Gents,
I have found my ideal shaving brush. It's not a Plisson, a Simpson, a Rooney, not even a Shavemac. And it didn't cost hundreds of dollars. It's a cheapie!
The Crabtree & Evelyn Edwin Jagger Best Badger Small Brush!
It's the one in the middle. Knot size? Don't have a clue, but I would love to know. The Savile Row 241 (on the left) is a great brush. 30mm knot, holds water and heat like nobody's business. BUT...it's moppy and floppy! The little travel brush on the right does a great job...much better than I would have expected, but it's just a bit small. But the middle brush...it's just right.
My routine? Soak the brush for 3-5 minutes. Add hot water to my stainless steel mixing bowl. Dump the water, save for about 1/2 a teaspon, and add my shaving cream. I let the shaving cream sit in the water for about a minute, then let the brush drain, a couple of flicks and then work up my lather. Once the lather is applied to my face, I strop my straight razor 20 laps on the linen and 30 laps on the leather. Rinse my face, and then re-heat the lather. Since I use a stainless steel bowl, which conducts heat instantly, I let hot water run over the bottom of the bowl, swirl the brush, and apply lather. Once the first pass is complete, I open up the breach of the brush, fill it with hot water and dump it out immediately, then heat up the bowl again. The lather is HOT with each application. This brush is firm. No floppiness here. Not really prickly, but it is very efficient at what it does. I've got a couple of moderately expensive brushes, but I can see that this will become my main brush. And for $35 bucks, how can you go wrong?
Randy
I have found my ideal shaving brush. It's not a Plisson, a Simpson, a Rooney, not even a Shavemac. And it didn't cost hundreds of dollars. It's a cheapie!
The Crabtree & Evelyn Edwin Jagger Best Badger Small Brush!
It's the one in the middle. Knot size? Don't have a clue, but I would love to know. The Savile Row 241 (on the left) is a great brush. 30mm knot, holds water and heat like nobody's business. BUT...it's moppy and floppy! The little travel brush on the right does a great job...much better than I would have expected, but it's just a bit small. But the middle brush...it's just right.
My routine? Soak the brush for 3-5 minutes. Add hot water to my stainless steel mixing bowl. Dump the water, save for about 1/2 a teaspon, and add my shaving cream. I let the shaving cream sit in the water for about a minute, then let the brush drain, a couple of flicks and then work up my lather. Once the lather is applied to my face, I strop my straight razor 20 laps on the linen and 30 laps on the leather. Rinse my face, and then re-heat the lather. Since I use a stainless steel bowl, which conducts heat instantly, I let hot water run over the bottom of the bowl, swirl the brush, and apply lather. Once the first pass is complete, I open up the breach of the brush, fill it with hot water and dump it out immediately, then heat up the bowl again. The lather is HOT with each application. This brush is firm. No floppiness here. Not really prickly, but it is very efficient at what it does. I've got a couple of moderately expensive brushes, but I can see that this will become my main brush. And for $35 bucks, how can you go wrong?
Randy
Last edited by a moderator:
