At what point does a shedding Simpson finally become useless?

[awa54]

At first I didn't believe in the Simpson shedding "issue".... after all there are differing opinions and experiences posted here and it can be hard to believe something until you see it yourself. Add to this rationale that my first Simpson (Colonel) has only shed about a dozen hairs in total (all in the first week) and you can see why I was a disbeliever at first.

Enter the Special (one of each; Pure and Best)..... My Special in Pure shed several hairs with each shave (and likely still does) for over a month of regular shaves, until I got one in Best to try in the hope that it would have the best characteristics of the Pure Special and the Colonel. Indeed the Special in Best is a fantastic performer and it even seemed to be a light shedder (several hairs per shave for the first week or two, then tapering to only occasional one or two hair losses after that), that is until today... it shed at least a dozen while loading from a Mike's "barber shop" sample, then proceeded to put another dozen on my face during the shave and followed up that virtuoso shed by leaving off another two dozen when I rinsed it out! It *did* finally stop spewing hairs after the third or fourth rinse and seems to have stabilized, but if it does that many more times it'll be done for!

What are your experiences with this unfortunate phenomenon....am I going to be putting a TGN knot in the handle soon? How does Simpson's service department deal with this sort of issue (both shedding brushes are just coming up on 6 months old now)? Or is it likely to stabilize and go on being a great little brush for years to come??

Perhaps most importantly, if this Special really does bite the big one, what are my chances of getting a replacement that isn't afflicted with Simpson-alopecia?

 

[Foyle]

Some shedding is normal on new brushes. Without knowing how you load and treat your brush in general it's hard to make a judgment. Some brushes shed more than others and some don't shed at all. My Wee Scot shed a lot for it's first several uses and finally stopped after a good comb-out. My Duke 2 didn't shed much at all; a few hairs here and there until it stopped completely. Here's a good article on brush shedding.
http://www.shaving101.com/index.php...sh-basics/80-the-facts-on-brush-shedding.html

If the brush is defective, Simpson is suppose to have excellent customer service and by all accounts they stand behind their brushes. I would contact the vendor from whom your purchased the brush first. If you get no service there contact Simpson directly.

 

[awa54]

Maybe I should elaborate a bit on my "issue"; The two Simpson Specials are the *only* brushes I own that have exhibited continued regular shedding after the first week or two of use. I have eight brushes, two horse, four badger and two boar.

Neither brush seems to have thinned enough to have diminished functionality, additionally *most* of the shed hairs from both are very thin at the base and it seems likely that they were either just barely bonded in the base of the knot, or were "floaters" held in place solely by the density of the knot rather than any adhesive.

 

[Foyle]

Really dense brushes like Simpson often have loose hairs in the knot. Like I said, my Wee Scott seemed to shed an alarming amount of hair. I contacted the vendor and they suggested coming out the brush. I did so, lost a lot of hair during comb-out but the shedding stopped.

I would be concerned about a defective brush if the hair were coming out in clumps, or if there were lots of full length hairs coming loose. If there are just a bunch of shorter hairs they are probably just loose hairs not combed out when the brush was made.

 

[awa54]

well that sounds like good news! what sort of brush is suggested? I've never had the nerve to try combing a badger before

 

[Krona Kruiser]

I've had the Simpsons Special in pure for about 1 year and have not lost more than 5-8 hairs. You should send it back. I've had a Colonel for less than a month and only lost 2 hairs.
Is the water too hot? How hard are you pushing on it? How do you clean it after your shave? Do you squeeze, pull, or shake the loft hard when drying it?
Consider these factors because it sounds like you're losing too many hairs.

 

[Blondie]

I see these shedding threads from time to time, and while I have never owned a Simpsons brush, I have had many TGN finest knots. They don't shed. I do everything they tell you not to do to a brush. I lather in a circle on the puck, pump to get soap in the core of the knot, face lather in circles with some pressure, and then paint on only to even it all out. I soak the brush in the sink, literally just throw the whole thing in there in the hottest tap water I can. As far as combing the TGN knots I use for restores, I usually just fan my fingertips over the knots several times after setting them, watching for hairs that will pop up, and remove them. I rarely lose a hair from these. I don't recall ever losing a hair from my Morris & Forndran.

 

[Gruder]

A properly constructed shave brush shouldn't lose more than a few hairs. Total.

I can see how a manufacturer would benefit from having folks believe that shedding over a couple of weeks of use is normal, but unfortunately that's just not the case. None of my brushes (shavemac, simpson, plisson, tgn, jagger) have shed any more than a few hairs during the first 2-3 shaves. That's it. Not 5-6 hairs at a time, and certainly not over two weeks. YMMV, of course, but at the price point, shedding amounts to cut corners in quality control/manufacture, and I can't see anything but an increased rate of returned product causing any company to think twice about sending out substandard quality in the first place. (A look at the "similar threads" box at the bottom of this page is telling...)

Keep us posted on how the company responds, OP. Thanks for posting here -- helps our members make good decisions when SBAD flares up!

 

[AFG]

I have not had good luck with Simpsons. Several problem brushes but the last was the worst. I gave my son a T2 for his birthday and it worked fine for about 18 months and then one morning the center of the knot just fell out. Simpson refused to do anything as it was past the warranty. That may be but it was shoddy quality and they should have been willing to do something other than reknot it at his expense. No more Simpsons in our family. I gave him one of my M&F brushes and I think all future brushes will be M&F or Rooney.

 

[brother cavefish]

this is why I wont spend over 50.00 on a brush, the most was actualy 35.00---there are so many goods ones out there, its all names to me------each brush i have maybe shed 4 to 5 hairs at the most, i hear so may stories about simpsons with shedding problems- more expensive doe not mean better AT ALL--------- what the phenomenon is , is people spend big money on brushes thinking they are better then less expensive ones--------

 

[awa54]

I've had the Simpsons Special in pure for about 1 year and have not lost more than 5-8 hairs. You should send it back. I've had a Colonel for less than a month and only lost 2 hairs.
Is the water too hot? How hard are you pushing on it? How do you clean it after your shave? Do you squeeze, pull, or shake the loft hard when drying it?
Consider these factors because it sounds like you're losing too many hairs.

This morning it was at least 30 hairs lost again

My brush use routine is as follows:

Initial break-in consists of several warm water test lathers with strongly scented soaps, mostly to de-stink the brush a bit, but also to limber it up some before the first actual use. No harsh chemical cleaners and no water over about 110 degrees F are used.

When I shave (in the shower, so water temperature is moderate by shaving standards) the brush gets soaked in warm water for about one to five minutes before use, then shaken out to the desired water amount and loaded (I use mostly soft soaps, but some cream as well), after loading I usually palm lather until I have the beginnings of a good head of lather going, then face lather the rest of the way. I *do* use the brush in all directions on my face, but not with anything approaching excessive force, it certainly never gets mashed into either the soap or my face hard enough to break bristles! Rinsing is done with shower temperature water (no direct spray on the brush either) and drying is done with a brisk shake (actually several cycles of this, until I am sure that there's no more lather in the knot), then the brush is left in a dry open area until it's next use. I find that my badger brushes have no detectable moisture just a few hours after use, boars are usually completely dry by late afternoon.

If that constitutes brush abuse then all six of my non-shedding brushes must just be exceptionally durable

 

[insomniac]

A properly constructed shave brush shouldn't lose more than a few hairs. Total.

I can see how a manufacturer would benefit from having folks believe that shedding over a couple of weeks of use is normal, but unfortunately that's just not the case. None of my brushes (shavemac, simpson, plisson, tgn, jagger) have shed any more than a few hairs during the first 2-3 shaves. That's it. Not 5-6 hairs at a time, and certainly not over two weeks. YMMV, of course, but at the price point, shedding amounts to cut corners in quality control/manufacture, and I can't see anything but an increased rate of returned product causing any company to think twice about sending out substandard quality in the first place. (A look at the "similar threads" box at the bottom of this page is telling...)

Keep us posted on how the company responds, OP. Thanks for posting here -- helps our members make good decisions when SBAD flares up!

Like Gruder, I've never had any of my brushes - Rooney, Simpsons, Semogue, TGN, shed like you've described. Even my cheap-o Tweezerman and Shea Moisture did not shed more than a few hairs period.

That it lost 30 hairs again would indicate to me that it's a defective knot and should be returned to the manufacturer for replacement.

 

[Krona Kruiser]

Send it back dude.

 

[ouch]

Sometimes I'll use a brush that only has one hair.

 

[Optometrist]

I've only ever had one seriously shedding Simpson and that was a Colonel. The brush was quickly replaced without question. Simpson brushes do have fairly dense knots and a few hairs in the early days is not uncommon, but your shedding sounds extreme. Contact the vendor but Simpson will stand behind their brushes and do whatever is necessary.

 

[brother cavefish]

sometimes i'll use a brush that only has one hair.

lol- the OP must have gotten a brush made on friday

 

[brother cavefish]

This morning it was at least 30 hairs lost again

My brush use routine is as follows:

Initial break-in consists of several warm water test lathers with strongly scented soaps, mostly to de-stink the brush a bit, but also to limber it up some before the first actual use. No harsh chemical cleaners and no water over about 110 degrees F are used.

When I shave (in the shower, so water temperature is moderate by shaving standards) the brush gets soaked in warm water for about one to five minutes before use, then shaken out to the desired water amount and loaded (I use mostly soft soaps, but some cream as well), after loading I usually palm lather until I have the beginnings of a good head of lather going, then face lather the rest of the way. I *do* use the brush in all directions on my face, but not with anything approaching excessive force, it certainly never gets mashed into either the soap or my face hard enough to break bristles! Rinsing is done with shower temperature water (no direct spray on the brush either) and drying is done with a brisk shake (actually several cycles of this, until I am sure that there's no more lather in the knot), then the brush is left in a dry open area until it's next use. I find that my badger brushes have no detectable moisture just a few hours after use, boars are usually completely dry by late afternoon.

If that constitutes brush abuse then all six of my non-shedding brushes must just be exceptionally durable

your fine, its the brush------------- you said it yourself
"all six of my non-shedding brushes must just be exceptionally durable "

 

[rickboone1]

keep going 'til it ain't a hair left then send it back to simpson.

 

[djh]

Sometimes I'll use a brush that only has one hair.

Dibs on that one when it finally sheds for the last time.

 

[awa54]

Sometimes I'll use a brush that only has one hair.

that must be a b***h to load!