+2 on Rudy. He also can give you good advice on knots and settings that might work well for you.
Need(ahem...cough) New Face Lathering Brush. WSP/Semogue/Thater?
- Thread starter Phog Allen
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- #22
Actually, Rudy Vey is in strong contention here. He has been at this a long time and repuatation is sterling.
Or..you can also get one directly from Shavemac.
My thater two band beehive is now my main go to brush. I sold off most others and now have only two brushes (the other is a synthetic ).
The thater is soft and feels fantastic .
Very dense too...when I hold it under the faucet and let the water into the knot head-on...the brush doesn't even crumble or sway . The shape keeps itself nicely.
The thater is soft and feels fantastic .
Very dense too...when I hold it under the faucet and let the water into the knot head-on...the brush doesn't even crumble or sway . The shape keeps itself nicely.
Well, I have several premium type brushes. Of the ones you are interested in, I have a Semogue SOC two-band badger, and a WSP 26mm High Mountain White stubby. The SOC is a nice brush. I am not particularly fond of the WSP stubby handle but the know itself is great. I know you are looking at the Monarch handle.
To make your decision harder, I want to suggest that you look at a couple of lesser known brushes that I purchased recently and find to be great brushes. One is the VP Leonhardy brushes sold by Jarrod at The Superior Shave. I got the 80040 two-band silvertip. It is a wonderful brush. My only complaint is that the handle groove is too large to fit in my brush stand. The second recommendation is the Stephen's Woodworking brushes sold by SRD. I purchased the model #7 26mm silvertip with purpleheart handle, Again, it is a wonderful brush, both to admire at and to use. It is currently out of stock as they have not restocked since my purchase. They do have model #6 24mm in stock.
To make your decision harder, I want to suggest that you look at a couple of lesser known brushes that I purchased recently and find to be great brushes. One is the VP Leonhardy brushes sold by Jarrod at The Superior Shave. I got the 80040 two-band silvertip. It is a wonderful brush. My only complaint is that the handle groove is too large to fit in my brush stand. The second recommendation is the Stephen's Woodworking brushes sold by SRD. I purchased the model #7 26mm silvertip with purpleheart handle, Again, it is a wonderful brush, both to admire at and to use. It is currently out of stock as they have not restocked since my purchase. They do have model #6 24mm in stock.
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- #26
Ray, thanks. I am more than willing to look into those brands.
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- #27
This is the reason I included Thater from the start. You rarely see a poor review and I do like it that it has good knot shape retention. And their 2 band hair gets absolutely rave reviews. Decisions...
I think the thater is great .
Far from me being any kind of brush expert, desire for several brushes (well multiple of anything really) or high priced brushes just completely escapes me.
I just thought I'd comment on one of your potential brushes @Phog Allen.
I've had Semogue Owner's Club 2 band badger for almost a year now, and find it to be excellent, soft on the face with decent backbone, and just "right" size wise for me too.
I face lather exclusively and alternate between tallow, veggie soaps and various crops and creams and for me it works really well with all of them. The only thing I would like is a bit more weight to it, and every now and then I'm thinking that just a bit of extra backbone would make it perfect, but for the money, totally worth it, I'd buy another one again without hesitation.
I just thought I'd comment on one of your potential brushes @Phog Allen.
I've had Semogue Owner's Club 2 band badger for almost a year now, and find it to be excellent, soft on the face with decent backbone, and just "right" size wise for me too.
I face lather exclusively and alternate between tallow, veggie soaps and various crops and creams and for me it works really well with all of them. The only thing I would like is a bit more weight to it, and every now and then I'm thinking that just a bit of extra backbone would make it perfect, but for the money, totally worth it, I'd buy another one again without hesitation.
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Another endorsement for the Semogue 2-band badger. I have more expensive Simpson's brushes and a Paladin but this one remains in my rotation as well. It seems to get better each time I use it. Great value - especially if you can run into a discount.
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- #31
The Semogue 2 bands are definitely at the top of the queue along withThater. The Semogues get almost universal praise and I have yet to see a really negative reviee of their badger models. Strong contender.
+1 And (IMHO) the best handle in the business. And at a very reasonable price.
- Thread starter
- #33
Here's another idea and I am a bit conflicted by it. I have a very nice Vulfix 2236s that was my first brush. I used it for a good while til I got the 2006 Edwin Jagger B&B Limited. That brush was an eye opener. While not nearly as dense as my DaVinci 293, it is much better thwn the Vulfix where flop is concerned.
Which brings me to a possibility. Would it be worth re-knotting the Vulfix? I paid about 90 dollars for it 13 years ago. I use it about three times per year. I was wondering if you can remove the knot without destroying it? It could then be used in the repair of some old brush handles I already have. I have sen videos of guys steaming the brush til the epoxy loosened and then lifting the knot out. More just thinking out loud here.
Which brings me to a possibility. Would it be worth re-knotting the Vulfix? I paid about 90 dollars for it 13 years ago. I use it about three times per year. I was wondering if you can remove the knot without destroying it? It could then be used in the repair of some old brush handles I already have. I have sen videos of guys steaming the brush til the epoxy loosened and then lifting the knot out. More just thinking out loud here.
Did you have the fan or the bulb? I just ordered one in tortoise with the bulb knot. I was concerned the fan might be a bit floppy at that size.
I love my two Shavemacs, a 922 Pure that I've used for many, many years (a good amount of scritch in it though) and a 177 Finest that has very good backbone and much softer tips. I've seriously considered investing in one of their D01 2 bands just because I've enjoyed the others so much.
As far as Semogues go, Bullgoose has their new LE that's getting great reviews on another thread here.
As far as Semogues go, Bullgoose has their new LE that's getting great reviews on another thread here.
I did too, but every time I asked myself if I think it'd be 3 times as good as Semogue OC 2 band, I decide against adding it to the cart. I'm exaggerating of course with "3x better" mostly because of the the price difference, but am fully aware of "law of diminishing returns".
The other thing that's preventing me from pulling the trigger, I ask myself what is it that I "need" to be better, and honestly, not much.
I just checked Bullgoose, the LE TSN brushes have already sold out.
I'm trying to figure out if there's any appreciable difference in knots between the cherry Super badger and Taj 2 band. The Taj handle seems to be calling to me.
Wet shaving since before Gillette invented disposables. Like an above member, found WSP a massive shedder. I waited months for the WSP premium silvertip to stop, but got worse. Finally lost patience, and was refused any credit/replace/ or discount because WSP Cust Service claims I should have returned immediately rather than give it a chance to stop shedding. Be advised. I purchased for $40 as final sale, no warranty, but most suppliers will replace defective brushes. Not WSP, at least if you wait longer than cust service thinks you should for the shedding to stop. Huge problem if you rotate your brushes. Also see my post on DFS. I'll buy a new knot (not from WSP!) for the handle, but won't bother with WSP brushes in the future. Btw, the Bullgoose LE, some Semogues, vulfix, and stirling badgers have all been great brushes and are good values at this pricepoint.
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