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Frank Shaving brushes

I've tried a couple and they are not bad and very good value. I bought a couple (I have two homes) from Star Shaving . I'm certain that they ARE Frank Shaving Brushes although they aren't marked. I thought the "Mixed Badger" was especially practical for the money; only $13.00.

The mix of badger gives it nice backbone and a bit of softness. Scritchy... yeah... a bit, but that doesn't seem to bother me because usually, right after, I scape super-sharp steel across my face! :laugh:

Except for a hair or two, they haven't shed.

I think they make a far nice badger brush than the smallish Tweezerman that I started with.

I sure hope this thread doesn't devolve into a "Simpsons are better" argument.

Simpsons ARE better.... OK? :tongue_sm
 
Search on the forums, there's plenty of history. Bottom line: better than "good enough" and very budget friendly. The "Finest" grade seems the best bet (good backbone, soft tips).

+1. I own 2 of these brushes (both finest) and find them very good, especially given their modest price. Great travel brushes...if they get lost no big deal because of their cost.
 
I actually started with a couple of the Frank's Finest grade brushes and I think they are an excellent value although they have gone up a bit. Mine have lost maybe two or three hairs each in three months time. You have to remember that people generally hate to hear that there is a good brush for that little money when they feel they need to justify spending huge bucks on brand name brushes. Therefore you are going to get all kinds of Franks haters.

I too have several other brushes now ranging from the Franks to a very expensive Plisson, and I like them all, but I can honestly say that the $20 Frank's are better than any sub $45 brush I have ever tried.

I agree with the above comment about the Frank's being a great travel brush. In fact, that is what I use them for now.
 
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I have a Frank Shaving brush in Finest Badger. It is a great brush for the price. It just looks gorgeous. I do have a Simpson Berkeley in pure. It is a much smaller brush, but has a lot of back bone, holds tons of water, and lathers soap better than the FS brush. I thought that everyone here was just on the Simpson bandwagon, but they are much denser than the FS and because of that it does its job better. The FS is still a good brush and IMHO looks better than the Simpson. I did have about 10 hairs fall out of me FS the first couple of uses, but after that I did not lose any. I lost only a couple from the Simpson.
 
My impressions on Frank Shaving brushes are mixed. Own two of them and they couldn't be more different

Finest in Richmond handle with 24mm knot: very firm, plenty of backbone, no shedding, somewhat prickly, a good value brush for those who also enjoy boar brushes, no problems even with the hardest soaps

Finest in fan shape with 21mm knot: Very floppy, lots of shedding (100+ hairs in the first days), unusable for soaps and even with creams not exactly a joy to use

Summing up I must say I don't understand the hype around these brushes as the hair quality seems to be not that great. To me it looks and feels like cheap pure badger that got some chemical treatment and dyeing for creating the impression of a higher grade of hair.

My recommendation to beginners would be to pass this offering. A solid middle class brush like a Rooney 3/1, Simpsons Colonel or Shavemac Finest offers much more pleasure for a little surcharge.
 
Agree 100%. I have a Butterscotch Silvertip and a "Richmond" Large Knot (28mm) Silvertip. Both are excellent quality and hardly shed at all.

IMHO, these are excellent brushes, at any price.


Mine lost 5 or 6 hairs the first few times I used it, and absolutely none since then.
 
My impressions on Frank Shaving brushes are mixed. Own two of them and they couldn't be more different

Finest in Richmond handle with 24mm knot: very firm, plenty of backbone, no shedding, somewhat prickly, a good value brush for those who also enjoy boar brushes, no problems even with the hardest soaps

Finest in fan shape with 21mm knot: Very floppy, lots of shedding (100+ hairs in the first days), unusable for soaps and even with creams not exactly a joy to use

Summing up I must say I don't understand the hype around these brushes as the hair quality seems to be not that great. To me it looks and feels like cheap pure badger that got some chemical treatment and dyeing for creating the impression of a higher grade of hair.

My recommendation to beginners would be to pass this offering. A solid middle class brush like a Rooney 3/1, Simpsons Colonel or Shavemac Finest offers much more pleasure for a little surcharge.

Welcome to B&B!
 
My recommendation to beginners would be to pass this offering. A solid middle class brush like a Rooney 3/1, Simpsons Colonel or Shavemac Finest offers much more pleasure for a little surcharge.

Nothing wrong with this recommendation, but as a beginner myself, I'm glad I bought a FS (best badger, haven't noticed any shedding yet, lathers well, I'd like more backbone) and a Semogue. There was a nervous wait as I read about the shedding some people experienced, but it's turned out to do a perfectly serviceable job.

I prefer this route because I get to try a cheap badger and boar brush for an extended period and get to learn what I like in a brush before making a more serious purchase, which I will do one day. I can read the reviews and chatter about brushes on B&B now and relate it to my experience, whereas before that wasn't possible.

Some beginners may happily spring $$$ for an untested medium- or better-quality badger brush based on someone's recommendation. Others won't. Especially when there are blades, creams, aftershaves, etc. to be purchased.

When I do spring for a Simpson (that's what it's likely to be), I'll appreciate it more having learned my craft on a couple of lesser brushes. And I'll confidently buy one I think I'll like, rather than taking a stab in the dark.

</rant>
 
no shedding issues here, my finest is really just shy of my tgn extra stuffed finest for stiffness which makes it a decent face latherer and i prefer it when bowl lathering, which is not too often these days.

Ian
 
When I do spring for a Simpson (that's what it's likely to be), I'll appreciate it more having learned my craft on a couple of lesser brushes. And I'll confidently buy one I think I'll like, rather than taking a stab in the dark.

</rant>

You have a valid point, but even in the budget segment you have several options.

Personally I would prefer a budget brush with reasonably good hair and a cheesy handle over a FS brush with very nice handles but chemically treated low-end hair.

Guess I am simply no friend of bottled blondies.
 

ouch

Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
Search on the forums, there's plenty of history.

That's an excellent, if unintentional, choice of words.


In fact, I'll use that as my standard response to such questions, when I'm feeling charitable.
 
You have a valid point, but even in the budget segment you have several options.

Personally I would prefer a budget brush with reasonably good hair and a cheesy handle over a FS brush with very nice handles but chemically treated low-end hair.

Guess I am simply no friend of bottled blondies.

I mean no disrespect, but I've never heard of Frank Shaving's brushes being chemically treated. I assume you have evidence of this?
 
I've got a Frank Shaving Finest Badger that's in regular rotation and have found it to be a good performer and an excellent value. Other than losing a few hairs the first couple of shaves, shedding hasn't been an issue. I liked it so well, I bought two more as gifts.
 
I mean no disrespect, but I've never heard of Frank Shaving's brushes being chemically treated. I assume you have evidence of this?

Here are my observations in no special order.

  • The coarseness of the hair makes me quite confident that what FS calls finest is in fact pure badger.

  • The color of the hair does not at all look like pure badger. Instead it mimics the appearance of 2-band brushes (lower part almost black upper part almost white).
  • Individual hairs look quite uniform. Check other brushes closely and you will see much more variance in terms of lightness and color.

  • Out of the box FS finest brushes feel a little softer than pure badger brushes. This softness seems to slowly dissipates over time.
By putting all this bits together I would guess that FS finest hair is dyed and also gets some kind of softening treatment.
 
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