Darwin The Drake

[ralph029]

I need some thoughts on this from you folks.
I'm thinking about buying The Drake from Darwin, Drake Two-Band Badger Shaving Brush - https://darwinshaving.com/en/product/drake-two-band-badger-shaving-brush/
My hesitation comes from the fact that I am not a fan of badger bushes. I own a few badgers and just don't really like them. I'm a boar guy. I really like the handle; I'm kind of infatuated with it to be honest. It's a bit of money to spend on a brush just to pull the knot and replace it with a boar knot if this goes the way of my other badger brushes. Maybe this is THE brush that might change my mind about badgers, or am I just wasting my money on this tall sexy drink of water? Thoughts?

 

[Rudy Vey]

Never heard about this brand before, where are they located?

 

[jbr63]

Found this surfing around their website: Drake's Bay Rum - https://darwinshaving.com/en/drake-bay-rum/. Provides a little background.

 

[Old School TSD]

I wouldn't blow $ on something I knew I wouldn't like. Drake "Certified"...sounds kind of cheese ball.

 

[ralph029]

Never heard about this brand before, where are they located?

They are in France.

 

[ralph029]

I wouldn't blow $ on something I knew I wouldn't like. Drake "Certified"...sounds kind of cheese ball.

According to them, "The Drake shaving brush is Darwin's tribute to a former American shaving brand."

 

[BigJ]

Never heard of this brand, so I can speak freely (and take this with more than a grain of salt.)

If I were a ‘boar guy,’ then I would likely go for a boar brush.

If I wanted to try another badger, then I would go for one of the ‘usual’ suspects commonly used on this forum.

Just my $0.02!

 

[ralph029]

Never heard of this brand, so I can speak freely (and take this with more than a grain of salt.)

If I were a ‘boar guy,’ then I would likely go for a boar brush.

If I wanted to try another badger, then I would go for one of the ‘usual’ suspects commonly used on this forum.

Just my $0.02!

Where is the fun in taking the road most traveled?

All joking aside, if this was just about trying to find a badger I liked, then your suggestion is the way I would go. I really appreciate the input. I'm looking for other ways to approach this other than what's in my hard head.

 

[ralph029]

I know that there was a company called "Certifyd" back when. I wonder if this is the tribute that the web page refers to? A quick search on eBay and several show up. Not one of them is as sexy as that Drake though

 

[EclipseRedRing]

A quick search online finds this vintage brush of the same name.

 

[ralph029]

A quick search online finds this vintage brush of the same name.

View attachment 1784856

Same typeface too. I guess that's the inspiration.

 

[EclipseRedRing]

If you like the handle on the Darwin then I say go for it, most brushes at that price use the same, or similar, pre tied Chinese knots anyway. If the badger brushes that you tried previously were three band then perhaps you found them lacking in backbone when compared to your boar brushes. All other things being equal, I would expect this two band badger to have comparatively more backbone than a three band badger brush. Reading the text on the Darwin site they claim the brush has good backbone so it may suit you, but there is only one way to find out. Good luck

 

[Cannon Cocker]

Where is the fun in taking the road most traveled?

All joking aside, if this was just about trying to find a badger I liked, then your suggestion is the way I would go. I really appreciate the input. I'm looking for other ways to approach this other than what's in my hard head.

Normally I would ask what boars and badgers you have, and what you like about them and what you don’t. But you don’t seem to care about finding a badger you would like, so go ahead and buy the Drake.

 

[ralph029]

Normally I would ask what boars and badgers you have, and what you like about them and what you don’t. But you don’t seem to care about finding a badger you would like, so go ahead and buy the Drake.

I have 4 Zenith badgers, 2 Manchurian and two silver tips. I have way too many boars! I also have a couple horse brushes that I like. I cannot get one of my badgers to produce quality lather. The 8 or so boars that I keep in my regular rotation produce a wonderfully high lofted creamy lather. The badgers just produce a so so lather. My technique, my water, and my impatience all play a part, but that's my morning routine. I'm not really concerned with backbone. Some mornings I like the scratchy feeling and some mornings I want to be tickled. Because I shave my head as well every other day, I need a brush to really load up once and then reload after I apply it to my face. Once I start shaving, I don't want to reload so as to not get gunk in my soap. My badgers just can't load up enough.
You're right though. This really isn't about a badger knot. I thought maybe it would be a bonus. This is really more about dropping that amount of money on a mass produced handle and the likely hood of successfully removing the knot and replacing it.

 

[Cannon Cocker]

I have 4 Zenith badgers, 2 Manchurian and two silver tips. I have way too many boars! I also have a couple horse brushes that I like. I cannot get one of my badgers to produce quality lather. The 8 or so boars that I keep in my regular rotation produce a wonderfully high lofted creamy lather. The badgers just produce a so so lather. My technique, my water, and my impatience all play a part, but that's my morning routine. I'm not really concerned with backbone. Some mornings I like the scratchy feeling and some mornings I want to be tickled. Because I shave my head as well every other day, I need a brush to really load up once and then reload after I apply it to my face. Once I start shaving, I don't want to reload so as to not get gunk in my soap. My badgers just can't load up enough.
You're right though. This really isn't about a badger knot. I thought maybe it would be a bonus. This is really more about dropping that amount of money on a mass produced handle and the likely hood of successfully removing the knot and replacing it.

Can I assume that you mostly bowl lather with your badger brushes?

It might be interesting to contact Rudy Vey about duplicating the Drake handle. There appears to be enough dimensions on the Darwin web page for the Drake brush that Rudy could come very close to duplicating this handle.

 

[ralph029]

Can I assume that you mostly bowl lather with your badger brushes?

It might be interesting to contact Rudy Vey about duplicating the Drake handle. There appears to be enough dimensions on the Darwin web page for the Drake brush that Rudy could come very close to duplicating this handle.

You can. I scuttle and bowl lather almost exclusively. I do palm lather when I travel sometimes. I haven't enjoyed face lathering. I've tried it with synth's as well a few years back thinking a softer brush would change my mind. They didn't.
Reaching out to Rudy is a solid idea! Right up to when I found that handle, I had no idea I wanted that design so badly.

 

[Cannon Cocker]

You can. I scuttle and bowl lather almost exclusively. I do palm lather when I travel sometimes. I haven't enjoyed face lathering. I've tried it with synth's as well a few years back thinking a softer brush would change my mind. They didn't.
Reaching out to Rudy is a solid idea! Right up to when I found that handle, I had no idea I wanted that design so badly.

Most of the Zenith brushes I have seen appear to have knots on the larger side, and seem to be pretty dense. I find this type of knot much easier to face lather as opposed to bowl lathering.

The first badger brush I bought was a Simpson Colonel X2L in best hair. I believe the knot size was 21x45mm and the handle about 53mm in height. It sounds on the smaller side, but it performed bigger than it looked. The handle works great for bowl or face lathering. The size makes it easy to handle and the flow through is exceptional. With a price around $65 it doesn’t break the bank.

This might be a brush to look at if you want to take another plunge with a badger.

 

[ralph029]

Thank you for the suggestion. I have it saved on my "wish list" with a note referencing this thread. Brushes and soaps (along with my other hobby of soap making) are the deepest rabbit holes I go down in this hobby. I'd be willing to try again.

 

[Wereduck]

Not sure how you feel about Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements but their "Starcraft" brush has a very similar shape in blue & cream. You could give one of those a test drive for 20 USD.

 

[ralph029]

That's an excellent suggestion, thank you. Since they do not pedal boar or horse, I never thought about looking at their brushes.