Simpson Brush - Totally Unimpressed!

[danxaz]

My first brush was a cheapo Omega $10 Boar brush. Model number 10049. I used it for about a year. Other than that it was huge, and not particularly attractive, it was a great brush. It shed a few hairs in the first couple of shaves and none after that. A few months ago I decided to step up to a "nice" brush. I went for a Simpson Special in Best Badger. Kind of the bottom of the line for Simpson, but so was my Omega. I thought that the difference between my boar brush and Simpson's Best Badger was going to be huge. Frankly, I barely noticed. It seems harder to lather pretty much everything I've tried. I seem to need more product that the boar brush. The worst thing though is this brush sheds like a dog in the summer. It shed more hairs than my boar brush at first then it slowed down. A couple of months in now and this things sheds several hairs a shave. At this rate, I'll have a nub by the end of the year.

What a superb waste of money.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Greg1911]

You got a bad one. Contact Simpsons and let them make it right.

 

[danxaz]

Assumed I was out of luck. I'll try that and see what happens.

 

[u2u]

Why not try the seller for a refund or credit? Shedding aside, sounds like you were very disappointed overall. Better to put your dollars into something you will like if you can.

 

[alohakid]

I'm not the biggest Simpson fan , I think they're over-rated and that Thaters are much better badger brushes , but my Special in pure is a great , scritchy , scrubby , face lathering ,exfoliating brush for me and a bargain at the price .

 

[awa54]

I had the same experience with shedding in both the "Best" and "Pure" Specials... I got a replacement for the one in Best and now it's one of my go-to brushes for it's feel and performance, the Pure got re-knotted with a TGN 20mm fan in Two band (that's also in the regular rotation). Basic Omega boars are a lot of brush for the dollar, but in my shaving kit the Simpson knot outperforms by a wide margin.

As far as getting the replacement for my shedder, I just contacted the vendor I purchased it from and after confirming that it was indeed continuing to shed they sent me a replacement, which has only lost a few hairs in total.

Good luck!

 

[Jerry-built Hustler]

I loved the old Simpsons, before the Vulfix takeover. My favorite of all of them was a CH2 Super two-band that I still use regularly. Thinking I would get a back-up, I bought the same model made by Vulfix. It's just not the same, and not nearly as good. I have never been tempted to try another one after that. Fortunately, I have enough other old Simpsons to last me perhaps until I can't shave any more. As for buying anything new, it's Plisson or nothing for me now.

 

[Foyle]

I've got a Duke 2 from the Vulfix era that's pretty darn nice. I don't use it much since my wife appropriated it for her needs.

 

[Jerry-built Hustler]

I've got a Duke 2 from the Vulfix era that's pretty darn nice. I don't use it much since my wife appropriated it for her needs.

Just so I'm clear, the Vulfix era is the current era, right? Another company hasn't taken over the brand, have they?

 

[Foyle]

Yes, the Vulfix era is the current era. The Somerset era is from when Simpson was family owned before being sold to Vulfix.

 

[Chadao]

+1 Agreed on the Special Pure Badger. I liked mine so much I bought another, one to travel with. I wonder if with the small know and short loft, the Special might actually be better in Pure than Best. I may buy a third Special later this year to find out.

I'm not the biggest Simpson fan , I think they're over-rated and that Thaters are much better badger brushes , but my Special in pure is a great , scritchy , scrubby , face lathering ,exfoliating brush for me and a bargain at the price .

 

[awa54]

+1 Agreed on the Special Pure Badger. I liked mine so much I bought another, one to travel with. I wonder if with the small know and short loft, the Special might actually be better in Pure than Best. I may buy a third Special later this year to find out.

I could never warm up to the intense scritch of the Special in "pure", however the smallest "black badger" knot from Whipped Dog is a similar size but with the scritch pulled back just a fraction... that brush I like quite a bit.

As far as the Special in "Best" goes I rate that as my second favorite brush of all time (so far).

 

[Rufus]

You got a bad one. Contact Simpsons and let them make it right.

Let us know what happens. I'm sorry to hear that you've had a bad experience, but even with Six Sigma there will be errors. I've been very satisfied with all my Simpson brushes: Colonel, Wee Scot, Tulip 2 and QE II Jubilee; and I have a Pre-Vulfix Duke 2 in the mail. If you're still interested in a badger brush you should consider a New Forest; high quality, great performance and very attractive prices. I have a New Forest Tubby 2 and it is an outstanding brush it,s so good that I've ordered a 2213.

 

[danxaz]

I sent an email to Simpsons and I woke up this morning to a response. That was fast. Basically, they told me that it was normal in the first few months to lose hairs. They said to try combing it several times to try and remove as many loose hairs as possible. They said to contact them again in 2-3 months to see if it has improved. If not, they said to send it back for inspection and if is found to be defective, they will replace it. Not sure what would happen, if it wasn't found to be defective. So after a few months and with shipping both ways, I MIGHT eventually get a new brush that would end up costing me double what I originally paid.

Unfortunately, I got a response later from them. They had seen my original post here and weren't too happy about it. Understandable I guess. I suppose I should have contacted them first to see if they could fix the problem before I posted here. But hey, that's what this forum is for right? To share opinions and experiences. I will not apologize for sharing on a forum that is meant for that. I'm not sure if I messed up my chances of getting a replacement. Time will tell, I guess.

In response to sending it to the vendor I purchased from, I didn't think that was fair. I originally bought it from West Coast Shaving. They are so great over there. It is my favorite vendor by far (sorry other vendors, I love you too). They have consistently provided great service and products. Since it had been a couple of months since I bought the brush, I didn't think it was fair to lay it on them. I didn't want them to eat the loss. It's not their fault. If Simpson doesn't fix it, oh well, I'll eat it. It's like buying fruit, you have to take a chance sometimes. I was hoping, though, that my odds would have been better in this case. After all, I bought a "famous" Simpsons brush.

 

[Foyle]

Sorry to hear about your experience. It's always in the best interest of any manufacturer to make sure that customers are happy with their products. The proper response to a customer who thinks that they've wasted their money on a product, and is publicly vocal about it, is to tell the customer that they would like the chance to try to make the customer happy. The only thing Simpson has to gain by alienating an already irritated customer is the guarantee that they've forever lost that customer and have possibly deterred others from buying their products.

Simpson's can't afford to take public criticism of their product personally. They need to look at those criticisms as a vehicle for doing better and improving customer service. It's not really your job to be professional about being a brush owner, but it is absolutely Simpson's job to be professional about being a brush maker.

 

[dushea]

What'd they say?

 

[Acmemfg]

Unfortunately you were spoiled by the Omega Pro 49. Cost notwithstanding that is one of the BEST brushes in shavedom. A tough act to follow for any brush

 

[Jerry-built Hustler]

They had seen my original post here and weren't too happy about it.

Haha! You mean they actually read what we have to say? Good. Hey Vulfix, you lost me when I spent a few hundred dollars only to find out the Simpsons you make aren't as good as what David Carter's company made. Suck it up and deal with it.

 

[danxaz]

What'd they say?

They were particularly upset about my "superb waste of money" remark. To be fair, they weren't rude or anything. They just quoted my post and firmly declared that they would have rather I went to them first.

 

[danxaz]

If they are right and the brush breaks in properly after a few months, I'll be sure to post about my new respect for their product. I feel sad that I sold my beloved Omega brush. I'm sure it is daily bringing a smile to the new owners face as it did mine.