How to distinguish a "new" Somerset Simpson

[Henrik]

To be frank, on the high-end badgers I am stuck with Simpson´s and there I will remain. I love the new owners- GREAT customer care and VERY fine brushes indeed. Looking back a bit. A couple of years ago (2008) I bought my first Simpson brush (Persian Jar 2) with a slightly pinkish colour on the handle. Quite different to the others that I would later buy. Well, some of those handles came in different tones of creamy white and some were more yellow. Charrming!

My question: do anyone know how to distinguish the new handles from the old ones (pre- vulfix)? By old I mean handles that the old ones were made in Somerset- as opposed to the new ones being made on the Isle of Man (I THINK - but I don´t know that they still lathe the handles there). Can anyone shed a bit of light on the subject?

I do know that up to the 80`s they used catalin that by age turns into the beloved "butterscotch"- VERY yellowish but for this subject I suggest we leave that out.

 

[StuMcB]

I have a Coates fitzwilliam (a nice brush) and if you believe the blahdy blah these were made over ten years ago by Simpsons in
Somerset pre Vulfix. The handle is a a very flat white with a hint of yellow colour.


Where as my newer Simpson brushes are very yellow in appreance.

 

[blantyre]

Two possibilities - the Vuflix-made brushes use engraving, Somersets and earlier used stamped lampblack. Vulfix uses plastic stickers with sticky back glue rather than the water soluble kind used by Somerset. Some people claim that they can tell from the shade of resin in the handle but this takes a lot of experience.

 

[Brent]

Check out the superior shave website. He identifies the resin stock used by color. You can se the difference in the pics.

 

[xraygun]

...and anyone experiencing pinkish cast handles, just send them to me for disposal.

 

[Henrik]

Thanks. Yes the stickers of course- and the engraving on the new ones. But I am pretty sure they used/using some of the stock from the Somerset era and finish them by engraving the details/puttting a new sticker on. I have indeed contacted Superior shaving on this topic some days ago and they replied that by visual inspection (tint and marks from the lathing process) they can spot the Somerset handles.
Some people say that the shapes of especially the Tulips and Persian Jars has changed but that was contradicted by several others. After all it´s a handmade product. My observation is that some of my handles are more highly polished than the others. A little odd isn´t it?
Well- I guess this this topic is a wild goose chase after all...
Very nice brushes uploaded by StuMcB by the way.

 

[mistervee123]

I read somewhere that in addition to the stamping and the stickers, pre-Vulfix brushes come in boxes with red printing. Post-Vulfix boxes allegedly have black printing. I can't find this information again however, so it needs confirmation.

 

[Henrik]

Here are a few of mine. Notice the pinkish PJ2, also compare the highly polished T2 to the chubby 2. Both of those are newly acquired by the way- got them last week. Lastly, notice that odd green sticker on the CH1. Have not seen one of those before.

 

[xraygun]

The turquoise sticker is freaking me out.

 

[somebody]

The turquoise sticker is freaking me out.

+1

 

[Krona Kruiser]

Darn you Henrik!!!!! I'm getting tickled by SBAD for the first time!

 

[blantyre]

The old stickers used to go green as well - probably oxidation of the brass pigment:

 

[beginish]

The old stickers used to go green as well - probably oxidation of the brass pigment:

View attachment 242995

Dude, that's awesome.