Commodore. In terms of overall shaving experience, the Duke is better. But for a bowl latherer like me, the Commodore is slightly easier to use, and to paraphrase My Fair Lady, my face has grown accustomed to it. Both are excellent, neither disappoints, and a shaver with either is a lucky man.
First, the appearances. Theres no escaping it: the Duke looks and feels like a higher quality piece than the Commodore. The handle is heftier, the knot feels denser, the printing is better. Maybe its just my example, but the burned-in printing of the name Commodore has a lot of trailing flashing, melted resin that hangs over the wording. It just looks cheap. The only area where the Commodore edges the Duke is in the hair appearance, where the Commodore shows three bands, the Duke only two; in terms of hair quality, they are identical in feel and performance.
I say the Dukes knot feels denser. Im not sure it is denser. While the knots of the Duke and Commodore are the same diameter and loft, they have very different shapes. The Duke is a tight, emphatic bulb shape; the Commodore is a fan, and it splays out more. The intro photo shows it clearly.
Interestingly, while the Dukes shape is very different from the Commodores, its size and shape is almost exactly the same as the New Forest 2201. And at almost the same moment in time, my New Forest 2211 showed up: Fidos new brush with the silvertip hair. Below is a side by side by side by side photograph; from left to right: Commodore, Duke, NF2211, NF2201.
[A side note: not only does the Duke knot look a lot like the NF2211, the NF2211 gives a shaving experience much like the Dukes. I have posted a separate NF2211 review.]
On to density. In appearance, the Commodore seems less dense than the Duke, but I think thats an artifact of the fan shape; the Commodore splays out more. If you massage the knot to the same diameter as the Duke, the density seems identical. See picture below (Duke on left, Commodore on right). For comparison purposes, I also included a top view of the four musketeers. Clockwise from top right: Commodore, Duke, NF2211, NF2201.
The handle shapes are optimized for different uses. The Commodore is more adapted to a fingertip hold and bowl lathering; the fatter, shorter Duke handle is more adapted to a "palming" grip and face lathering. In fact, with your fingers around the Duke, it can be somewhat hard to get enough action room in the shaving bowl to whip up a good lather.
In use, the Duke still seems more tightly packed. The difference is subtle. But it's enough that it threw off my lather technique for several days. The Duke holds more water, hence needs a better draining before building lather. However, once I discovered the sweet spot it exploded.
The Commodore does a great job beating up lather. In fact, it looks like it beats up more than the Duke. I dont think it really does, it just shows it more.
In terms of impact on the face, the Commodore feels very smooth indeed, and lathers up the face a little more easily than the Duke. The Duke seems to hold onto its lather more stubbornly, probably because it stays more tightly packed; the splay-fanned Commodore gives up the lather a little better. On the other hand, a face-latherer never has to re-lather the Duke -- just dip it in water and work it over your face again. Three passes, four, five, plus a touch-up, no problem. The Commodore is always soft, not floppy like some of the Vulfixes, but pleasant. It has decent backbone, but isnt scrubby; soft tips, but its a little harder than the Duke to control; I almost always end up with lather in my ears. The Duke, once you get the lather right, better combines backbone for scrubbing (probably due to the greater effective density; the bristles support each other better), and in painting it feels like a heavenly road paver is laying down a bed of lather on your jaw. I know, that doesnt sound like a very pleasant sensation, but trust me, it is. Smooth. As. Silk. Overall, I give a very slight usage edge to the Duke.
My recommendation would be: if youre a face latherer, get the Duke; if youre a bowl latherer, either will do just fine. Personally, I think Ill stick with my Commodore. In terms of overall shaving experience, the Duke is better. But for a bowl latherer like me, the Commodore is slightly easier to use, and to paraphrase My Fair Lady, my face has grown accustomed to it. Both are excellent, neither disappoints, and a shaver with either is a lucky man.
. I am surprised the Duke has such a bulb shape. In other pictures it seems much more like a fan. I was leaning more towards the Duke, but now I would definitely consider the Commodore. Since you have both of the New Forest brushes there, how do THEY compare in terms of density and softness?
However, I'm a bit surprised (but encouraged) at your conclusions with regard to the Duke 3.
