Neep vs TGN

[Phormio]

Hi there,

As part of my stalking before joining, I've been looking to research different kinds of brushes and knots. One direction I'm looking at is custom brushes.

Now my experience is limited but I've fallen in love with the brush designs of Mr Neep. However, whilst his handles look amazing, I don't know anything about the knots. Moreover most the stuff I have read so far is drooling over the handles and little chit chat about the knots.

Conversely all I read about from TGN is about the knots, from the not so great to the great.

So, how does rod Neep's brushes measure up, in terms of knot performance, with TGN? Or any other knot supplier for that matter.

In particular I'd like to hear the opinion of face latherers as this is how I do most of my shaving.

Cheers,

P.

 

[NSmalls]

I really don't know anything about Rod Neep other than he makes beautiful brushes. I can't speak for their performance though. I can say that I have had quite a few brushes with TGN knots and they all deliver. They are really great knots that are affordable. All of mine have been 2-band finest and one of my favorite brushes was made by Rudy Vey with a TGN 2-band knot.

 

[gmgaj]

I don't like any "scritch" from my brushes, so I prefer the WD silvertips to the TGN knots for face lathering. If I was primarily using hard soaps and bowl lathering exclusively, I'd give the nod to TGN finest. The TGN silvertip didn't really impress me too much, though.

 

[fuzinboston]

I love my TGN Silvetip Grade A and just ordered a Neep for its amazing handle. I'll report back when I take the Pepsi challenge.

 

[Phormio]

Your Pepsi challenge could be a while away. What style brush did you order?

 

[fuzinboston]

I got the Zebra off the BST so it should be here late this week.

 

[Shave3112]

I have a couple Rudy Vey brushes with TGN knots, one super silvertip and one grade A silvertip and they are my favorite brushes !

 

[brother cavefish]

i have never had any problems with TGN, and i have had three and one on the way----i see no reason to switch

 

[Phormio]

I think this highlights my point - plenty of endorsements for TGN and silence on the performance of the knots Rod Neep uses. I was sure by now someone here could of or already had done a comparison.....

 

[vocalistbob]

Rod Neep's "Extra Silvertip" knots are extremely soft, but dense enough not to be floppy. My only experience with TGN's knots are their 2-bands, which are denser and have much more backbone than Rod's knots. Rod also offers other grades which I'm sure are more similar to TGN's knots. Why not email him, let him know what you're looking for and see what he recommends? Rod's a very nice guy.

 

[Phormio]

Rod Neep's "Extra Silvertip" knots are extremely soft, but dense enough not to be floppy. My only experience with TGN's knots are their 2-bands, which are denser and have much more backbone than Rod's knots. Rod also offers other grades which I'm sure are more similar to TGN's knots. Why not email him, let him know what you're looking for and see what he recommends? Rod's a very nice guy.

I may just do that but I was also seeking third party views as to their experience of the knot he uses. I intend to get one, but the question for me is do I get a complete brush or a handle, 'cause damn his work is pretty!

 

[fuzinboston]

Well - Pepsi Challenge concluded. While I love the Neep's design, it does lack strength to build adequate lather versus my TGN Silvertip Grade A and the standard brush in my other Ralph Lauren Safari. The handle itself is very well made and light, but I am tempted to re-knot it.

 

[Wayne1963]

I have a Rodney Neep "Extra Silvertip" Dreadnought, and it is a great brush. If you want a lather with lots of water, it is your brush.

 

[Icebear]

I face lather almost exclusively and have a preference for fan shape. I have a TGN finest that is almost as good as the Semogue SOC 2-band. That said I had 3 more of the same knots that I glued into handles myself to gift brushes for friends. These are similar to the one I have but not exactly the same quality. Not bad but but not as good. I guess at this sub premium price level you will have to accept that there is wider spec range or certain level of variation in between batches of the same knot. Overall from my point of view the TGN knots are a great value for money. No experience with the R. Neep brushes.