Here to Help | Ambassador for Fun | Talking Shaving Brushes

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

The B&B Team has recently asked me to focus more attention on the Shaving Brushes forum, a job right up my alley as I love brushes.

"A good lather is half the shave."​

It usually takes a good brush to build a good lather so everyone has to have at least one good brush. Are you a minimalist with one brush or a collector with many brushes? Boars, badgers, or synthetics?

​

What brushes are best? Which brushes are your favorites? If you could have just one brush which would it be?

The job assignment for the forum ambassadors is to help out, answer questions, and have fun. Let me know what you need, and tell me about any crazy ideas you have to make the Shaving Brushes forum more useful to you or a better place to visit.

Thanks and happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Jut]

What's the difference between an ambassador and a steward?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[emwolf]

My favorite so far is Rudy Vey's 2018 Horn and faux jade group purchase brush

 

[Toothpick]

What's the difference between an ambassador and a steward?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Short answer, nothing. Simply put, Stewards were rebranded.

 

[PeteVK]

Glad to have you as our ambassador @Chan Eil Whiskers

 

[never-stop-learning]

Congratulations Jim!

Well deserved!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Glad to have you as our ambassador @Chan Eil Whiskers

Congratulations Jim!

Well deserved!

Thank you, gentlemen. It should be fun.

What's the difference between an ambassador and a steward?

I wasn't around when there were very many stewards. In fact, I'm not 100% sure there were any when I joined, but I kinda think there were a few. I had no idea what they did, but figured they were probably there to help out in some manner.

Frankly, exactly what the function of the ambassadors is supposed to be has been a bit vague over the few months I've been one, but it seems to be becoming a bit more clear with the appointments of ambassadors to various forums. As you'd expect ambassadors are there to help, to answer questions, to make the forum a fun and interesting place.

Of course, it's a very minor role in all of that, especially on the Shaving Brushes forum, as our members already make the place interesting, entertaining, and fun. I'm open to any ideas on how to make this forum more fun, more interesting, and better.

Whether this is correct or not I'm not sure, but I've heard stewards may have had some degree of responsibility for policing the forum. It's very clear ambassadors are not charged with any policing responsibility. We don't make the rules. We don't enforce the rules. If we're monitors, we're monitoring the fun quota.

Happy shaves to you,

Jim

 

[ajduplessis]

so where’s the fun stuff...

 

[ajduplessis]

congrats Jim.

 

[BigJ]

CONGRATULATIONS!!

We are lucky to have you!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

so where’s the fun stuff...

That remains to be seen.

I'm probably not the most fun guy - you wouldn't hire me to plan a fun party - but I'll speak about one of the little pleasures in my life.

Perhaps my favorite part of shaving is working the brush. I enjoy the scrub, and the lather building, and working the lather into the areas around every little whisker. I sometimes spend a bit more time with it than I might really need to because I enjoy it so much. Other times I'm not so inclined so I do just what's necessary.

I like to work, but I like balance, and shaving (and this place) are part of my balance.

Is that fun?

I kinda think it is. I kinda think most of us are here, or stick around this place, because we enjoy some aspects of shaving, enough to turn it into a hobby or a pleasurable activity. I think too we enjoy talking about the various aspects of it all.

Hey, I'm just a guy fumbling about hoping to do something to improve a place which is already very good (or we wouldn't be here).

Brushes are part of the fun for me, but what about you?

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[htownmmm]

A great choice indeed! I look forward to your insights in this area.

marty

 

[pyronut]

Congrats!!!

 

[mrdoug]

Okay, I'll bite...

I'm nowhere near new, but when I buy a brush I look at two things: knot diameter and reviews. I strictly use synthetic 24mm brushes. I use the reviews to tell me if it has backbone, as I don't know how all the numbers (loft, height, etc) play together to make a floppy or stiff brush.

Of course, stats like density (etc) are rarely enumerated. So based on what is typically provided, is there any stats to look for that would tell me this brush will have backbone or not?

Thanks.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Okay, I'll bite...

I'm nowhere near new, but when I buy a brush I look at two things: knot diameter and reviews. I strictly use synthetic 24mm brushes. I use the reviews to tell me if it has backbone, as I don't know how all the numbers (loft, height, etc) play together to make a floppy or stiff brush.

Of course, stats like density (etc) are rarely enumerated. So based on what is typically provided, is there any stats to look for that would tell me this brush will have backbone or not?

Thanks.

Like you I'm big on reading the reviews as well as on knowing the knot size.

Unlike you I don't know anything at all about synthetics. Perhaps I've not given them an adequate opportunity, but the few I tried were not to my liking in the way boars and badgers (and my one horse) are. I didn't like the springy feel and felt they were missing "something."

There are other aspects of brushes about which I'm equally ignorant. I hope to do a bit of brush restoration before too very long and want to learn more about it. I have no experience with the very expensive high end brushes. Etc.

There's always stuff to learn, but, on the other hand, I'm not much into buying things these days, or not as much as I used to be.

I think sometimes about buying one of the Zenith synthetics because I like the brand and trust the descriptions of the eBay vendor or one of the AP synthetics because Rave @Raven Koenes brags on them so much, but then I think about other uses for the money and how many brushes I have, etc. Have you tried these two brands of synthetics; just curious?

To address your question, I don't know of any stats at all that actually address backbone, but reviews (and even some vendor descriptions) seem to be loaded with information on backbone and sometimes scrub.

I've noticed backbone is not always as important as I tend to think it is (and I'm a huge fan of lots of scrub and lots of backbone). For instance, my Zenith horse is very floppy and lacks much backbone, but it is still one of my very most favorite brushes. Why? I don't know really.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[ajkel64]

Welcome Ambassador @Chan Eil Whiskers

 

[Clay S]

Congratulations!

 

[Cal]

Congratulations Jim!

It only seems like yesterday when we were discussing the OP on the Scritchnscrub on Scritch, Scrub, Softness, Density, Backbone and Flow-through thread... but it was two years ago!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Congratulations Jim!

It only seems like yesterday when we were discussing the OP on the Scritchnscrub on Scritch, Scrub, Softness, Density, Backbone and Flow-through thread... but it was two years ago!

Thanks, Cal, I'd forgotten that thread. Good times.

Glad you're back. Your experience, and that of so many people who know brushes and are experienced with them, and the discussions we've had on brushes, are what's made the Shaving Brushes forum so good. I hope we can make it even better.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Cal]

I hope we can make it even better.

You're the man Jim. I've always enjoyed reading your brush "essays."