Nice collection.I haven't put in the time or money many of you have in brushes. I'm also a newbie who is really just determining his likes and dislikes.
With those qualifiers, here is my very limited collection of badger brushes.
1. SV Manchurian brushes. I have 4 of them.... one purchased used from @SgtCrppls. That one is fully broken in and is spectacular. I'm rotating the other three and they are developing quite nicely, thankfully.
2. Zenith M23 Manchurian with the 506 copper handle. For roughly half the price of the SV brushes, it holds its own.
3. Elite Razor Manchurian with a Bloody Basin Jasper handle. I've only used it a couple times. The knot feels a bit too soft for me, perhaps because the other Manchurians I have have a bit more backbone.
Honorable mention: The Semogue Owner's Club Mistura brushes. They are very inexpensive and readily available so I'm taking the two I own with us for our month long trip. They just edged out any of the fine synths I have.
The badgers:
View attachment 1506047
My Shaving Brush Ranking
- Thread starter SgtCrppls
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Nice collection.
We
Nice collection.
Love those Simpson’s.I use only Simpson and Semogue brushes and have no interest in trying other brands. This is my current line up and I doubt I will add to it any time soon:
View attachment 1506066
Simpson Chubby 2 Synthetic Badger, this is an early Chubby lofted at 54mm compared to the current 50mm Synthetic Bristle. Chubby 1, Chubby 2, TSN M6, Duke 3 Manchurian, Wee Scot Best.
View attachment 1506070Semogue Finest Limited Editions - TSN 2018, 2011, Foro Afeitado 2016, Foro Afeitado 2019.
Finally I have a Simpson Coates Fitzwilliam for when I want a bit of Pure prickle:
View attachment 1506079
I prefer a short lofted scrubby brush around 24mm which has no noticable gel qualities to the knot. The Chubby 2 is a bit large but adds variety, fortunately it is low lofted so the face feel is smaller than the size might suggest. The M6 does not get much love here due to an apparent glue bump but I love it. If I had to pick one brush then the Duke 3 wins
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- #23
Great collection of brushes my friend
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- #24
Love those Simpson’s, have never used Semogue’s but I here they are great brushesI use only Simpson and Semogue brushes and have no interest in trying other brands. This is my current line up and I doubt I will add to it any time soon:
View attachment 1506066
Simpson Chubby 2 Synthetic Badger, this is an early Chubby lofted at 54mm compared to the current 50mm Synthetic Bristle. Chubby 1, Chubby 2, TSN M6, Duke 3 Manchurian, Wee Scot Best.
View attachment 1506070Semogue Finest Limited Editions - TSN 2018, 2011, Foro Afeitado 2016, Foro Afeitado 2019.
Finally I have a Simpson Coates Fitzwilliam for when I want a bit of Pure prickle:
View attachment 1506079
I prefer a short lofted scrubby brush around 24mm which has no noticable gel qualities to the knot. The Chubby 2 is a bit large but adds variety, fortunately it is low lofted so the face feel is smaller than the size might suggest. The M6 does not get much love here due to an apparent glue bump but I love it. If I had to pick one brush then the Duke 3 wins
I have a Blonde Badger from the Pre-Brad Spears Collaborations. It's a great knot. If memory serves, I picked this up around 2012. So after ten years, here is it's current condition:
These were dense knots, with great backbone, and not too scritchy. It's still in rotation.
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- #26
Very nice brush
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- #27
Very glad I was able to be part of your great collection
Thank you!
This thread has me curious about the DG brushes, I will google.
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- #30
The B14 is a great knot, the current B15 is not as great, I would wait until another great knot comes out.
Appreciate that, googling just now and a) here are a -lot- of b-numbers... I guess they are batches.. and... thats it so far. Did you keep yours?
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- #32
Yes, I have 2, a B14 26mm & 24mm. I bought the knotting service and had Rudy Vey install them in handles I had him make.
The ivory handle has the 26mm in it , the 24mm is in the 2022 contributors handle.
Doug
The B14 knot is a great knot. I have a 28mm. The only knot I have liked better is a Varlet.
This is interesting.
On a separate forum, one obviously experienced member of that forum put up an evaluation of nearly all of the Declaration Grooming knots. Commenting on B14, he states: "Truly one of the greatest artisan knots ever produced, if had to choose, would begrudgingly place it behind the clear winner B15." He goes on to state that B15 is the single best knot he has ever encountered. By bringing this up I am merely bringing up an alternate viewpoint. I can express no valid opinion on the rarified air of B14 versus B15. I suspect I would be happy with either one. In my own collection, I have a B11 that I have recently acquired and am still getting used to.
This entire thread is interesting to me. Fundamentally, you are a face latherer and this means that you place a high value on face feel of the brush as you lather--at least that is my interpretation. I am a bowl latherer and have a different set of criteria. One thing I did find surprising is that there is no mention of Paladin brushes in your list.
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- #35
I am not really a Paladin fan, they are good brushes, I think his handles are great in variety, color. The knots are just ok to me.
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- #36
On the difference between the B14 & B15 Dan @Hannah's Dad would be good to ask he has both, I am pretty sure he prefers the B14.
Hannah's Dad
I Can See Better Than Bigfoot.
Indeed I do; but preferences are quite subjective and I’ve only tried a 24mm B15 which lacks density IMHO. Perhaps a bigger knot would be a fairer comparison with my B14’s. One thing is certain - B15 is a more ‘natural’ batch of hair.
So I have been doing this for around 15 years, and have never heard of declaration grooming. Am I just really old? Looking at their pages, they charge $400 at the entry point? Are they that good? Don't get me wrong, I'll buy a Rolex, and be happy with it, but a shaving brush from a -10 year old vendor at over $400? What am I missing?
To me, my B14 Declaration Grooming brush was worth it. It is one of the best brushes I have tried. This stuff is very subjective, though, and it won’t be worth it for everyone. I have a Simpson Duke 3 in Best that I like quite a bit too (~$100 on Amazon right now). I like my B14 brush more, but is it 4X as good to me—not really?
DG’s knotting service is $144, and Scott (DG’s owner) will put a knot in another handle, which can bring the cost down quite a bit. There is quite a bit of variation among DG batches too, which is something to consider.
DG knots are also customized for the handle. Its a true custom brush- they aren't just gluing any knot in your handle. That's probably a good chunk of the price point.
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