Arno Shaving Brush

[m949]

I'm looking to replace my 5 year old Mühle Liscio synthetic brush with a larger synthetic and have come across Arno Shaving brushes. A quick search on the forum revealed that some of you do own an Arno brush but apart from SOTD posts, which look gorgeous by the way, I haven't found any good info on those brushes nor did I find any reviews on the interwebs.

Could you give me some advice or recommendations on whether Arno brushes are any good, or should I just stick with Yaqi brushes?

I'm looking at the Classic #12 26mm handle with a G5 synthetic knot. The knot would be set by hand in the handle upon ordering, so I presume that the return policy wouldn't be too forgiving.

Any advice and/or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys!



26 mm Arno Classic

 

[ajkel64]

I don’t own one but I wish I did. They look beautiful.

 

[1900_pan]

I have a Arno G5 26 mm. It is a decent brush, but not perfect. I personally wanted a brush with a backbone at a sweet point in between STF and EVO. But the G5 has relatively short fibers, they can only set it at 52mm maximum if I remember correctly. So it ended up with something more like a EVO. If you like good backbones, it would be a great choice. Otherwise better to check something else.

 

[m949]

I have a Arno G5 26 mm. It is a decent brush, but not perfect. I personally wanted a brush with a backbone at a sweet point in between STF and EVO. But the G5 has relatively short fibers, they can only set it at 52mm maximum if I remember correctly. So it ended up with something more like a EVO. If you like good backbones, it would be a great choice. Otherwise better to check something else.

Thank you so much for your kind advice. I do indeed like a bit of backbone. My Mühle Liscio has some backbone and I do enjoy that characteristic in that brush. It's just too small a brush for the amounts of lather it can produce. Hence the quest for a new synthetic.

I placed the order for the Arno brush today and had a lengthy exchange with the vendor. Just like you mentioned there have been some comments from previous buyers that the G5 fibers are relatively short. I have asked the vendor to set it at 55 mm and they agreed to set it to that height.

They have been extremely helpful and patiently answered all the questions I had. I am based in China and ordered the brush directly from their Taobao shop. They will send it out on Saturday. So far the purchasing experience has been very good.

I have asked them to do a good job with the brush as I would like to convey my experience with it on B&B. They agreed to pay special attention to my order.

It seems to me that they are a smaller manufacturer, probably doing some OEM work as well. From what I have read about them, the family business was taken over by younger generation lady a couple of years ago. Their English website is quite informative and their brushes look absolutely gorgeous. Hopefully, they perform well. I will of course report on my experience and maybe we will see more Arno Shaving brushes on the forums in the future.

I paid in total around US$ 42; the handle and knot are ordered separately, but they do also offer ready made brushes; I just didn't like the handles on those. Prices quoted on their website are higher, but I believe those are all badger brushes. With a badger knot the price for this brush would be almost the same as on their international website, i.e. US$ 60 and up.

Here's a picture from their website of the brush I have ordered: Arno Classic 26 mm G5 synthetic knot, Loft 55 mm. Hopefully mine will look just as good.

 

[m949]

The Arno Brush has arrived today. This is a gorgeous brush with a soft feeling knot and as @1900_pan mentioned quite some backbone. I do like that backbone quite a bit. The brush came nicely packed in a black bag and a Brush Drying Towel was also included. I didn't expect that, I think it's a nice touch.
The handle is gorgeous, resting easily in the hand and with beautiful pattern of oaky brown, green and sparkling blue.

I placed the brush besides my Mühle brushes for comparison. Left is the Mühle Purist Silvertip Badger (M-21 mm), in the middle the Arno #12 Classic (26 mm - Loft 55 mm), and on the right the Mühle Liscio Black Fibre, for which the Arno is the replacement. I read somewhere that the Liscio is a 21 mm brush. I don't know what the Lofts on the Mühle brushes are, but they look much lower than 55 mm.

I haven't shaved with the Arno as of yet, but I took the advice of @Ted A and @Jay21 regarding preparing the synth knot and washed the knot with cold water and shampoo, and after a short drying time whipped up a lather which was discarded. The performance is simply amazing. The lather you see here was done with cold water in less than half a minute; soap used was Mühle Grapefruit & Mint.

I'm really looking forward to my shave tomorrow with this brush and I am quite happy with the quality I have seen so far. At around USD 40 for a customized brush I couldn't be more content.

 

[SmoothOperator]

Thanks for the insight! I am looking forward to an update after your first shave with the Arno.

 

[nemo]

At around USD 40 for a customized brush I couldn't be more content.

I'm not sure how you were able to swing that deal. When I looked, just the handles are $40 USD!
Nice knots but not cheap -- hand tied.

 

[m949]

I'm not sure how you were able to swing that deal. When I looked, just the handles are $40 USD!
Nice knots but not cheap -- hand tied.

I ordered from Taobao in China, sent to address in China. The handle was USD 24 and the knot USD 13.75 for a total of USD 37.50. A badger knot would have cost USD 30 and up. I had a longer conversation (chat) with the owner and she mentioned that in China her business doesn't run as well as overseas, because DE Shaving is not much established, although there are quite a few manufacturers such as Yaqi and DSC who produce shaving equipment.

My guess is that the price discrepancy is due to several factors; lower demand and hence a smaller market in the Chinese DE shaving sphere requiring to reduce prices for the domestic market to be able to serve that small niche, competition with larger established manufacturers such as Yaqi which offer their brushes at similar price points in the domestic market, higher shipping and Sales & Marketing cost in overseas markets, and possibly a differentiating positioning in overseas markets from other competitors, i.e. price can be a differentiating factor.

I can't compare the Arno brush with Yaqi or DSC brushes, as I don't own any of those brushes...yet. But I'm genuinely impressed by this brush and would have paid USD 60 or USD 70 for it as well. I think that the quality is well worth the higher price asked in the US and Europe. I guess I'm just lucky living close to the source. @nemo btw, that's why I predominantly purchased Japanese Fountain pens as they are cheaper here than in Europe (a 21K nib Sailor pen would cost maybe USD150 as opposed to USD 350 in the US), whereas a Pelikan pen would cost me more than double here than in Europe.

 

[1900_pan]

Left is the Mühle Purist Silvertip Badger (M-21 mm), in the middle the Arno #12 Classic (26 mm - Loft 55 mm),

Nice brush. Just out of curiosity, did they really manage to set the loft at 55 mm? In my case I asked for 55, but they were only able to set it at 52-53 mm. At this height, I can already feel a bit gluebump. How is it for your knot? I'm wondering if they have improved the knot...

 

[m949]

Nice brush. Just out of curiosity, did they really manage to set the loft at 55 mm? In my case I asked for 55, but they were only able to set it at 52-53 mm. At this height, I can already feel a bit gluebump. How is it for your knot? I'm wondering if they have improved the knot...

They indeed set the loft at 55 mm. I somehow clumsily measured it yesterday with a small ruler. From the top of the handle to the highest point of the bristles it measured exactly 55 mm. I had to add another ruler at the top to get an exact reading. Unfortunately I couldn't get a clear enough picture to post. I'm not sure why your brush was only available at 52-53 mm, but I could take some guesses.

They possibly have improved the knot since the time of your order; they do mention on their product page on Taobao that they have revised the G5 knot in March of 2021. I'm not sure whether they have made a revision since then.

Another possibility I could think of, is that their handles are pre- drilled at a certain depth for their badger knots and that they weren't ready to re-drill a handle for that height for an international order. If something weren't right with the product and you would've returned it, the shipping and other cost would've been too high. So, they might have played it safe to ensure that the product is most likely to your satisfaction. They also may not have been confident enough in their ability to set the knot securely at that height at the time you've ordered yours.

In my case they have come back to me after I placed the order and asked me to confirm a later delivery date, because they would need to drill a new handle to the required depth for the 55 mm loft. Also according to their Taobao site, this was the first order of this handle in China; the knot has been ordered 12 times.

The specifications for the G5 on their product page are: Size: 26 - 30 mm and Height: 62 (+/- 0.5) mm

 

[m949]

Short Exposé about the Arno Shaving Brush Classic #12 with G5 synthetic knot.

As I have mentioned above, I was looking for a replacement synthetic brush for my old Mühle Liscio Black Fibre brush. After about 5 years of use, it was time for new addition in the brush department. When I started out I used the Liscio exclusively and mostly lathered on a Mühle hard puck which was fine. I purchased a scuttle last year though and some of my soaps do produce large amounts of lather and although the Liscio works great it tended to be covered from top to base in lather. So the decision to get a larger synthetic brush was quickly made.

I've been looking around for some time and actually had some Yaqi brushes in mind when I came across Arno. I liked their handles a bit more than the Yaqi's and their knots seemed also quite good. A quick search on B&B revealed a few Arno brushes made it in the dens of fellow B&B brothers, but more detailed accounts about them were scarce. I nevertheless took the plunge and ordered the brush you see above.

I have read on the product comments for this knot that it tends to be on the shorter side and asked the vendor to set the loft at 55m, which they readily did.

The brush arrived in a round cardboard box, and a small black pouch. A "brush drying towel" was included in the delivery at no extra charge.

Before its first shave I shampooed the brush, let it dry, and then lathered with my Mühle soap. I discarded that lather, rinsed the brush and let it dry for a day. Right from this first exposure to shaving soap the brush lathered exceptionally good, and this performance would continue for the actual shave. I don't soak this brush, I just wet it and shake excess water out, then I lather.

The bristles are incredibly soft with very minimal but comfortable scratch. The knot is remarkably dense and has a strong backbone, but not as much as to be overly stiff at the ends. This is a 26 mm knot and just the right size, not too big and not too small. Just perfect to hold it snuggly. The G5 knots are available in 20 mm, 22 mm, 24 mm, 26mm, 28 mm and 30 mm.

This handle requires a 26 mm knot, although the vendor told me that bigger sizes can be done as well. This would probably require them to drill the specified hole in the handle. I'm not sure whether this option is available for international orders, but it would have been possible for me to get a 28 mm knot with a 55mm loft if I would have been so inclined.
Arno offers a variety of handles in different shapes and designs and the brushes can be had with various badger qualities or this synthetic knot.

The handle is relatively light, but again not too light. It has a pleasant shape which feels good in the hand and allows for good control when applying soap to the face. The middle ring on the brush is useful in two ways: it stops lather from covering the entire handle, and it serves as a kind of a stopper to hang the brush on the rim of my scuttle preventing the brush to be immersed in its entirety in the bowl; this worked very well on my scuttle. The handle resin is absolutely beautiful. It is predominantly a coffee brown with green and blue inclusions which are in a way translucent. A few dark blue sparkles can be seen within the handle. It's highly polished and very reflective. The brush is easy to clean, and dries very quickly, especially if excess water is removed using a towel.

As you can tell I am very pleased with the performance and the look of this brush and I believe that pricing is quite attractive. It's a lot of brush for the buck.

Arno Shaving Brush is a relatively new family-run company owned and managed by a very knowledgeable and professional business woman. They do sell most of their brushes in Europe and the US. In China they have less business because according to the owner the traditional wet shaving market is not as developed here than overseas.

I believe that they deserve a wider exposure to the shaving community given their exceptional products and I hope that some of you may consider an Arno Brush for your next lather monster, maybe as an alternative to a Yaqi or DSC brush. Yaqi's there are many, Arno's just a few. You may just be surprised and positively delighted to reach for this brush in the morning.

 

[1900_pan]

They indeed set the loft at 55 mm. I somehow clumsily measured it yesterday with a small ruler. From the top of the handle to the highest point of the bristles it measured exactly 55 mm. I had to add another ruler at the top to get an exact reading. Unfortunately I couldn't get a clear enough picture to post. I'm not sure why your brush was only available at 52-53 mm, but I could take some guesses.

They possibly have improved the knot since the time of your order; they do mention on their product page on Taobao that they have revised the G5 knot in March of 2021. I'm not sure whether they have made a revision since then.

Another possibility I could think of, is that their handles are pre- drilled at a certain depth for their badger knots and that they weren't ready to re-drill a handle for that height for an international order. If something weren't right with the product and you would've returned it, the shipping and other cost would've been too high. So, they might have played it safe to ensure that the product is most likely to your satisfaction. They also may not have been confident enough in their ability to set the knot securely at that height at the time you've ordered yours.

In my case they have come back to me after I placed the order and asked me to confirm a later delivery date, because they would need to drill a new handle to the required depth for the 55 mm loft. Also according to their Taobao site, this was the first order of this handle in China; the knot has been ordered 12 times.

The specifications for the G5 on their product page are: Size: 26 - 30 mm and Height: 62 (+/- 0.5) mm

Surprised me that they were able to set it at 55 for you. Considering the glue bump already visible with 52 setting in my knot, I really doubt if the "effective" length of the knot/fibre can be that long. How is it in your case? Is the glue bump obvious?

 

[SmoothOperator]

That is a beautiful brush. Thanks for the insights and please have fun with your new brush!

 

[m949]

Surprised me that they were able to set it at 55 for you. Considering the glue bump already visible with 52 setting in my knot, I really doubt if the "effective" length of the knot/fibre can be that long. How is it in your case? Is the glue bump obvious?

I tried whether I can feel the glue bump by placing my index finger straight into the knot. It's packed so densely that I can only go less than a third down the knot. I also looked whether the bump would be visible when looking straight down with my index finger moving some of the bristles out of the way...still no visible bump.

I tried the same thing with my Mühle Silvertip badger for comparison. There I could reach down a bit more, but of course also no visible glue bump. I have to add though that the Mühle knot can be screwed out of the handle and the bristles are set in an evenly distributed material (not sure what kind of glue or epoxy Mühle uses) which is held in a black, round plastic housing with threads; the handle is also threaded in the hole.

With the Arno I also don't feel any bump when bowl lathering or painting my face. I have to add that I exert some light pressure when lathering, but I don't push the bristles so much as to splay the brush. I only paint my face with almost no pressure at all.

I am surprised that yours has this problem, even at 52mm the G5 should be so dense that you shouldn't be able to see or feel the glue bump. Could you maybe upload some pictures of your brush? I would then try to recreate the same with mine. I will also try to get a clear picture of mine with a ruler beside the loft. Last time I only had a very small ruler with small numbering; the values weren't clearly visible on pictures.