Yaqi 24mm Aqua Badger Brush First Use Review

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Yup. Soft and luxurious silvertip badger equates to no backbone and face lathering with the glue bump. Just how it is. That's why Simpson make their Best and Super knots dense and buried deep. But they still are ideally brushes for painting, not swirling. The thicker bristles of the two band lend themselves better to the role of a scrubbing brush instead of a painting brush.

I too like two bands. I also like Manchurians (which are maybe two band Manchurians whatever that means).

These are 30mm or larger MS silvertips. Huge walls of badger. I use both to face lather and find them to be soft as clouds but with loads of backbone.

I don't own any Zenith silvertips (only boars and Manchurians), but I've read the Zenith silvertips have even more backbone than my copper handled Zenith Manchurian which has he backbone of a transplant.

I don't know that I believe any brush has more backbone than that copper Manchurian, but it's hard to discount an honest opinion from someone who has the brush (especially when I don't).

I'm no expert on anything brush related, but perhaps there's more to it than just the hairs. Density. Depth of the setting. Things I know nothing about. Etc.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[naughtilus]

AFAIK 'Manchurian' is any two-band knot that's treated/bleached for softer tips ('gel tips') while leaving the body of the hair coarse. Something Simpson came up with and their dealer (in TX?) named.

Masseto shaving #1?

 

[Boar Fighter]

I too like two bands. I also like Manchurians (which are maybe two band Manchurians whatever that means).

I don't know that I believe any brush has more backbone than that copper Manchurian, but it's hard to discount an honest opinion from someone who has the brush (especially when I don't).

I'm no expert on anything brush related, but perhaps there's more to it than just the hairs. Density. Depth of the setting. Things I know nothing about. Etc.

Happy shaves,

Jim

MdL has the Zenith Silvertip (of course) too. You can watch it here in action:

He does say it's rigid.

 

[naughtilus]

MdL has the Zenith Silvertip (of course) too. You can watch it here in action:

He does say it's rigid.

505 AK Extra is set deeper, should be better for face lathering. 506 looks like a painter to me.

 

[Billy T.]

Ah Yaqi brushes are so beautiful and great performers. I would get one too if I wasn't customsphobic ( the fear of your country's customs overcharging you for imported goods).

 

[nav]

AFAIK 'Manchurian' is any two-band knot that's treated/bleached for softer tips ('gel tips') while leaving the body of the hair coarse. Something Simpson came up with and their dealer (in TX?) named.

Masseto shaving #1?

From what I've been advised by a brush maker is that the hair is collected from a place called Manchuria, where apparently the climate impacts the badger hair in a positive manner.

I don't notice any difference in practical use though.

 

[naughtilus]

From what I've been advised by a brush maker is that the hair is collected from a place called Manchuria, where apparently the climate impacts the badger hair in a positive manner.

I don't notice any difference in practical use though.

Ah, that's the north-east region. I remember Mark tweeting in April that HMW Manchurian will be no more as the source is drying out and Chinese gov. is clamping down on exports.

 

[HereticHermit]

There is a future fall back if any type of badger hair is barred from export in China.
Listed as 'least concerned' on WWF endangered species list. This is Indian Honey Badger with hair coat that seems a little bit more scrubby and higher resistance to splay. But good luck catching one as this little weasel eats Cobras for breakfast and dinner so those brushes are going to be very exclusive and almost unobtainium to begin with.

 

[naughtilus]

There is a future fall back if any type of badger hair is barred from export in China.
Listed as 'least concerned' on WWF endangered species list. This is Indian Honey Badger with hair coat that seems a little bit more scrubby and higher resistance to splay. But good luck catching one as this little weasel eats Cobras for breakfast and dinner so those brushes are going to be very exclusive and almost unobtainium to begin with. View attachment 982265

Can I have a live one as a pet?

 

[mrdoug]

Can I have a live one as a pet?

Those claws look a bit ferocious... Maybe just paint a face on a badger brush handle? Lol.

 

[naughtilus]

Those claws look a bit ferocious... Maybe just paint a face on a badger brush handle? Lol.

I can rent it as a castration and amputation device.

 

[beg033]

My experience with Yaqi Aqua Silvertip is it's designed as a bowl lathering machine. It creates heaps of lather with a relatively small amount of product, very very quickly. However, after many trials, it's impossible for me to use this brush in face lathering. It's prickly and scratchy as hell to the point of resembling a brand new (not broken in) cheap boar brush. Bowl lathering + painting is great but I was surprised how is this even called a 'silvertip'. I thought silvertip badger was supposed to be the softest grade, in my experience was not the case. In comparison, my Yaqi Two Band Badger is a pillowy soft, and wonderful face latherer.

 

[BRC]

I purchased the same Yaqui brush a year ago. I didn't know anything at the time but just thought silvertip was the best. (I'm really enjoying my boar brush ATM)

The brush builds an impressive lather for me. I typically face lather and reserve my scuttle for special occasions or when I have more time.

I love the brush but it is still a bit prickly for my like even though I do like a good scrub. It is damn soft and luxurious to the touch. Scrubbing it has in spades for me and i think it has plenty of backbone. I haven't experienced any shedding outside of a few early on.

Sometimes I feel like a smaller knot might be the sweet spot for my face and scuttle. My scuttle is tall and kind of narrow. (Always need a good reason for chasing a new brush... )

Still, I love the brush to bits! Congrats!

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

Dear fellow shavers,

Until now, I’ve only used boar hair and synthetic brushes. I have really enjoyed each variety for different reasons (boar for the slightly more abrasive feel on the face while still being soft, synthetic for the absolute ease of getting an great lather), but now I’ve been able to see what the hullabaloo about badger hair brushes is about. Wow, it’s like a whole new way of shaving. The badger brush I used today was the Yaqi 24mm Aqua Badger brush. For reference, here’s the link:
US $40.17 |Yaqi 24mm Aqua Highmountain Silvertip Badger Hair Shaving Brush-in Shaving Brush from Beauty & Health on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

First off, out of the package, you can see immediately that it’s a gorgeous brush.

View attachment 979406 View attachment 979407 View attachment 979408

Love the color, love the design. And the knot is sooooo soft, my God, yet somehow still has a really strong backbone.
So to prep for the shave, I didn’t even bother doing my typical break in process for boar brushes, I just soaked it in dish soapy water for about an hour the day before to get some of the badger funk out of it, because I wanted to see how it performed as close to out of the box as possible.

I used Tabac stick and face lathered, and the lather simply exploded. Hang on, you’ll see how much it exploded. The amount I put on my face was the amount I normally use, which generally is just enough for a 3 pass shave plus touch ups, and just a shade more to wash my face with afterwards. With this brush, however, I got an absolute boatload of larger.

View attachment 979409
After first pass

View attachment 979410
After third pass

View attachment 979411
And still had this leftover after the touch ups.

The bristles were slightly abrasive, which I actually like, but I’m pretty sure they will soften up during the break in process. Despite the slight abrasiveness, which was like a facial exfoliant, the tips were still super soft, and the backbone was still there even when really wet. Honestly it’s hard to describe how different this was to any of the other brushes I’ve used. Incredible, simply incredible. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it too if you’ve also used it, and if you loved it as much as me!

I love your beautiful Yaqi brush! You see, your experience right there, is one of the reasons why I ordered a better brush. I started off my journey with a Chrome handled Pure Badger brush. Pure badger sounds better then it actually is. But the reality is, pure badger is the lowest quality badger brush.

One of the reasons why you are having so much success, is because that is a silver tipped badger brush. With a 24 knott, its contained in a smaller size, and as you can see, the loft is pretty short too. This means, that the brush is going to naturally have a lot of backbone, and according to your review, it does.

What I don't like about my pure badger brush, is that it had no backbone whatsoever, and the hairs are scratchier then they should be for badger hair, and it does a bad job of whipping lather, just can't get much success with it. But silver tipped badger is a leap in the right direction I think.

I ordered a Maseto Avatar 30 knott silver tipped badger brush yesterday, it comes from China, so it will be here next month some time. But its a big boy, so its going to do everything your brush does and more. Cause not only does it have a 30 knott, but its also got a 59 loft, so taller still.

But at the end of the day, I think you made a great purchase. Yaqi makes great brushes from what I understand. And it looks like you are happy with yours. I really enjoyed your hilarious telling, of just how surprised you were, when that brush, upped the anti on the lather whipping action hehe...

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

I too like two bands. I also like Manchurians (which are maybe two band Manchurians whatever that means).

View attachment 981942

These are 30mm or larger MS silvertips. Huge walls of badger. I use both to face lather and find them to be soft as clouds but with loads of backbone.

View attachment 981943

I don't own any Zenith silvertips (only boars and Manchurians), but I've read the Zenith silvertips have even more backbone than my copper handled Zenith Manchurian which has he backbone of a transplant.

View attachment 981944

I don't know that I believe any brush has more backbone than that copper Manchurian, but it's hard to discount an honest opinion from someone who has the brush (especially when I don't).

I'm no expert on anything brush related, but perhaps there's more to it than just the hairs. Density. Depth of the setting. Things I know nothing about. Etc.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Hey Jim!

So I did some research recently, as I wanted to know, what makes these Manchurians brushes so special, do they harvest Manchurians badgers to get said specialized hair? Is the hair granted to the manufacturers by the use of unicorn magic dust?

First, there is no such animal called a Manchurians badger. Manchurians is a term that companies came up with, for the process of taking a high end badger hair, and bleeching it, so that the tips of the brushes, are as white as can possibly be.

So, having said that, I saved myself some money by not buying a Manchurians brush. Because what you are paying more for mostly that is, is in the bleeching process. Fancy handles you will also pay for as well yes of course. But mostly, its higher cost for the extra bleeching process.

Hope I solved that little bit of state of confusion regarding what makes a Manchurians brush. And don't feel bad, I am in a state of confusion wherever I go. Some days, I don't even remember my own name.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Hey Jim!

So I did some research recently, as I wanted to know, what makes these Manchurians brushes so special, do they harvest Manchurians badgers to get said specialized hair? Is the hair granted to the manufacturers by the use of unicorn magic dust?

First, there is no such animal called a Manchurians badger. Manchurians is a term that companies came up with, for the process of taking a high end badger hair, and bleaching it, so that the tips of the brushes, are as white as can possibly be.

So, having said that, I saved myself some money by not buying a Manchurians brush. Because what you are paying more for mostly that is, is in the bleaching process. Fancy handles you will also pay for as well yes of course. But mostly, its higher cost for the extra bleaching process.

Hope I solved that little bit of state of confusion regarding what makes a Manchurians brush. And don't feel bad, I am in a state of confusion wherever I go. Some days, I don't even remember my own name.

Yeah, I've read that, too, but I've read other and contradictory material, too.

Regardless, don't believe everything you read. The people writing stuff on the internet and doing videos on shaving stuff aren't usually any better informed than the average shaving forum member. Some videos and articles are laughable.

I'm not one who thinks that all badger hair is necessarily chemically treated. I'm also not sure that all badger hair is not chemically treated. I'm firmly in the IDK camp.

That being on the table, my Simpson CH3 Manchurian, and my two Zenith Manchurians, and my two Rudy Vey Manchurians are really good brushes with excellent knots.

Simpson's Silvertip Badger is two band. In my opinion it's also a good knot, but it's a not different from the Simpson Manchurian.

Not that anything is certain in the knot world beyond whether you like the brush you acquire, but there is much that's uncertain, unknown, and mysterious.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[muzichead]

Hey Jim!

So I did some research recently, as I wanted to know, what makes these Manchurians brushes so special, do they harvest Manchurians badgers to get said specialized hair? Is the hair granted to the manufacturers by the use of unicorn magic dust?

First, there is no such animal called a Manchurians badger. Manchurians is a term that companies came up with, for the process of taking a high end badger hair, and bleeching it, so that the tips of the brushes, are as white as can possibly be.

So, having said that, I saved myself some money by not buying a Manchurians brush. Because what you are paying more for mostly that is, is in the bleeching process. Fancy handles you will also pay for as well yes of course. But mostly, its higher cost for the extra bleeching process.

Hope I solved that little bit of state of confusion regarding what makes a Manchurians brush. And don't feel bad, I am in a state of confusion wherever I go. Some days, I don't even remember my own name.

I could be wrong here, and if I am, I apologize in advance but my understanding is that a Manchurian knot is from hairs of a badger from the Manchuria region in China and has absolutely no bleaching involved!! I believe a Manchurian knot is as described below being more of a High Mountain White hair... I believe M&F call it a Blonde Badger knot also. I am by no means an expert on this topic but as far as I know there is no bleaching of any kind with these particular knots.

This is from a post from Mark at Simpson on another forum about said subject from 2012...

We searched high & low with our brokers & merchants in the hope of securing some High Mountain White hair originating from the Manchuria region of China.

This search started approx. two years ago and I was made fully aware of the previous supply of Manchurian Badger that Simpson had produced in the past.

Eventually, our most trusted source (and friend) managed to acquire a batch. We baulked at the price initially but sampling got me over the line - we had rediscovered something very special.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

In my last post I missed fixing a mistake I made. Caught it too late to fix it.

I wrote this...

Simpson's Silvertip Badger is two band. In my opinion it's also a good knot, but it's a not different from the Simpson Manchurian.

Instead, it should read this...

Simpson's Silvertip Badger is two band. In my opinion Simpson's Silvertip Badger is a good knot, but it's a lot different knot from the Simpson Manchurian knot.

My apologies.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

In my last post I missed fixing a mistake I made. Caught it too late to fix it.

I wrote this...




Instead, it should read this...

Simpson's Silvertip Badger is two band. In my opinion Simpson's Silvertip Badger is a good knot, but it's a lot different knot from the Simpson Manchurian knot.

My apologies.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Its OK Jim. I make mistakes all the time with my posting. And I think its because I have ADD. Sometimes, I will think what I want to say, but it ends up different in posting, and I am like, what the heck? And so if I catch it right away, I go back and edit it to make sense. Sometimes people missunderstand me as well maybe due to that. But at the end of the day, I always mean well, and wish to have fun on here with you all, share my rabbit hole of a journey money pitt that has become my shaving adventure lol.