TGN Finest F2 - Not What I Expected

[Jarick]

There's not a lot of talk about this knot, but I liked the regular Finest and decided to take a shot and ordered an F2 bulb at 24mm.

The regular Finest knot has short, white tips that are hooked at the end. When dry, it is scratchy, but when wet, it gives the gel feeling. The rest of the hair is mostly black, which gets a bit lighter near the plug. Backbone is very good.

The F2 has longer tips that are tan in color that don't hook at all. It feels a bit scratchy both dry and wet. There is a band of black that is wider than a 3-band but not as wide as the regular Finest. Backbone is a little better than Silvertip, but not as good as the Finest, and it can be a bit floppy.

Really wish I'd snapped some pics this morning (I will get some tonight). I did some image searches and from what I can tell of the few people who had this knot, it looks very similar.

My face is kind of raw from trying to face lather this morning, which hasn't happened since my Tweezerman, so it's disappointing. From what I can tell, it's closer to a Best badger than a Finest.

 

[Mike H]

I had also read that the F2 can be floppy, may be a function of how deep the knot is set. I have both, and honestly, I can not tell the difference, but I know from using well over a dozen TGN finest knots, there can be quite a bit of variability from knot to knot.

 

[bassopotamus]

Bummer. I wonder if a few shaves with it might help? I was kind of disappointed with my finest at first, but I really like it now

 

[tailoredfamcam]

Bummer. I wonder if a few shaves with it might help? I was kind of disappointed with my finest at first, but I really like it now

I set my 28mm at a loft of 50mm and couldn't be happier. I really like the knot and it has a good scrubby feel.

Maybe give it a few test lathers and wash/rinse cycles. I didn't use mine immediately, but I did give it a few lathers.

 

[ajpurdon]

I have both and find the backbone on the F2 significantly stronger than the finest and the F2 also has a softer face feel straight from the box. Mine also has more hooked tips and seems more dense. I suppose, like most knots, it depends on the batch.

 

[TheLegalRazor]

I was similarly disappointed in the F2. Mine was inferior to the Finest in density, backbone and softness. My F2 had some scratch to it, which I've never encountered with the Finest. I also share your assessment of the appearance of the F2 in comparison to the Finest. For me, the Finest remains an exceptional knot.

 

[Jarick]

I did many lathers last night and let it sit in hair conditioner for a while. The tips softened up a bit and it has bloomed a little more, but still no hooking at all and it was kind of irritating on the face this morning. It still feels like a Best badger or thereabouts.

The knot is very well sized for the handle, so I can set it at any loft from 45mm to 52mm or so. It really feels too scratchy at lower lofts so I have it at 52 right now. The density is good, I just wish it either had hooked gel tips or at least the soft tips of Silvertip.

 

[ShaveYourSoul]

I've had mine for a few months now and it is seeming to get softer finally. I don't know how many lathers it has on it, but over 20 for sure. I still like the regular finest better

 

[bosseb]

I got my 26 mm F2 a while ago on a whim as a replacement for a Thäter 26 mm I traded. My other option was a Kent BK12 as I wanted a really big and soft brush. The 26 mm F2 is really big and TGN mentions on the site that is should be fitted into a 28 mm handle. I did exactly that and found out that the TGN stock handle had no adjustment room at all for the loft. So I ended up with a 59-60 mm loft which is even taller than the BK12! This is my largest brush by a wide margin.

I participated in the IOTW thread when it was about the TGN Finest knot ( http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/371885-Item-of-the-Week-11-11-TGN-Finest?p=5609536#post5609536 ). At this time I strictly face lathered (!!) with this enormous monster of a brush. The only problem was to fit the brush on the soap... Much to my surprise the brush grew on me during the week.

This week the brush came up in my rotation again. The first thing I noticed was that it was scratchy again. I had experienced this when I broke it in but the feeling had gone away, I thought. Luckily the feeling disappeared after one shave as I don't care at all for any unpleasantness on my face. The other thing I noticed that the brush is very well suited to bowl lathering. This is by no means unexpected but news to me. In fact the monster excels at bowl lathering.

All in all I must say that this brush still impresses me and still holds a place in my small rotation of brushes I use with pucks.

28 mm Pur Tech, Chief, 25/50 mm Shavemac D01 custom and the F2​

 

[Jarick]

Pictures:

 

[jhadsell1883]

It's great to see such a review onTGN finest. Currently I have 2 WD 24mm silvertips and 1 is a shredder. I have been looking for a replacement and TGN seems to be a good place to look. It sounds like the regular finest is a better face latherer in your opinion?

 

[JasonandMichelle]

Shredder. Hehe. Reminds me of the ninja turtles. I have a TGN premium silver tip, but hadsell's got me sold on the finest. Answer the man.

 

[Jarick]

The regular finest had gel tips which were softer. This one is kind of scratchy. Not as bad as Tweezeman. Whipped Dog is still softest I've felt, more than TGN Silvertip A, but regular Finest had no scratch due to gel tips.

 

[Heespharm]

I highly recommend the super 2 band finest over the f2 and finest.... I have one on my wolf whiskers brush and love it

 

[bosseb]

My F2 is not scratchy at all when it's been properly broken in. Since it is such a large brush (measures 28/60 mm) it needs to be soaked a bit more before loading, thats all! I don't care for scratchy brushes but this one I like.

 

[numerounoo]

I got my 26 mm F2 a while ago on a whim as a replacement for a Thäter 26 mm I traded. My other option was a Kent BK12 as I wanted a really big and soft brush. The 26 mm F2 is really big and TGN mentions on the site that is should be fitted into a 28 mm handle. I did exactly that and found out that the TGN stock handle had no adjustment room at all for the loft. So I ended up with a 59-60 mm loft which is even taller than the BK12! This is my largest brush by a wide margin.

I participated in the IOTW thread when it was about the TGN Finest knot ( http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/371885-Item-of-the-Week-11-11-TGN-Finest?p=5609536#post5609536 ). At this time I strictly face lathered (!!) with this enormous monster of a brush. The only problem was to fit the brush on the soap... Much to my surprise the brush grew on me during the week.

This week the brush came up in my rotation again. The first thing I noticed was that it was scratchy again. I had experienced this when I broke it in but the feeling had gone away, I thought. Luckily the feeling disappeared after one shave as I don't care at all for any unpleasantness on my face. The other thing I noticed that the brush is very well suited to bowl lathering. This is by no means unexpected but news to me. In fact the monster excels at bowl lathering.

All in all I must say that this brush still impresses me and still holds a place in my small rotation of brushes I use with pucks.

28 mm Pur Tech, Chief, 25/50 mm Shavemac D01 custom and the F2​

Which is the softest of the 3 silvertips ? 4 face lathering.

 

[bosseb]

Which is the softest of the 3 silvertips ? 4 face lathering.

This is a difficult question to answer because of the many properties of a brush that make it good to face lather with.

The character of the knot of a 2 band (the Chief), a 3 band (the Shavemac) and a finest (TGN F2) is very different.

By design a 2 band will be better for face lathering, not because of softer tips but because of the springiness of the bristles and the backbone. This is also the case here. The Chief is outstanding at face lathering in the group in that respect because of the knot it has.

However if you are asking which brush has the softest feeling on the face I would have to say it's the TGN. Not because it has the softest tips but because of the character of the knot, which is tall and soft. It's 26/59 mm but measures at 28/61. It has a splendid density to add to the backbone. There's only one small caveat: It is so big that it doesn't fit on the soap or on the face, so I mostly bowl lather with it. The F2 is actually bigger than a Kent BK12!

If you are asking which silvertip has the softest tips I would have to answer that it is the Shavemac. It's hands down the softest of the silvertips (D01!!). It is also by a wide margin the densest of them all. This results in two things: the face feeling is that of 'gel tips' and the fan shape of the loft makes the Shavemac feel bigger on the face than the F2. It's a joy to handle soaps in the bowl with this one but face lathering can be cumbersome because of the size/density of the loft.

I'm really glad that you didn't ask which of all of the four brushes has the softest tips. Then I would have to say it's the Pur Tech. It's also best suited for face lathering because of the way it picks up soap, makes lather and releases it. Unfortunately it doesn't fit very well into my bowl because of the geometry of the handle.

Here's a different view of the line up:

​

 

[numerounoo]

This is a difficult question to answer because of the many properties of a brush that make it good to face lather with.

The character of the knot of a 2 band (the Chief), a 3 band (the Shavemac) and a finest (TGN F2) is very different.

By design a 2 band will be better for face lathering, not because of softer tips but because of the springiness of the bristles and the backbone. This is also the case here. The Chief is outstanding at face lathering in the group in that respect because of the knot it has.

However if you are asking which brush has the softest feeling on the face I would have to say it's the TGN. Not because it has the softest tips but because of the character of the knot, which is tall and soft. It's 26/59 mm but measures at 28/61. It has a splendid density to add to the backbone. There's only one small caveat: It is so big that it doesn't fit on the soap or on the face, so I mostly bowl lather with it. The F2 is actually bigger than a Kent BK12!

If you are asking which silvertip has the softest tips I would have to answer that it is the Shavemac. It's hands down the softest of the silvertips (D01!!). It is also by a wide margin the densest of them all. This results in two things: the face feeling is that of 'gel tips' and the fan shape of the loft makes the Shavemac feel bigger on the face than the F2. It's a joy to handle soaps in the bowl with this one but face lathering can be cumbersome because of the size/density of the loft.

I'm really glad that you didn't ask which of all of the four brushes has the softest tips. Then I would have to say it's the Pur Tech. It's also best suited for face lathering because of the way it picks up soap, makes lather and releases it. Unfortunately it doesn't fit very well into my bowl because of the geometry of the handle.

Here's a different view of the line up:

​

Thank you very much. I didn't ask about the Synthetic because i don't want the FS (Glue Bump) and i am looking at the Cade. I have a HIS original brush which i absolutely hate because it is just terrible for face lathering. It has 0 backbone for face. The cade has been getting very rave reviews !!

Have you tried the Shavemac regular 3 band silvertip ? I have heard that it is even softer than D01 silvertip. I like short lofts because i exclusively face lather from Day 1 of shaving. I currently have WD which is very soft with 0 scritch but has a scrubby feel to my face. I also have a TGN Super Silvertip but i don't like it because it has SCRITCH ! I am looking for a 3 band without the scrub/scritch. i.e. purely soft. I am eyeing Thater, Savile Row, Shavemac Silvertip and maybe the M&F 3 Band Silvertip.

P.S. Great Shot ! Which camera did you use ?

 

[bosseb]

I didn't ask about the Synthetic because i don't want the FS (Glue Bump)
P.S. Great Shot ! Which camera did you use ?

Yes - the glue bump certainly is there and it annoys me too. I have a 26/52 mm FS Pur-Tech incoming...

I have not tested the Shavemac silvertip, but I have read good reviews.

I have however owned and loved a Thäter 4125/2 26/54 mm 3 band. It was the softest and most luxurious brush I have ever used! I traded it for a Aristocrat #16, but I still miss it!

I used to have a Nikon P7000 but nowadays I use a Canon PowerShoot 2600. It's not the camera that makes the pictures! If you click on my pictures you can see what camera it was made with in the metadata under camera information.

Sorry OP for derailing your thread!

 

[numerounoo]

Yes - the glue bump certainly is there and it annoys me too. I have a 26/52 mm FS Pur-Tech incoming...

I have not tested the Shavemac silvertip, but I have read good reviews.

I have however owned and loved a Thäter 4125/2 26/54 mm 3 band. It was the softest and most luxurious brush I have ever used! I traded it for a Aristocrat #16, but I still miss it!

I used to have a Nikon P7000 but nowadays I use a Canon PowerShoot 2600. It's not the camera that makes the pictures! If you click on my pictures you can see what camera it was made with in the metadata under camera information.

Sorry OP for derailing your thread!

Appreciate the prompt response. Thater is the way to go ! Sorry OP !