Simpson - Trafalgar T3 concern

[awk_m4]

Quick update. On the weekend I submitted a question about my brush through the portal on the Simpsons website. This morning I received an email from one of their account managers:

Hi Paul,
Sorry to hear about your shaving brush.
Would you mind sending me some photos?

I just sent the requested photos and I will share the details when they reply.

 

[awk_m4]

After sending the requested photos of my brush to Simpsons customer service I received the following reply:

Hi Paul,

Many thanks for sending them through, I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like that before.
Would you mind sending it back to us so we can try and see/understand what on earth is going on?

We will send you out a replacement.

Just wow!! I'm a Simpsons customer for life!

Here is the final shaving appearance made by Hurricane Simpson:

And it was a fantastic shave!

 

[awk_m4]

It only took seven days for my replacement T3 to arrive from the Isle of Man! Stellar customer service!!!

 

[Phoenixkh]

Congrats, @awk_m4 . Two awesome events in just a few days for you.

 

[awk_m4]

Congrats, @awk_m4 . Two awesome events in just a few days for you.

Thank you!!

Here is the lineup for this morning:

 

[Trollky]

After sending the requested photos of my brush to Simpsons customer service I received the following reply:

Hi Paul,

Many thanks for sending them through, I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like that before.
Would you mind sending it back to us so we can try and see/understand what on earth is going on?

We will send you out a replacement.

Just wow!! I'm a Simpsons customer for life!

Here is the final shaving appearance made by Hurricane Simpson:

And it was a fantastic shave!
View attachment 1601952

Impressive customer service from Simpsons I have to say. Kudos to them.

 

[gpjoe]

I'm surprised that nobody, including Simpson, mentioned that they expressly state that their brushes should not be used to scrub in a circular motion, and that only painting strokes are reccomended.

Here is a screenshot of the "Brush Use & Maintenance" guide, taken directly from the Simpson site (note last paragraph):

 

[awk_m4]

I'm surprised that nobody, including Simpson, mentioned that they expressly state that their brushes should not be used to scrub in a circular motion, and that only painting strokes are recommended.

You're right! If they included the instruction with my original I must have missed it. Instructions were definitely included with my new brush. I just took this picture after shaving with it this morning. A huge difference in feel! It felt fantastic! I'm making a conscious effort to load, lather, and rinse gently.
I have the awesome members of this community to thank for pointing out that my original T3 didn't look right and I really appreciate that!

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I'm surprised that nobody, including Simpson, mentioned that they expressly state that their brushes should not be used to scrub in a circular motion, and that only painting strokes are reccomended.

Here is a screenshot of the "Brush Use & Maintenance" guide, taken directly from the Simpson site (note last paragraph):

View attachment 1606471

I suspect those instructions, and those included on the care leaflets inside the Simpson boxes, are a historic legacy designed to minimise warranty claims, and to encourage common sense brush usage. Mark Watterson, the MD of Simpson has stated, right here on B&B, that rotational brush strokes with light pressure, and without mashing the knot, are quite acceptable. It is excessive pressure that is the problem I think, more than the direction of the brush stroke.

Badger Brush and Circular Motion

I recently (a few minutes before making this post) discovered that one should not use a circular motion when applying lather to the face with a badger brush. Paintbrush motion is apparently what’s called for. What about when lathering soap in a bowl? All of the videos that I see show circular...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[gpjoe]

I suspect those instructions, and those included on the care leaflets inside the Simpson boxes, are a historic legacy designed to minimise warranty claims, and to encourage common sense brush usage. Mark Watterson, the MD of Simpson has stated, right here on B&B, that rotational brush strokes with light pressure, and without mashing the knot, are quite acceptable. It is excessive pressure that is the problem I think, more than the direction of the brush stroke.

Badger Brush and Circular Motion

I recently (a few minutes before making this post) discovered that one should not use a circular motion when applying lather to the face with a badger brush. Paintbrush motion is apparently what’s called for. What about when lathering soap in a bowl? All of the videos that I see show circular...

www.badgerandblade.com

Of course, and I (try to) gently swirl mine.

I tend to agree that the problem is most likely the "mashing" as mentioned by you, and also noted by Simpson.

My T3 is the stiffest of my synthetic brushes and requires quite a heavy hand (a mash) to splay, whereas my Razorock synthetics seem to splay the moment they touch my skin - which is why I don't even attempt to splay my Trafalgar. I just do a gentle scrub and paint.

And I had seen the posts from Mark. I think I went back and read every one. Fascinating stuff, and a great source of info.

 

[awk_m4]

Of course, and I (try to) gently swirl mine.

I tend to agree that the problem is most likely the "mashing" as mentioned by you, and also noted by Simpson.

I completely agree that it's due to me mashing the expletive out of my brush. . Simpson received my brush today and I suspect they will feel the issue was that it was in my hands.

This has been an awesome exercise! That's to the fantastic guys on this forum for educating me on proper brush use. I suspect that without it my Dogwood brush would likely have suffered the same fate.

Knowing what I know now I expect that my new T3 will maintain its shape for years to come.

 

[gpjoe]

I completely agree that it's due to me mashing the expletive out of my brush. . Simpson received my brush today and I suspect they will feel the issue was that it was in my hands.

This has been an awesome exercise! That's to the fantastic guys on this forum for educating me on proper brush use. I suspect that without it my Dogwood brush would likely have suffered the same fate.

Knowing what I know now I expect that my new T3 will maintain its shape for years to come.

Live and learn.

My Trafalgar was so much stiffer and denser than my Plissoft brushes, I was doing the same ham-fisted mashing (at first) but stopped after just a couple of shaves, and upon finding out that it might be detrimental to the brush.

Thankfully, mine survived.

The good thing is, it sounds like Simpson took care of you.

 

[Dominic]

I have noticed a number of pictures of Simpson - Trafalgar T3 brushes showing a “Donut hole” in the center of the knot. Most of those pictures are on the “ What did you use today” threads. I know this can happen when too much pressure is used when splaying the knot, but it seems to show up more on this brush than any other I have seen.

I’m curious if others have found this to more of a problem with this particular brush.

My T3 looks normal. I’m roughest with it when drying it.

 

[GR5233]

Awesome customer service from Simpson’s. I have noticed that the synthetic brushes from Simpson are fairly stiff yet still soft at the same time. Compared to my 3 Simpson synthetics my Stirling feels almost floppy

 

[Benoni]

My T3 knot looks very messy after a year + of frequent usage.. I'm certainly in the 'mashing' category of users, it preps my skin the best that way. Nowadays I've become less focused on keeping everything pristine, they're tools that will be replaced when no longer functional. The quality of the shave gets priority!

 

[spacemonkey42]

A synthetic T3 was likely going to be my next brush. Is this a general problem? We all should be able to splay the knot a bit to work up a lather on our face. I don't think the user should be blamed. @Benoni, what does your brush look like?

 

[Benoni]

A synthetic T3 was likely going to be my next brush. Is this a general problem? We all should be able to splay the knot a bit to work up a lather on our face. I don't think the user should be blamed. @Benoni, what does your brush look like?

This is how my T3 looks 10 minutes after the shave, it does looks much more 'normal' after running a comb through it. Just to be clear, I'm rough on (most of) my brushes as I like strong exfoliation.

 

[Cannon Cocker]

This is how my T3 looks 10 minutes after the shave, it does looks much more 'normal' after running a comb through it. Just to be clear, I'm rough on (most of) my brushes as I like strong exfoliation.

View attachment 1616416

Do your other brushes tend to look this way, or is this pretty much a thing with the T3?