Pure Badgers Are Not All Alike

[ackvil]

Today I shaved with the oldest brush I own: a Hoffritz Pure Badger brush. I have no idea who made the brush. I bought it in 1993 during a going out of business sale at the Hoffritz store located in the World Trade Center in New York City. When I got to the Hoffritz store they had sold out of most of their shaving goods. The only other brushes were more expensive than I could afford at the time. For many years this was my daily shaving brush. It is also the smallest brush I own coming in at 19 mm. I don't recall how it felt when I first started using it. However, for as long as I can remember it has been a great one. I guess it is possible to got better with continued use. I have used it more than 7,000 times. I generally prefer larger brushes but this is one little guy who will always be with me.

I have often heard the pure badger brushes tend to be stiff and harsh to the face. When I loaded the brush I realized that this little guy really loaded nicely and produced a great lather. And then when I put the brush to my face it felt wonderful. Not a bit of scritch. I did a four pass face and neck shave and two pass head shave with this little guy.

Just curious: do you have a pure badger brush that is softer than you expected?

 

[Borderboss]

I have often heard the pure badger brushes tend to be stiff and harsh to the face. When I loaded the brush I realized that this little guy really loaded nicely and produced a great lather. And then when I put the brush to my face it felt wonderful. Not a bit of scritch. I did a four pass face and neck shave and two pass head shave with this little guy.

Just curious: do you have a pure badger brush that is softer than you expected?

Hi Jim,

My experience has been that badger brushes are always softer than boar brushes. My first brush was some $10 badger brush from Amazon and it felt great. I have since restored a bunch of vintage brushes with either Silvertip badger or "best" badger knots and they've been outstanding. I know that both of these types rate in the upper range of badger knots, but I've also used one or two NOS vintage brushes that have badger knots in them and they've been great.

On the other hand, I've not found any boar brush that was as soft as any of the badger brushes I have. With that "feature" and the general smell when new, I stay away from boar brushes whenever possible.

I have a couple of synthetic brushes only because I liked the handle. While they're definitely soft, I don't care for the performance of synthetic knots. They don't hold on to the lather as well, and they just feel too "floppy".

 

[Levue]

Just curious: do you have a pure badger brush that is softer than you expected?

I have only 1 pure badger and it's great!
It's a 26mm set at 47mm loft, not very dense by today standards and has just a slightly amount of pleasurable prickly feeling.
But I guess not all pure Badgers are the same, right?

 

[Rudy Vey]

Do not forget one thing:
"Pure Badger" (or in German Reindachs) means nothing else then the hair is from a badger. It was also printed on the highest grade silvertips, so this is not a designation for the pure grade, which is normally considered the lowest grade of badger hair. It is just a poor translation of the fact that the brush is made from badger hair only, and nothing is mixed within the badger hair.

 

[ackvil]

Do not forget one thing:
"Pure Badger" (or in German Reindachs) means nothing else then the hair is from a badger. It was also printed on the highest grade silvertips, so this is not a designation for the pure grade, which is normally considered the lowest grade of badger hair. It is just a poor translation of the fact that the brush is made from badger hair only, and nothing is mixed within the badger hair.

Thanks, Rudy. I always wondered why this little guy was so good. The brush says on it Made in Germany so perhaps that explains it.

 

[SliceOfLife]

Hoffritz way back in the day were simpson, but this one doesn't look simpson to me. Made in Germany makes me think maybe Kingsley.


That said, badger hair designations are basically meaningless across both manufacturers and eras.

Vintage Simpson Best and Kent Pure is often some of the softest badger hair out there.


From my experience, Badger hair with "backbone" historically was not a thing. Brushes either were cheap and got cheap hair and packed it thin so it was prickly but still had no backbone, or they got premium hair and packed it denser, but the hair was so soft it only had backbone in the absolute densest knots (Chubby, a lot of Kents line, etc).

I've got some vintage Simpson Bests that are every bit as dense as their modern equivalents, but are MUCH softer because the only metric of quality for badger hair in the past was softness. These two bands with tips that are manipulated to make them soft weren't a thing 30+ years ago. If you wanted a stiff brush, you got a boar or an ULTRA-high end badger that was a "specialty" brush, like a chubby.

 

[Rudy Vey]

Thanks, Rudy. I always wondered why this little guy was so good. The brush says on it Made in Germany so perhaps that explains it.

Since it says "Germany" and you bought it in 1993, I would believe this was made after the re-unification (3. Oct 1990 official date. Before this, from after the WWII, it would have said "West Germany", and I believe this was from 1949 on.
This brush could have been made by any of the German makers, including Thaeter, Muehle, DaVinci etc (Shavemac started to sell complete brushes 1995, before they only made handles for the other makers). However, since this brush handle is one of Shavemac's typical shapes, the octagonal 173 shape, I believe this handle was made by Shavemac, and the knot and complete assembly either by Thaeter or DaVinci, or another very little known German brand: Victoria

This company was located in Bechhofen, a small town, which is in the middle of the German brush making area. Pretty much all the big names are located quite close. There is a museum in this town:

Pinselmuseum Bechhofen 2019 – Die große Welt der Pinsel & Bürsten

The Pinselmuseum (brush museum) and there is also the only left trade school that teaches the tradition of brush making.

 

[ackvil]

Since it says "Germany" and you bought it in 1993, I would believe this was made after the re-unification (3. Oct 1990 official date. Before this, from after the WWII, it would have said "West Germany", and I believe this was from 1949 on.
This brush could have been made by any of the German makers, including Thaeter, Muehle, DaVinci etc (Shavemac started to sell complete brushes 1995, before they only made handles for the other makers). However, since this brush handle is one of Shavemac's typical shapes, the octagonal 173 shape, I believe this handle was made by Shavemac, and the knot and complete assembly either by Thaeter or DaVinci, or another very little known German brand: Victoria

This company was located in Bechhofen, a small town, which is in the middle of the German brush making area. Pretty much all the big names are located quite close. There is a museum in this town:

Pinselmuseum Bechhofen 2019 – Die große Welt der Pinsel & Bürsten

The Pinselmuseum (brush museum) and there is also the only left trade school that teaches the tradition of brush making.

Great information. Yes, the handle sure looks like a Shavemac. In fact, when I first joined B&B a few thought it was a Rooney. However, since it was made in Germany I did not think that was the case.

Thanks for the information

 

[JoWolf]

Today I shaved with the oldest brush I own: a Hoffritz Pure Badger brush. I have no idea who made the brush. I bought it in 1993 during a going out of business sale at the Hoffritz store located in the World Trade Center in New York City. When I got to the Hoffritz store they had sold out of most of their shaving goods. The only other brushes were more expensive than I could afford at the time. For many years this was my daily shaving brush. It is also the smallest brush I own coming in at 19 mm. I don't recall how it felt when I first started using it. However, for as long as I can remember it has been a great one. I guess it is possible to got better with continued use. I have used it more than 7,000 times. I generally prefer larger brushes but this is one little guy who will always be with me.

View attachment 1080556

I have often heard the pure badger brushes tend to be stiff and harsh to the face. When I loaded the brush I realized that this little guy really loaded nicely and produced a great lather. And then when I put the brush to my face it felt wonderful. Not a bit of scritch. I did a four pass face and neck shave and two pass head shave with this little guy.

Just curious: do you have a pure badger brush that is softer than you expected?

I purchased my Plisson Silvertip in 1986. It‘s softness is luxurious and I do believe it has gotten a little better over the years. I’m waiting for two knots ordered a Manchurian Silvertip and a two band fan knot. I will be surprised if either are softer then the Plisson.

 

[Borderboss]

When I think of badger knot grades, I think of the grades used by TGN because they're the source I use for knots.

High Mountain White- Top of the line, badger hair, very soft tips well packed, strong backbone

Premium Silvertip- Top of the line silvertip, very soft natural tips, well packed, great for face lathering,
Silvertip Grade A - Top of the line soft creamy white natural tips, well packed.
Master Badger - Natural silvertip hair, in smaller sizes & shorter lofts, great for small & travel brushes

Best Badger
Flexible and soft bristles with a bit of stiffness; great for massaging and exfoliation. Blend of dark and light badger hair to create a gray look.

Finest Badger- Creamy white tips that fade to black, sometimes referred to as two band. Fairly soft tips well packed, good with soaps and creams. Available in fan & bulb shape

Pure Badger Coarse dark hair with firm bristles, good for scrubbing and exfoliating, Value knot

 

[SliceOfLife]

Victoria, that's what I meant. Not Kingsley. Reminds me of a Victoria.

 

[Alum of Potash]

A few months back, I ordered a pure badger brush from Shavemac, and upon receipt of the item, I was surprised by how soft it was.

I've only been palm-lathering for over a year, so I don't really need a soft tip, painting the lather on my face after it's built. So pure badger knots work well for this--a Simpson Berkeley in particular. A bit denser and a little bit more prickle than the Shavemac. I also have a J & H (Vie-Long) grey badger that is very soft as well as a Golddachs pure badger that is way softer than other pure badgers I've tried.

So, yeah, there is a bit of variability in what is marked "pure badger."

 

[Jut]

I was really pleasantly suprised at how awesome my Duke 3 in pure badger was for face lathering. Pictured here next to a Persian Jar in best.

Actually pretty soft and enjoyable, but not as stiff as I expected. I was very hesitant to purchase the Duke in pure based on reviews saying how rough it can be on one's face. However, my experience with it has been a great one. I'm so glad I purchased it and look forward to when it comes up in rotation.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

 

[ackvil]

Thanks, guys. I am glad to hear of your experiences.

 

[Space_Cadet]

Too bad there isn't Chubby 2 in Pure, I would of bought one.

 

[BigJ]

Do not forget one thing:
"Pure Badger" (or in German Reindachs) means nothing else then the hair is from a badger. It was also printed on the highest grade silvertips, so this is not a designation for the pure grade, which is normally considered the lowest grade of badger hair. It is just a poor translation of the fact that the brush is made from badger hair only, and nothing is mixed within the badger hair.

Great explanation!! Thanks!

 

[SliceOfLife]

Too bad there isn't Chubby 2 in Pure, I would of bought one.

Get the Eagle in Pure. Similar knot, better handle imho.

 

[steveclarkus]

I purchased the largest most expensive silvertip Vulfix expecting nirvana. It can’t touch my Omega Pro. It will likely turn up on BST in the near future. Love boar dislike badger.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I purchased the largest most expensive silvertip Vulfix expecting nirvana. It can’t touch my Omega Pro. It will likely turn up on BST in the near future. Love boar dislike badger.

What about the Vulfix don't you like as compared with the boars?

I like my boars just fine, too, but also my badgers, my one horse, and perhaps my new synthetic (jury's still out on that one, but it's looking good). All my good brushes are soft. Some are softer than others, but some of my very soft brushes are boars.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

A few months back, I ordered a pure badger brush from Shavemac, and upon receipt of the item, I was surprised by how soft it was.

I'd be interested in more about this brush. Its size, how the knot was set, or anything else (pictures)?

Thanks and happy shaves,

Jim