The biggest selection of Vie-Long Horse Hairs are at Gifts & Care, they will customize your loft at no extra charge. Write your requested loft in the comments section @ checkout, if buying more than one brush specify the Model #, don't forget your B&B code for added savings; http://www.giftsandcare.com/en/catalog/the-pleasure-of-shaving/horse-shaving-brushes.html
Horse hair brush
- Thread starter DougieB
- Start date
~~~I have one of the $3 horse hair brushes Mirac in Turkey sells and it works fine. In fact, I just used it for my last shave face lathering it along with Proraso shave soap
the tips are soft, it has plenty of backbone. What's not to like?
Best,
Jake
Reddick Fla.
I have the Vie-Long 13061. I got it because I loved the look of the handle. I was going to order one Gifts and Care and have them custom set it with a boar knot. But, even with the Euro being down, I ordered it in horse from Bullgoose for much cheaper. I figured if I hated it, I could order a boar knot from TGN, set it myself, and still come out way ahead cost wises.
Some observations: out of the box it stinks!!
I washed it and palm lathered it twice with dish soap before setting it out in my den to dry. SWMBO walked into my den and says "What is that stink?!?!?" I lathered it every day with the left over from my morning shave for a full week before I couldn't smell the dry brush. I shaved with it the for the first time this AM and the wet brush still has some odor to it.
This thing sucks up water!!
I used a cream I'm very familiar with this AM and couldn't believe the amount of water I had to add to get it right, maybe twice as much as one of my badgers. That being said....I really liked how the brush performed. Once the water ratio was correct, the later exploded. The amount of scritch was nice, it really felt like it was lifting the whiskers up (I bowl lather). I also really liked the size of the knot and the size of the handle. Obviously, I can't comment on the longevity of the brush as its my first horse and only one shave; but so far I would rate it as a keeper!
Some observations: out of the box it stinks!!
I washed it and palm lathered it twice with dish soap before setting it out in my den to dry. SWMBO walked into my den and says "What is that stink?!?!?" I lathered it every day with the left over from my morning shave for a full week before I couldn't smell the dry brush. I shaved with it the for the first time this AM and the wet brush still has some odor to it.This thing sucks up water!!
I used a cream I'm very familiar with this AM and couldn't believe the amount of water I had to add to get it right, maybe twice as much as one of my badgers. That being said....I really liked how the brush performed. Once the water ratio was correct, the later exploded. The amount of scritch was nice, it really felt like it was lifting the whiskers up (I bowl lather). I also really liked the size of the knot and the size of the handle. Obviously, I can't comment on the longevity of the brush as its my first horse and only one shave; but so far I would rate it as a keeper!
This thing sucks up water!!
How I work with mine is when I bring it out of the sink after soaking I turn it bristles down and give it one downward plunge to remove any uber excess water (NO SHAKE just a drop and stop). I then take it to my shave bowl where I have placed a dollop of cream and start building lather. Doing the downward drop to release excess water seems to leave the proper amount of water to get my shave bowl overflowing with lather when using my normal quantity of cream.
I measure my creams using a plastic sample ice cream spoon which is around 1/8 tsp. I talk about "the spoon" and show pics in this thread
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/274000-What-is-wet-shaving?p=3816208#post3816208
I have no interest in a horsehair brush but I've always thought that Vie Long handles to be some of the most unique & beautiful currently available.
Hey! That is the same scuttle I have!
I am very fond of the Vie-Long products. Bullgoose is currently working on a special edition Bee Hive brush and I'm not sure if anyone has seen it, so here's the link:
http://gallery.myff.org/gallery/1249347/BG2012LE.jpg
Definitely caught my interest, though I know a lot of guys aren't too fond of this handle shape.
http://gallery.myff.org/gallery/1249347/BG2012LE.jpg
Definitely caught my interest, though I know a lot of guys aren't too fond of this handle shape.
I have the Vie-Long 13071 from Gifts & Care.
It has good backbone, holds enough water and is soft right from the start.
My silvertip is very soft now, but was scratchy for some time.
It has good backbone, holds enough water and is soft right from the start.
My silvertip is very soft now, but was scratchy for some time.
- Thread starter
- #31
I have a birthday coming up and I dropped a pretty strong hint on this brush and some blades.
I have a Vie-Long 13061 horse hair. They are very nice brushes. Soft and luxurious.
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After reading so much about horsehair brushes, I decided to try one. I bought a very good one, a Vie-Long 13061 from BullGoose. I especially like that they are made in Spain, since I'd lived there 34 years ago in preparation for teaching Spanish (which I did before becoming an ER nurse). I, too, encountered the horrible stench of a new horsehair brush which persisted even after repeated shampooing and hand lathering. I turned to B&B for help; I was advised to soak it for 20 minutes in very cold water mixed with 1 tsp. vinegar per ounce of water, rinse and lather with a strong-smelling lather like Tabac (which I had). The lather is left in the brush for a while to further overcome the stinky smell. I've smelled horses, and they don't smell nearly as bad as a new horsehair brush.
Anyway, performance. I'm not entirely sold on horsehair brushes. Mine lathers hard soaps like TOBS Lavender in the wood bowl better than my badgers but the lather is never as thick or as luxurious as with the badgers. I used my Vie-Long today but I've decided I'm a badger guy. Too bad there aren't any badgers roaming Philly for me to find a dead one........
Anyway, performance. I'm not entirely sold on horsehair brushes. Mine lathers hard soaps like TOBS Lavender in the wood bowl better than my badgers but the lather is never as thick or as luxurious as with the badgers. I used my Vie-Long today but I've decided I'm a badger guy. Too bad there aren't any badgers roaming Philly for me to find a dead one........
~~~Hey TAP, nice post...I started with a best badger (Parker) and abandoned it shortly for boar hair brushes, then I used a few horse hair brushes. this past X-Mass, Mrs. Jake gave me a chubby 3 in best badger. Now that's a nice badger brush, probably not as nice as the super badger but a nice brush none the less...so I've used a variety of shave brushes...which one do I like the best? the one in my hand of course...they're all good, unless they're worn out. BTW, we keep two horses...haven't ridden them in over a year but they gotta be fed and this time of year the grass doesn't grow so they're eating hay. I've always wondered about making a horse hair brush from spent horse hairs...hairs we've had to trim from their tails...but with all of the projects I got in front of that, I know that ain't happen'n anytime soon...I was thinking of writing Rudy in NJ to see if he wanted the horse hair, trade it for rebuilding a brush. hey Rudy!!!
Best,
Jake
Reddick Fla.
I got the Vie-Long Cachurro from Bullgoose at the beginning of the year. Excellent service and an excellent brush. Right now, it's the only brush I use untill the spring when I can start using my boars again.
It did stink like the very mouth of hell the first few times I used it, so break it in well. Pet shampoo and other methods work fine on horse hair brushes
It did stink like the very mouth of hell the first few times I used it, so break it in well. Pet shampoo and other methods work fine on horse hair brushes
I just recently purchased from Gifts and Care the Prof. Barber Brush 04312 in brown extra and had the loft set to 48mm, instead of the original 60mm. I can't wait to receive it and try it out.
Some observations: out of the box it stinks!!
Sounds like I got fairly lucky. Mine smelled horse-y, but nothing that would have been obvious just from it setting out in the bathroom, even wet. It was quite noticeable when near my face, however. I took a cue from the "Brush Chronicles" post about horse hair brushes and gave it a soak in 1:4 vinegar-water for 20 minutes, then lathered it in my KMF cool mint and let it sit with the soap on the bristles for a while. That took down the smell and the dye-bleed considerably.
Snazzy looking. My current brush has the dyed, 50/50 mix in it. I may have to pick up one of those to complete the experience.
