Brush Question

[Helicase]

Hi All!

I'm relatively new to the world of brushes and started out with a vdh boar. It sheds a bit but has been a real workhorse and a great value starting out. Now i'm looking to upgrade to either a better quality boar or badger. What would you recommend given the fact that i solely use soaps and face lather? I'm worried about getting a badger brush that is too floppy and may not stand up to the harder triple-milled soaps as well as my current boar.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Luc]

If you are too worried with a badger, get a boar.

There are good badger brushes with good backbone.

Mine (Silvertip) is a bit floppy but It's not so bad as I'm still doing everything I want with it.

 

[Fozz7769]

Have a look at the Semogues on www.vintagescents.com

 

[mblakele]

Badger and boar are both good choices for face-lather. I would say that badgers are more expensive, dry out more quickly, and hold more heat; boars are cheaper, usually feel less dense, usually have more backbone, and take longer to dry out completely. Either way I think it's best to choose a relatively small knot and low loft.

Semogue and Omega are both popular choices for boar. I have an Omega 81052 and a 10066. Both work well for face-lathering, although they took a while to break in. At first neither would hold enough lather for more than two passes, so I would have to re-lather (or stop shaving after the second pass, which isn't a bad idea on many days). After a few weeks, though, this was no longer a problem. I don't have any Semogues, but my next purchase may be a 620 or 830.

For badger, you might look at something like a Rooney 1/1 or 3/1, or a Simpsons Colonel, or really almost anything with a smallish, dense knot and a loft under 50-mm.

You will certainly get some argument here about the exact specifications to look for: I have a Penworks STR1-22 that also works well for face-lathering soaps, even though it has a 55-mm loft. But it works even better with a couple of O-rings to choke up on the loft.

Most brands of brush are widely available: I have bought from http://www.westcoastshaving.com/ and http://www.bullgooseshaving.net/ - but Semogues are only available at Vintage Scents (Fozz already linked there) and Rooneys are only available from http://www.classicshaving.com/ and http://www.vintagebladesllc.com/