GIANT Brushes?

[SliceOfLife]

I had and sold a fairly large vintage Kent recently. I think it was a V14? Was a 30+mm knot. It would cover your entire face when splayed. Too big for me. I think there was even one size bigger (V16), that was like 34 or 36mm knot.

Chubby 2 is about as big as I like.

 

[Badgerstate36]

26mm is probably the biggest I would go. Im personally not a fan of big brushes because I only shave my neck, so bigger brushes just kind of make a mess.
If I shaved my whole face or shaved my head, Id probably prefer a bigger brush that holds more lather but for my needs, I can get by with a 19mm-22mm brush. Right now, Im using a Simpson Special S1, which I believe is a 19mm brush and it makes all the lather that I need.

 

[dmshaver]

My largest is a Paladin 28mm.

 

[emwolf]

I think my largest knot is 26, which is plenty big for me.

 

[Steinmetzify]

Most of mine (15 or so) are 26mm. I’ve thought about grabbing something larger but as I keep a stache and goat it’d be wasted space.

Even 26mm is a little large for me, but that’s the size my favorite brush makers do, so I’m sort of screwed like that lol

 

[mrlandpirate]

KONG 30mm yeah baby

 

[timwcic]

I think there was even one size bigger (V16)

Kent V16. It came originally with a 38mm but I reknoted with a 35mm gel tip bulb. Even at this large, the shape of the knot make its use similar to the 30mm Chubby 3. Also pictured with my smallest, a Culmak at 12mm. It was a retail display piece

 

[RayClem]

My biggest brush is a 28 mm Maggard super high density two-band badger bulb knot. When I first saw it, it only appeared to be slightly larger than the 26mm knots in my collection. However, as soon as water hit the brush, it began to bloom. Due to the density of the brush, it bloomed a lot more than I anticipated. The knot is nearly 3" in diameter and covers my entire cheek. Although a lot less expensive than several other brushes in my collection, it may have the most luxurious face feel.

 

[sarimento1]

vulfix display brush, huge, not sure of the dimensions.
rarely used; mostly a collectible item!

 

[Chesty]

I like a lot of things about my Razorock Monster at 28. The handle is a little bigger than I like but the feel and the lather are very nice. I also use the Maggard 30 and have the same feeling about it. Overall I prefer my boars but thses big synthetics are nice.

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

Natural hair: 24mm x 54mm
Synthetic: 26mm x 58mm

 

[1Speedster]

M&F 31mm and a big Rhodium (next to a Thäter 4125/2):

 

[Clay S]

27mm is not GIANT but its the biggest I have, or will try. Dont need anything bigger...
View attachment 1078679

Perfect size for me! Wouldn't see the point of anything larger, but love this size. Handle is perfect for me as well.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Biggest is interesting in a lot of ways.

This copper Manchurian is 28 mm. It's big for sure but also just right for my face lathering. It's my favorite brush of all.

These are 30 mm MS silvertips. They actually measure 33 mm. Big? Yes, indeed, but not too big.

This AP Shave Gelousy ^ is 28 mm, but it's still a very huge knot.

Here's a picture of the three brushes side by side.

I'm not really saying the brush in the middle is too big, but it might be. I will say that if I were ordering one again I might get it in the 22 mm size; it's subjectively a very big brush considering its measurements.

I'm not generally one to like anything smaller than 24 mm for regular use, but, as I'm trying to convey, big means a lot of different things, and not all of them make sense - although some do, like density - when it comes to knots and how big they seem.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[sharktown]

I tend to favor the small to mid size knots - 20mm, 22mm & 24mm.
Just re-knotted an Erskine with a 24mm Maggard's synthetic knot and love it. I parcipated in the Synthetic Brush Passaround and tried out numerous brushes in the 28 - 30mm range and surprisingly liked them!
Don't know, maybe next one will be 26 or 28mm and see how that goes.

 

[Tanuki]

I posted this Omega window display brush in another thread and didn’t get a rise out of anyone. Anyway, I like my brushes scrubby, so short lofted small diameter boars work for me.

I still want one of these big bad boys. Where do they get those bristles? Hogzilla?

 

[Tanuki]

I do have a big handled horse (shave brush, not well endowed stallion). A fella can really get a grip on this one. Zenith B17 for scale.

 

[Ron R]

A nice size knot for me is around 22-24 mm synthetic and that will do every thing that is needed. I do have a 26mm synthetic knot (Yaqi rainbow 26mm)and enjoy it but that is the max I will buy for shaving. I would buy a larger brush for washing my whole body, people would not believe how well a brush will wash a whole face like I do as part of my shave routine.
A bar of soap would last 2 to 5 times longer for lathering and you will get excellent lather, better than a wash cloth which is the standard. Some Yaqi brushes I recently bought back in Nov 2019, great brushes IMO.
I use my Yaqi Cashmer (totally white whiskers knot) with CeraVe hand bar soap, great way to hydrate and a healthier cleaning soap for skin. I tend to get dry eye certain times of the year but CeraVe hand bar soap has done wonders for this unwanted irritation with a good shave brush!!

Have some great shaves!

 

[Big Jim]

I stumbled on this thread today and I have been making it a point to use my larger brushes the last few days. I really enjoy them. My two favorite large brushes are 30 mm silvertips. The knot on the softest one was identified as super silvertip. It had the faint aroma of a beauty parlor when it was new so I suspect the super referred to some bleaching. It is set at 69 mm loft. It's absolutely wonderful to shave with. Like a large soft cloud. There isn't a lot of backbone, but more than enough. The closest knot I have to this in feel and handling is a Kent BK8.

The next one is just a silvertip and it is set lightly higher at 70 mm. Even though it has more backbone it is still extremely soft on the face. Both are an absolute pleasure to use.

I also have about 4 or 5 other 30 mm brushes. All are set between 62 mm and 65 mm. One is a high mountain, the others are silvertips. All are pleasurable. In the next few days I'll work through them too.

I have a 28 mm silvertip set aside for tomorrow morning.

They work best with very large mugs.

The 38 mm to 40 mm silvertip is just too big and too dense. I'll probably work it in sometime this week. The sensation is like lathering up with a fuzzy tennis ball. I does seem to get better with use though. I use it about once a year.

 

[br553]

My largest is a 2 band silvertip badger with a 24mm knot and a 64mm loft. Almost too big, but it can make great lather with nearly every soap/cream I've tried