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Behold a Bevy of Buxom Butterscotch Bakelite Beauties; Brushes, Badger, Boar, Browned By Background

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So, I've been on a brush buying spree lately, so at some point soon, I'll have to turn around and trim the collection again... but first I wanted to get a group shot. I've got a lot of vintage bone, ivory and marblescotch brushes too, but this shot will just be the solid Bakelite ones... as there's a level of quality to them that even modern turned resin handles lack in my opinion.

Left to right:

Culmak... missing a sticker. Nice little brush, reminds me a great deal of the entry level simpsons like the Colonel.

Durabilt... never seen this brand before, but it's probably the best made American brush handle I've seen. Easily the quality of the big british brushes from the era. Sadly the knot was completely dying to shedding, so it got reknotted with a 22mm Maggard UHD.

Ever-ready 750... these handles are one of the things I try to buy whenever I see them come up (I actually have another one en route right now). They sell for under $20, and are the best of the EverReady handles in my opinion. Solid bakelite, nice shape for face or bowl lathering, Good size to take a 20-26mm knot. And they're pretty common. A real nice go-to brush if you want to add a few home-made brushes to your collection. Knot's when new aren't unusable... but they're nothing special. A reknot candidate even if NOS in my book. This one is reknotted with an Maggard 24mm Mixed hair knot.

Literally the best vintage handle I've gotten. No clue on the maker. It's THICK, HEAVY, IMMACULATELY turned... and has a great shape. I got it NOS but no packaging with a REALLY nice boar knot in it which I steamed out and moved into a vintage EverReady handle. I reknotted it with a AP Luxury 24mm mixed knot.

Pro-Phy-Lac-Tic brush. Neat little handle... Has one of those Bakelite stands like the little fullers, but a much better shape and size for use. Like a rounded off beehive. Plastic doesn't feel as solid as some of the other brushes, reminds me a bit of the semi-translucent bakelite in the marble-scotch everReady brush bottom halfs. Knot is high quality hair but very lofty, so not much backbone.

Unlabeled, suspected Culmak Mixed hair knot. Handle feels a little cheaper, less polished than a lot of these brushes, but not bad. Knot was really good at one point. Reminds me of the Kent Army brushes coming up soon, but it's taken a beating and looks almost chewed up at this point. Haven't decided its fate yet.

Kent K14? If memory serves. It's a beast. A big, dense, wall of fluff on your face. Not much else to say. MASSIVELY denser than modern Kents... Similar Density to a Chubby 3 band.

A Kent Barrel. One of my favorite brushes. A Nice dense pure/grey badger brush with a fun little handle and good scritch.

Kent Jars/Army brush (x3). Nice stiff, very scrubby boar brushs. Handles a bit on the small side, not great to grip, but not bad either. Not an every day brush, but a good way to break up the monotony.

Macy's brush. Nice handle, similar quality to the Culmak and some Rooneys from the 60's-70's era. Possibly made by Rooney (they made some for Macys), knot is alright, but a little lacking backbone for my taste.

Rooney. Basically a Modern size 1 style 2 super in a much cooler handle.

Simpson Emperor 3-5. Not sure what they'd call it. It's a 25mm knot... an Emperor 3 has a 21mm knot. Either it's a freakishly large E3, or they used to make them in sizes above 3. Again, basically the same as the modern equivalent, but in a cooler handle.

Simpson/Hoffritz Chubby 2. This has that Golden hair (European badger I would guess), that doesn't exist in brushes after the 60's or so. Softer than anything available today, as dense or denser than modern Chubby's... Similar to the K14, but a better size/shape handle, and significantly smaller knot.

Simpson, Oh I forget... Special 2? 55? It's a Brooks Brothers brush, so probably called a BB-something officially, but there's a modern model that it matches...Don't really remember. Nice brush, a bit Denser/lower lofted than modern equivalents, but not as dense as the Chubby.

Simpson AS3.
 
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Nice collection. That Simpson Emperor really looks great.

Do you find old brushes usually shed? I've always stayed away from vintage brushes unless I planned on replacing the knot.
 
With old brushes, maybe 10-20% shed or the knot is so damaged/broken up they aren't usable. That's assuming you avoid the ones that are obviously abused (they usually will be bent over or twisted or have a big gap in the center of the knot).

The bigger issue is that the vast majority are just nowhere near as dense as a decent modern brush (Plisson-level density was the standard in the past it seems)... but a few makers tended to be superior.


Simpsons is a GREAT buy if you want to get a usable vintage. Their vintages are similar to their modern (three band) brushes... the higher grade hairs are much softer than modern badger hair is... so some of the brushes will be a little lighter in backbone... but for the most part it's comparable.

Kents actually appear to have been DENSER in the past. Most of the Kent vintages I've gotten have been fantastic brushes. I'll take a vintage Kent over a modern one any day.

Rooneys tend to be a bit too high a loft by todays/my standards. Still good quality brushes, but lacking the backbone of the other two big names.

Other than that, you'll occasionally find a lucky one... but it's pretty rare to get a badger that would be considered a good brush these days. When I buy a vintage brush other than a Kent or Simpson... I'm buying the handle to reknot, and if the knot turns out to be good, it's a score.
 
View attachment 1003891 So, I've been on a brush buying spree lately, so at some point soon, I'll have to turn around and trim the collection again... but first I wanted to get a group shot. I've got a lot of vintage bone, ivory and marblescotch brushes too, but this shot will just be the solid Bakelite ones... as there's a level of quality to them that even modern turned resin handles lack in my opinion.

Left to right:

Culmak... missing a sticker. Nice little brush, reminds me a great deal of the entry level simpsons like the Colonel.

Durabilt... never seen this brand before, but it's probably the best made American brush handle I've seen. Easily the quality of the big british brushes from the era. Sadly the knot was completely dying to shedding, so it got reknotted with a 22mm Maggard UHD.

Ever-ready 750... these handles are one of the things I try to buy whenever I see them come up (I actually have another one en route right now). They sell for under $20, and are the best of the EverReady handles in my opinion. Solid bakelite, nice shape for face or bowl lathering, Good size to take a 20-26mm knot. And they're pretty common. A real nice go-to brush if you want to add a few home-made brushes to your collection. Knot's when new aren't unusable... but they're nothing special. A reknot candidate even if NOS in my book. This one is reknotted with an Maggard 24mm Mixed hair knot.

Literally the best vintage handle I've gotten. No clue on the maker. It's THICK, HEAVY, IMMACULATELY turned... and has a great shape. I got it NOS but no packaging with a REALLY nice boar knot in it which I steamed out and moved into a vintage EverReady handle. I reknotted it with a AP Luxury 24mm mixed knot.

Pro-Phy-Lac-Tic brush. Neat little handle... Has one of those Bakelite stands like the little fullers, but a much better shape and size for use. Like a rounded off beehive. Plastic doesn't feel as solid as some of the other brushes, reminds me a bit of the semi-translucent bakelite in the marble-scotch everReady brush bottom halfs. Knot is high quality hair but very lofty, so not much backbone.

Unlabeled, suspected Culmak Mixed hair knot. Handle feels a little cheaper, less polished than a lot of these brushes, but not bad. Knot was really good at one point. Reminds me of the Kent Army brushes coming up soon, but it's taken a beating and looks almost chewed up at this point. Haven't decided its fate yet.

Kent K14? If memory serves. It's a beast. A big, dense, wall of fluff on your face. Not much else to say. MASSIVELY denser than modern Kents... Similar Density to a Chubby 3 band.

A Kent Barrel. One of my favorite brushes. A Nice dense pure/grey badger brush with a fun little handle and good scritch.

Kent Jars/Army brush (x3). Nice stiff, very scrubby boar brushs. Handles a bit on the small side, not great to grip, but not bad either. Not an every day brush, but a good way to break up the monotony.

Macy's brush. Nice handle, similar quality to the Culmak and some Rooneys from the 60's-70's era. Possibly made by Rooney (they made some for Macys), knot is alright, but a little lacking backbone for my taste.

Rooney. Basically a Modern size 1 style 2 super in a much cooler handle.

Simpson Emperor 3-5. Not sure what they'd call it. It's a 25mm knot... an Emperor 3 has a 21mm knot. Either it's a freakishly large E3, or they used to make them in sizes above 3. Again, basically the same as the modern equivalent, but in a cooler handle.

Simpson/Hoffritz Chubby 2. This has that Golden hair (European badger I would guess), that doesn't exist in brushes after the 60's or so. Softer than anything available today, as dense or denser than modern Chubby's... Similar to the K14, but a better size/shape handle, and significantly smaller knot.

Simpson, Oh I forget... Special 2? 55? It's a Brooks Brothers brush, so probably called a BB-something officially, but there's a modern model that it matches...Don't really remember. Nice brush, a bit Denser/lower lofted than modern equivalents, but not as dense as the Chubby.

Simpson AS3.

This post made my morning commute so much better :)

Mawashi
 
Two new additions. I’m considering reknotting the AS3 With a mixed hair fan knot, and having twins one bulb one fan.
 

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View attachment 1003891 So, I've been on a brush buying spree lately, so at some point soon, I'll have to turn around and trim the collection again... but first I wanted to get a group shot. I've got a lot of vintage bone, ivory and marblescotch brushes too, but this shot will just be the solid Bakelite ones... as there's a level of quality to them that even modern turned resin handles lack in my opinion.

Left to right:

Culmak... missing a sticker. Nice little brush, reminds me a great deal of the entry level simpsons like the Colonel.

Durabilt... never seen this brand before, but it's probably the best made American brush handle I've seen. Easily the quality of the big british brushes from the era. Sadly the knot was completely dying to shedding, so it got reknotted with a 22mm Maggard UHD.

Ever-ready 750... these handles are one of the things I try to buy whenever I see them come up (I actually have another one en route right now). They sell for under $20, and are the best of the EverReady handles in my opinion. Solid bakelite, nice shape for face or bowl lathering, Good size to take a 20-26mm knot. And they're pretty common. A real nice go-to brush if you want to add a few home-made brushes to your collection. Knot's when new aren't unusable... but they're nothing special. A reknot candidate even if NOS in my book. This one is reknotted with an Maggard 24mm Mixed hair knot.

Literally the best vintage handle I've gotten. No clue on the maker. It's THICK, HEAVY, IMMACULATELY turned... and has a great shape. I got it NOS but no packaging with a REALLY nice boar knot in it which I steamed out and moved into a vintage EverReady handle. I reknotted it with a AP Luxury 24mm mixed knot.

Pro-Phy-Lac-Tic brush. Neat little handle... Has one of those Bakelite stands like the little fullers, but a much better shape and size for use. Like a rounded off beehive. Plastic doesn't feel as solid as some of the other brushes, reminds me a bit of the semi-translucent bakelite in the marble-scotch everReady brush bottom halfs. Knot is high quality hair but very lofty, so not much backbone.

Unlabeled, suspected Culmak Mixed hair knot. Handle feels a little cheaper, less polished than a lot of these brushes, but not bad. Knot was really good at one point. Reminds me of the Kent Army brushes coming up soon, but it's taken a beating and looks almost chewed up at this point. Haven't decided its fate yet.

Kent K14? If memory serves. It's a beast. A big, dense, wall of fluff on your face. Not much else to say. MASSIVELY denser than modern Kents... Similar Density to a Chubby 3 band.

A Kent Barrel. One of my favorite brushes. A Nice dense pure/grey badger brush with a fun little handle and good scritch.

Kent Jars/Army brush (x3). Nice stiff, very scrubby boar brushs. Handles a bit on the small side, not great to grip, but not bad either. Not an every day brush, but a good way to break up the monotony.

Macy's brush. Nice handle, similar quality to the Culmak and some Rooneys from the 60's-70's era. Possibly made by Rooney (they made some for Macys), knot is alright, but a little lacking backbone for my taste.

Rooney. Basically a Modern size 1 style 2 super in a much cooler handle.

Simpson Emperor 3-5. Not sure what they'd call it. It's a 25mm knot... an Emperor 3 has a 21mm knot. Either it's a freakishly large E3, or they used to make them in sizes above 3. Again, basically the same as the modern equivalent, but in a cooler handle.

Simpson/Hoffritz Chubby 2. This has that Golden hair (European badger I would guess), that doesn't exist in brushes after the 60's or so. Softer than anything available today, as dense or denser than modern Chubby's... Similar to the K14, but a better size/shape handle, and significantly smaller knot.

Simpson, Oh I forget... Special 2? 55? It's a Brooks Brothers brush, so probably called a BB-something officially, but there's a modern model that it matches...Don't really remember. Nice brush, a bit Denser/lower lofted than modern equivalents, but not as dense as the Chubby.

Simpson AS3.

I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy! :ouch1::ouch1::ouch1:
 
That is quite the amazing collection. Super nice.

I like your computer keyboard. Compaq rackmount servers used to come with a keyboard like that, which is what I have from when I shut down an old datacenter, though mine has a trackball instead of the pad. Nice Cherry switches. I still have mine but I’m using my IBM Model M at the moment.
 
That is quite the amazing collection. Super nice.

I like your computer keyboard. Compaq rackmount servers used to come with a keyboard like that, which is what I have from when I shut down an old datacenter, though mine has a trackball instead of the pad. Nice Cherry switches. I still have mine but I’m using my IBM Model M at the moment.


Thank you. Yes it's a Cherry MX if memory serves. Cost me a pretty penny but will probably outlast me. I need to get an adapter to use the touchpad since modern motherboards don't have mouse PS2 ports anymore. Otherwise, it's still going strong after 15+ years. I used to have an old Compaq or IBM programmable with like 30 function keys and a minicomputer inside. Was all steel and weighed about 15 lbs. Nice keyboard but eventually I tired of using the AT Port adapters and got rid of it.
 
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