I received this brush a few days ago and I've had a chance to lather it up about 5 times and shave with it twice. So far I'm pretty impressed. This is by far more than I expected for the $13.98 that it cost to ship this to my doorstep from China.
My intent was for this to be a travel brush, so I opted for the cheapest version of their 2 band finest offering. I was also drawn to the matte black look of the handle. More on that in a minute.
On the 2 occasions that I've shaved with lather from this brush I've used TOBS Eton cream and Cade soap. This brush, although very dense and with a lot of backbone, seems to have performed better with the cream. However, given that I've only used it twice that may have been a fluke. Nevertheless, as you can see it whipped up a very rich and dense lather... much richer than I'm used to getting with TOBS in my EJ BBB med. I attribute that to the density of the knot, it's REALLY packed tight. When pinching the bottom of the knot it's solid as granite. I'm finding that I'm not a huge fan of the density, imo it's just too dense and I feel like I'm fighting the brush when applying lather to my face.
The tips of the brush are very soft. When dry there is some "scritch", but only if you dig the tips into your face. If it's dry and I do paint strokes I feel no prickliness. When wet and full of lather there is virtually no prickliness with any type of motion. I have never owned a silver tip or a super badger, but I can't see it getting much softer than this without being floppy.
The one drawback about this brush, or the handle to be exact, is that its made from molded plastic. I do like the matte black look and the font choice is nice for the logo. The weight of the handle is substantial and the finish provides a nice grip even when wet, but the only thing that bothers me are the mold lines that were not sanded down, as I've shown in the last pic.
Overall though, if you are looking for a phenomenal travel brush or are a fan of really dense brushes and are looking for a nice 2 band finest, at this price it's a no brainer. They do offer nicer handles for 3 or 4 bucks more as well.
Bloom
My intent was for this to be a travel brush, so I opted for the cheapest version of their 2 band finest offering. I was also drawn to the matte black look of the handle. More on that in a minute.
On the 2 occasions that I've shaved with lather from this brush I've used TOBS Eton cream and Cade soap. This brush, although very dense and with a lot of backbone, seems to have performed better with the cream. However, given that I've only used it twice that may have been a fluke. Nevertheless, as you can see it whipped up a very rich and dense lather... much richer than I'm used to getting with TOBS in my EJ BBB med. I attribute that to the density of the knot, it's REALLY packed tight. When pinching the bottom of the knot it's solid as granite. I'm finding that I'm not a huge fan of the density, imo it's just too dense and I feel like I'm fighting the brush when applying lather to my face.
The tips of the brush are very soft. When dry there is some "scritch", but only if you dig the tips into your face. If it's dry and I do paint strokes I feel no prickliness. When wet and full of lather there is virtually no prickliness with any type of motion. I have never owned a silver tip or a super badger, but I can't see it getting much softer than this without being floppy.
The one drawback about this brush, or the handle to be exact, is that its made from molded plastic. I do like the matte black look and the font choice is nice for the logo. The weight of the handle is substantial and the finish provides a nice grip even when wet, but the only thing that bothers me are the mold lines that were not sanded down, as I've shown in the last pic.
Overall though, if you are looking for a phenomenal travel brush or are a fan of really dense brushes and are looking for a nice 2 band finest, at this price it's a no brainer. They do offer nicer handles for 3 or 4 bucks more as well.
Bloom
