Ever hear of "High Mountain" Badger Bristle?

[rodeo]

Ever hear of "High Mountain" Badger Bristle?

SO, I just picked up my second book on Shaving and this one is titled "The Art of Shaving" and in flipping through it I found a term I had never heard before.

Under the "Brushes" section it read:

"There are essentially four different grades of Badger hair: Pure, Fine, Silvertip and High Mountain. The main difference between them are in hair quality (softness,) density and duration. High Mountain is the best and the most expensive - an average High Mountain Badger brush can last ten years or more, whereas Pure badger lasts on average one to three years."
-------------------

I've never heard the term High Mountain ever before picking up this book
AND
Pure badger only lasting one to three years?

 

[JPDyson]

High Mountain White is used by Plisson (who makes a brush for AOS) to denote their highest grade of hair. It's like "Super Awesome Silvertip FROM FRANCE!" or something. Haven't personally used one, though Vie Long claims the same type of hair in their Silvertips (for a fraction of the price).

 

[theperfectstorm]

HMW is the exorbitantly priced highest-grade used by Plisson, the venerable French brush company. AoS gets their high-end brushes from Plisson, and, AoS are whores of the highest (lowest?) order, so I would take anything they say with a massive grain of salt.

 

[rodeo]

What about the statement that "Pure Badger only lasts one to three years on average?"

is that nearly accurate?

 

[JPDyson]

What about the statement that "Pure Badger only lasts one to three years on average?"

is that nearly accurate?

Not nearly. Not remotely.

 

[bythbook]

What about the statement that "Pure Badger only lasts one to three years on average?"

is that nearly accurate?

doesn't sound accurate to me.... However, many of the experts here (!) have so many brushes - that over a lifetime, any one brush might have a relative usage of 6 months... or 6 days.

I think that any quality brush - boar, pure badger, finest, HMW - with decent care will last a long long time, even with daily use.

Rinse your brush well after use, shake it out, ruffle its little hairs... let it dry with some space (so residual moisture can evaporate)... and it will just go on and on. Seems that the residents here are almost evenly divided in the "hang the brush hair down" and "sit it on its handle hair up" schools. (FWIW, I'm persuaded by the "hair-up" arguments.)

AOS is trying to sell its very expensive brushes.

 

[ssultan]

I've got at least two vintage pure's that are perfectly serviceable and are a lot older than I am...I would seriously doubt that statement....with regards to the HMW...I'll let you know about the holy grail of badger knots as soon as mine arrives!

Jon has more vintage brushes than anybody I know...ask him to confirm the life expectancy of vintage badger OR boar hair/bristles!!

 

[SliceOfLife]

Badger hair eventually wears down, but not in 1-3 years. I've gotten a few vintage knots I'd consider beyond using, but most bad vintage knots are bad because their owner trimmed the center to make a cream reservoir. Whoever came up with that idea should be beaten with a BK12.

Boar bristles seem to last forever as long as they don't get abused and become brittle.

 

[rodeo]

Seems that the residents here are almost evenly divided in the "hang the brush hair down" and "sit it on its handle hair up" schools. (FWIW, I'm persuaded by the "hair-up" arguments.)

Interesting, I've never heard that argument before. Can you point to any threads about this controversy? Sounds like good reading to me.

So far I've purchased two books about shaving off ebay and I'm really really glad I didnt pay cover price for either of them. I think there's a reason I got them pretty cheap..

 

[andrew98]

"There are essentially four different grades of Badger hair: Pure, Fine, Silvertip and High Mountain. The main difference between them are in hair quality (softness,) density and duration. High Mountain is the best and the most expensive - an average High Mountain Badger brush can last ten years or more, whereas Pure badger lasts on average one to three years."

There are way more "grades" of hair, and it varies by manufacturer. The classification above is a gross oversimplification, especially if we're talking about more than one manufacturer. I also have no idea what the author means by duration. Durability, perhaps? If your brush only lasts 1 to 3 years, no matter what hair grade, you've bought an inferior brand or ended up with a lemon. I only have a few brushes, and I can't imagine wearing one out anytime soon. I'm expecting more than 10 years out of each one.

If the author means to imply that AoS pure brushes only last 1 to 3 years, that's sad. I hate AoS, though. Their soaps and creams are the only things they sell that are worth buying, imo. My interaction with staff in various US locations was also negative.

-Andy

 

[Leon]

"There are essentially four different grades of Badger hair: Pure, Fine, Silvertip and High Mountain.

What happened to "Best" badger hair?

 

[antoine1]

Isn't he just talking about Plisson?

 

[andrew98]

Isn't he just talking about Plisson?

He's talking about AoS, which sell brushes made from a couple (few?) different makers. They just rebrand them as AoS. It sounds like one of those makers may be Plisson.

-Andy

 

[rodeo]

Isn't he just talking about Plisson?

No "Brands" were mentioned in the chapter on brushes so you would expect the chapter to be generic and cover all brushes, not just specific manufacturers. This is just another reason why this book is bogus. I'll be selling both books soon either on ebay or here on the forum.

 

[bythbook]

Interesting, I've never heard that argument before. Can you point to any threads about this controversy? Sounds like good reading to me.

Here's one: to hang... or not

 

[theperfectstorm]

Badger hair eventually wears down, but not in 1-3 years. I've gotten a few vintage knots I'd consider beyond using, but most bad vintage knots are bad because their owner trimmed the center to make a cream reservoir. Whoever came up with that idea should be beaten with a BK12.

Boar bristles seem to last forever as long as they don't get abused and become brittle.

Dude, most vintage knots are bad because a Depression-era old geezer used it everyday for years and then left it under a sink or in a box for 40 years, which even the mortuary industry concedes is not the best way to ensure long-term freshness.

 

[Thebigspendur]

The fact that only Plisson uses HMW makes it obvious the author is connected to that company. Brushes if properly cared for will last indefinitely no matter the grade.