McNutt
07-07-2006, 11:28 AM
Even though I don't travel much, I really wanted to get a travel brush. This was just for the neat factor. Truefitt & Hill makes a good brush for around $75, but a lot of people told me to go with the Simpson. Lee at Leesrazors sells them for an unadvertised price of $125 (shipping included), which is by far the cheapest I've seen. When the brush arrived I was surprised by the size of it. I thought it would be a little bigger.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/9f002cac.jpg
Don't ask me why Simpson stamps their brushes and puts a cheap sticker on them. My Rooney has a much nicer badge on it that is still very simple. I know the sticker will come off as everybody seems to lose them, but I also feel the stamping will rub off over time. Not reall a big deal, but I just wonder why they do that. Maybe it's some sort of old-school tradition, but I'd like to see them clean that up.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/7a6dd532.jpg
Here you can see that the brush is nicely squeezed into the body of the Major. Unlike a lot of travel brushes the Major has an open end and the brush screws into the case while packed.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/275b6c89.jpg
Twisting the handle pushes the brush out of the case. Once out it can be screwed back into the case on the bottom to give it a handle.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/1aef5a48.jpg
The brush itself is very tiny. It's much bigger than a Wee Scot, but it's still pretty small. I think the knot size is 19mm, but it's extremely dense. It seemed to be just as dense as a Chubby. It also has a short loft, so it doesn't look very intimidating. Here you can see how it's dwarfed by my 24mm SMF II.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/02e0f1c7.jpg
Here is the Major next to my Rooney Large. The Rooney is a pretty dense brush, but the Major is extremely dense.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/1b00b8a6.jpg
With the brush screwed into the base the Major has a pretty beefy handle. I've read that some prefer to use the brush without the case as a handle, but I like the bigger feel with it attached. It's much more comfortable to me than the brush alone.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/99018448.jpg
Since I plan on taking my hard case of QED Fresh Lime with me as a travel soap I thought I'd use it as my test model. Here we are after a few swirls on the soap.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/8bafca0e.jpg
After five seconds of whipping. I don't plan on bringing a bowl when I travel, so travel shaves will be whipped up directly on my face. The bowl just makes it nicer for the photos. Trust me on that. :wink:
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/a79d6923.jpg
After thirty seconds of whipping. No water was added.
I had my doubts that such a small brush could give me the kind of shave I've gotten used to. When I lathered up I simply brushed on the first layer. For the second and third layers I used the brush in a scrubbing motion to whip up the lather hidden within.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/e5b8e900.jpg
After three full passes. I never even had to use the lather that was in the bowl. Surprisingly this little brush held all the lather I needed.
I am very impressed with the Major. The Super bristles have a pretty soft tip, but they are so short and densely packed that they provide a nice scrubbing action. Throw this little guy in your shaving kit and you're ready to hit the road. I lost two hairs on the first shave, but haven't lost any since (four test lathers). There are plenty of good travel brushes out there, but, unlike regular brushes, I didn't want to buy more than one, so I wanted to make sure I got the best. The Major is an incredibly well-built brush that provides one hell of a shave. Even though it's a travel brush, it is such a pleasure to use that it will remain in my rotation and will not be limited to travel. This really could be an everyday brush. It's a little expensive for a travel brush, but considering it's also good enough to make my rotation I think it's well worth the cost. Thanks, Joel, for making me flat broke.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/9f002cac.jpg
Don't ask me why Simpson stamps their brushes and puts a cheap sticker on them. My Rooney has a much nicer badge on it that is still very simple. I know the sticker will come off as everybody seems to lose them, but I also feel the stamping will rub off over time. Not reall a big deal, but I just wonder why they do that. Maybe it's some sort of old-school tradition, but I'd like to see them clean that up.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/7a6dd532.jpg
Here you can see that the brush is nicely squeezed into the body of the Major. Unlike a lot of travel brushes the Major has an open end and the brush screws into the case while packed.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/275b6c89.jpg
Twisting the handle pushes the brush out of the case. Once out it can be screwed back into the case on the bottom to give it a handle.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/1aef5a48.jpg
The brush itself is very tiny. It's much bigger than a Wee Scot, but it's still pretty small. I think the knot size is 19mm, but it's extremely dense. It seemed to be just as dense as a Chubby. It also has a short loft, so it doesn't look very intimidating. Here you can see how it's dwarfed by my 24mm SMF II.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/02e0f1c7.jpg
Here is the Major next to my Rooney Large. The Rooney is a pretty dense brush, but the Major is extremely dense.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/1b00b8a6.jpg
With the brush screwed into the base the Major has a pretty beefy handle. I've read that some prefer to use the brush without the case as a handle, but I like the bigger feel with it attached. It's much more comfortable to me than the brush alone.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/99018448.jpg
Since I plan on taking my hard case of QED Fresh Lime with me as a travel soap I thought I'd use it as my test model. Here we are after a few swirls on the soap.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/8bafca0e.jpg
After five seconds of whipping. I don't plan on bringing a bowl when I travel, so travel shaves will be whipped up directly on my face. The bowl just makes it nicer for the photos. Trust me on that. :wink:
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/a79d6923.jpg
After thirty seconds of whipping. No water was added.
I had my doubts that such a small brush could give me the kind of shave I've gotten used to. When I lathered up I simply brushed on the first layer. For the second and third layers I used the brush in a scrubbing motion to whip up the lather hidden within.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/emcnutt2/e5b8e900.jpg
After three full passes. I never even had to use the lather that was in the bowl. Surprisingly this little brush held all the lather I needed.
I am very impressed with the Major. The Super bristles have a pretty soft tip, but they are so short and densely packed that they provide a nice scrubbing action. Throw this little guy in your shaving kit and you're ready to hit the road. I lost two hairs on the first shave, but haven't lost any since (four test lathers). There are plenty of good travel brushes out there, but, unlike regular brushes, I didn't want to buy more than one, so I wanted to make sure I got the best. The Major is an incredibly well-built brush that provides one hell of a shave. Even though it's a travel brush, it is such a pleasure to use that it will remain in my rotation and will not be limited to travel. This really could be an everyday brush. It's a little expensive for a travel brush, but considering it's also good enough to make my rotation I think it's well worth the cost. Thanks, Joel, for making me flat broke.