I just got my Duke 3 out of the mail box, cleaned it up and am reporting in with first impressions. I have not shaved with it yet, but I wanted to check in. The brush is dense, and notably softer than my other Simpson bests have been (Eagle G3, Colonel X3). It does not have the hint of scritch the others did. My only problem is the backbone, while I dont think most would have a problem with it, its less than I prefer for face lathering. We will have to see if thats an issue like my experience with the older Rooney 3/1 or 1/2. I'll check back in after I give it a couple shaves, some of this could change with a proper evaluation.