I am making a request for pictures of any discontinued handle styles or any rare/unique brushes out there that you just can’t get any more. Doesn’t have to be a brush you own, just needs to be pictures. Have been on a small kick making some vintage styles and looking to be fed some more options please. Any brush handles out there they used to make and now don’t or you have seen one and always wanted to find another - - - would love to hear and see what they are. Thanks in advance.
Discontinued, rare, unique, vintage brushes
- Thread starter LJS
- Start date
Sort of a Beehive/Barrel Combo. One of the smaller american makers back in the day:
Love this shape, kind of an understated/skinny Eagle. A German maker.
Everyone knows this shape. The prototypical Vintage Rooney. These are pretty common and vary in how fat they are... This one is about the fattest I've seen but only held an ~18-19mm knot originally. That's a 24mm in there now and before bloom it looked almost comical the handle was so much bigger than the knot. The skinnier ones look a lot more similar to brush styles seen these days like the old Rooney Style 1 brushes.
Vintage Kent Barrel. My favorite barrel (followed by the vintage Simpson style, which is more squat)
Vintage Simpson... precursor to Persian Jars?
110 yr old brush in a VERY typical style for old ivory/bone brushes that doesn't seem to be popular anymore (Some fancy tall brushes like the M7 I guess sort of recall this look). These are most if not all two pieces a top with the knot and a handle. The handle threads into the top just below the upper ring. I suspect it's a Rooney.
This handle ties with Eagles as the most comfortable handle shape I use Another unknown American (probably) vintage.
And a new acquisition. Another small American brand. I paid for it like it was a Simpson though because I liked the look of the handle shape so well (and also I don't have a ton of these semi-translucent butterscotches in my collection). I think it looks like an Alien Beehive.
Love this shape, kind of an understated/skinny Eagle. A German maker.
Everyone knows this shape. The prototypical Vintage Rooney. These are pretty common and vary in how fat they are... This one is about the fattest I've seen but only held an ~18-19mm knot originally. That's a 24mm in there now and before bloom it looked almost comical the handle was so much bigger than the knot. The skinnier ones look a lot more similar to brush styles seen these days like the old Rooney Style 1 brushes.
Vintage Kent Barrel. My favorite barrel (followed by the vintage Simpson style, which is more squat)
Vintage Simpson... precursor to Persian Jars?
110 yr old brush in a VERY typical style for old ivory/bone brushes that doesn't seem to be popular anymore (Some fancy tall brushes like the M7 I guess sort of recall this look). These are most if not all two pieces a top with the knot and a handle. The handle threads into the top just below the upper ring. I suspect it's a Rooney.
This handle ties with Eagles as the most comfortable handle shape I use Another unknown American (probably) vintage.
And a new acquisition. Another small American brand. I paid for it like it was a Simpson though because I liked the look of the handle shape so well (and also I don't have a ton of these semi-translucent butterscotches in my collection). I think it looks like an Alien Beehive.
And these three I almost didn't include because I don't think they're "production" brushes. I suspect they were all handmade by artisans at some point in the past. From my bone & Ivory collection.
I sold my vintage Simpson barrel awhile back, but I actually think this might be it (I've sold to the guy who posted this picture in the past), also a really nice design. Sold it mostly because I didn't love the knot but didn't have the heart to reknot as I recall.
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- #5
- Thread starter
- #6
This one. I swear I had one of these. It was given to me back early-mid 2000’s but I remember mine as a more bone or ivory color. It was a daily brush for a year or so until one of my dogs got it and chewed it up. I have not seen one like it before and closest is some of the metal brushes. I tried to recreate from memory in this one.
These are great! Can’t wait to see what others have out there. 
Well it's vintage butterscotch so if you had a slightly newer one, ivory color would make sense. Butterscotch originated as an ivory color but the plastic used yellows with age turning off white and then various shades of orange before eventually turning brown.
It's a relatively rare handle in my experience, I own both of the ones I've seen, and neither has any identifying markings. Got the first one in a lot and just really liked the feel of the handle. So I made sure I snagged up the second one I saw a year or so later, even though it's a lot more beat up.
It's a relatively rare handle in my experience, I own both of the ones I've seen, and neither has any identifying markings. Got the first one in a lot and just really liked the feel of the handle. So I made sure I snagged up the second one I saw a year or so later, even though it's a lot more beat up.
I don't know if you would classify this brush as vintage - but I bought it at a Hoffrtiz store and that chain is no longer in business. I bought it in 1993.
Simpson Rover (pictured) is one of my favorite (discontinued?) handles. I regret not getting a Simpson Eagle handle in pure. I could have had Rudy re-knot it. Thater 4125 handles, similar to that Hoffritz, are great, still-available handles.
- Thread starter
- #11
GREAT THREAD!! 
Got a vintage Rover in Pure a well, great little brush.
Superb pics and thread.
The old pewter handle Ralph Lauren is nice IMO. This one was re-knotted with a black badger. These have cut tips so I spent 15 mins swirling it around on a piece of 240 grit silicon carbide paper. That took the spikiness out but left a pleasant scritch.
These are still quite common and make a nice change from resin, horn, ivory, etc.
These are still quite common and make a nice change from resin, horn, ivory, etc.
Here is an odd lot of vintage brushes:
Ever-Ready
A Whiting-Adams snuck in
Klenzo (made by Rubberset?)
Opal
Solid Set
Mayd-Well
Ever-Ready
A Whiting-Adams snuck in
Klenzo (made by Rubberset?)
Opal
Solid Set
Mayd-Well
Vintage lucite
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Only one of this in the world as I turned this shift knob into a brush with synthetic knot
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Nice shaving gear!
I’ve often wondered about the Rubberset brushes. From what I can gather, they went out of production in the 50’s. I sure love the handle on my RazoRock 400, which is a knock off of the old Rubberset design.
