Rooney Heritage Emillion 1 Super Badger

[Rufus]

I'd appreciate your opinions on how this brush performs. I was thinking of buying one instead of a Simpson's Emperor 1/2.

[marsos52]

hi, I have one and both my sons have Emillions too, just awesome brushes in everyway, great handle and the brush is soft but has a lot of backbone, so it lathers anything you want.
its hairs are very tight knot so it is a lather hog and I think that's a good thing,

its my favorite but I am a big time Rooney fan.
marc

[Rufus]

I purchased a Rooney Heritage Emillion 1 in mid-November and have used it 10 times since then. I love this brush: it feels very soft and luxurious; some may say that it lacks backbone, but not me; it caresses my face in a most pleasant way. It feels very similar to my BK4 except that because of the shorter loft it doesn't feel as large on my face. The handle is simply gorgeous and feels wonderful in my hand; I lather exclusively on my face and this handle is very well suited to me. I use creams most of the time and the Emillion lathers my Real Shaving Co. cream beautifully and its flow through is perfect. All in all, this is a brush that anyone who is looking for a brush with luxurious face feel should try. I must say that since acquiring this brush, my BK4, Shavemac beehive in finest and New Forest silver tip, I've grown very fond of brushes that feel soft and luxurious; I dare say that in comparison my Chubby 1 and M&F 1/2 in blonde feel like "bricks" of badger on my face.

[bernards66]

Interesting. From Bryan's post I have to conclude that the current Emillions are not that similiar to the original ones, like the one that I have. Either that or they must vary a good deal. As I said, the Emillion that I have is from when they were first offered. It is an extremely dense brush, so much so that only some of the Simpson Chubbys I've seen are even in the same league. The bristle IS very soft on the face but because of the extreme density I find the flow through to be rather poor and the brush retains too much lather in it's core rather than releasing it on to the crown. While the one that I have is a very fine piece of craftsmanship, it's far from optimal in a practical sense, at least in my opinion. I don't use mine that often because it is somewhat of a PITA to use. I agree that the handle is very nicely done; a comfortable and tasteful shape and is very heavy and 'solid' feeling in the hand.
Regards,
Gordon

[Rufus]

Yes, Gordon, that is very interesting. There is absolutely no way that my Emillion1 is anywhere near as dense as my Chubby1 and my M&F 1/2 Blonde, which are by far the densest brushes I own. That is not to say that the Emillion is lacking in some way, it is just that its face-feel is far more satisfying than either of the other two. But, as per usual, YMWV.

[Squire]

Speaking for myself I no longer use the densely packed brushes. I understand the concept that brushes of the highest range should perhaps have more bristle but there can be too much of a good thing.

[Rufus]

Speaking for myself I no longer use the densely packed brushes. I understand the concept that brushes of the highest range should perhaps have more bristle but there can be too much of a good thing.

Hear, hear. I still use mine, but I'm not finding either as satisfying as I once did. I used to shy away from soft, luxurious feeling brushes, but not any more. Nevertheless, I'll keep the Chubby1 and M&F Blonde in my rotation as I do like variety, not to mention, in the latter regard, I'm very partial to blondes especially well put together ones.

[Squire]

Blonde in my rotation as I do like variety, not to mention, in the latter regard, I'm very partial to blondes especially well put together ones.

There's nothing one can add to a complete thought.

[daniel051]

Bryan, might I enquire where you purchased the brush? I've been considering one for a spell, but I've yet to find a merchant who will ship to Europe (and who carries the Heritage line), except for Fendrihan.

Incidentally, the Emillions shown on Vintage Blades' website and on Fendrihan's are different. The former has two-banded hair whilst the latter's is three-banded. Any thoughts?

Kind regards,
Daniel
Geneva

[Rufus]

Daniel, I bought mine from Fendrihan's. There's another online merchant in Toronto which carries the Emillion 1, but I. Don't know if they'll ship to Europe; here's the website http://www.menessentials.ca/

I can't speak to the difference in the badgers other than one might be newer stock.

[bernards66]

Yes. I don't actually 'know', of course, but the photos on those two websites may have been taken at different times and hence, may be of brushes from different periods of production. I think it's pretty obvious from my and Bryan's posts above that the Emillions have varied considerably over the few years that they have been available. For the record, the early production very dense model that I have, and that I referred to above, is three banded.
Regards,
Gordon

[rsp1202]

Gordon, mine was also a 3-band (circa 2008-09), from Vintage Blades. They didn't start offering it in 2-band until a couple years after that, as I recall.

[daniel051]

Indeed, hair quality varies over time. I'm interested in the brush as described by Bryan, as opposed to Gordon in his 2007 review. At present, I own a Chubby 2 in Super, acquired two years ago, and an IoM Duke 3 in Manchurian. The latter has supplanted the former, as I've come to prefer smaller brushes which are not overly dense.

I'm pleased with my two Simpsons brushes, but I'm curious to try those of another high-end maker. The Kent BK4 and the Rooney Emillion 1 in Super have both caught my eye. Price is not a deciding factor, as the latter is not much more expensive than the former (≈$40 more). Perhaps in time I'll purchase both, if they are not so similar as for one to make the other redundant.

I've some questions about Rooney, but I'll leave them for a subsequent post. For the moment, I wanted to share my musings and thank you for the prompt replies.

Kind regards,
Daniel
Geneva

[bernards66]

Daniel, I'm glad that we could be of some help. If you do purchase a new Emillion let us know how it is. The Kent BK4 is an icon of sorts here...and there is a reason for that. It's an excellent all-around brush, certainly 'softer' and more flexible than the Simpsons which you now have.
Regards,
Gordon

[daniel051]

Gordon, I'll most probably purchase the BK4 some day. I saw a wonderful specimen in a shop in Bologna a couple of years ago, when I was living there. Alas, I didn't have the wisdom to buy it, although it was offered to me at half-price, as the old shopkeeper was liquidating his merchandise and anxious to retire. He claimed that it was the best brush on the market, and extolled its softness and flexibility; his appreciation seemed both genuine and well-founded. At the time, my preference ran towards denser, 'scritchier' brushes. When I replied as much, he returned a confused look, as if unable to countenance such a predilection: "The softer the better" he answered with authority.

At any rate, although I'm leaning towards the Emillion, I'm dissuaded by certain rumors. The forums are replete with tales of Chinese manufacture and 'plugs'. I'm not inherently opposed to either, but I don't like to be duped. In a recent post, Wendell made reference to the former, but could not substantiate the charge. Meanwhile, the vendors with whom I have spoken insist that the brushes are manufactured in the United Kingdom according to 'traditional' methods. The inscription on the brush boasts as much, but of course it can hardly be trusted: Simpsons, for instance, marked their brushes as 'made in England' until last year, and while the new stickers have substituted 'Great Britain' for 'England', the claim remains both geographically and politically incorrect. (To Simpsons' credit, the wording is probably meant to reassure patrons who are unfamiliar with the Isle of Man.)

In a word, are the current Rooney-made brushes, although different no doubt from older models, still of the same high calibre and craftsmanship? Or has Rooney been reduced to a mere name?

Kind regards,
Daniel
Geneva

[bernards66]

Daniel, That's a great story about you and the elderly shop keeper! I can picture his befuddled look when you announced you preferred stiffer 'harsher' feeling brushes ( chuckle )! Anyway, about the current Rooney brushes...well, we really don't know for certain. RA Rooney was the oldest of all the surviving English brush making firms, per-dating even Kent. The firm was still in the hands of the founding family as of the 1990s ( and some say that ultimately it still is ), but had grown morbid. Their business methods were very old fashioned and so, had become very difficult to deal with by the standards of today. Lee Sabini became associated with and largely ran Rooney from the early 2000s on. He revived the line, making 'Rooney' brushes available in the US once again. He also bought up a couple of even smaller old brush making firms like Morris & Fortran, partially to get the few skilled workers at these firms. But from the beginning Lee operated via his cell phone and we have not had an actual mailing address for Rooney since their old work room in the East End of London was closed down in the early 2000s. I understand that Lee has more recently stepped away from Rooney to concentrate on his custom ordered M&F brushes and other things although he is said to still be connected in some way to 'Rooney'. So, to my knowledge, we really don't know exactly what is going on these days. I think that members of SMF who have purchased Rooney brushes more recently have been generally satisfied however.
Regards,
Gordon

[rsp1202]

Best not to know how sausages are made . . . but brushes? The Rooney mystery lingers on.

[daniel051]

Indeed. Gordon was kind to summarise the little we do know for certain. It seems that not much has changed in the past four years:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=41404

Frankly, the mystery neither attracts nor repels me, so long as the quality hasn't been compromised. Silence is most probably the norm amongst these old British firms: Simpsons is no doubt an exception.

If I do purchase the brush, I will of course share my impressions with you gentlemen. Thank you again for your replies.

Kind regards,
Daniel
Geneva