SMF

Hey Guys!
I've been thinking about starting to use a shaving brush, I haven't used one before, been using my finger tips all these years lol. I did get one as a gift a few years ago, but I didn't really use it at the time since I was sporting a beard so wasn’t shaving much. My biggest fear is if I’m spending some money on a brush, I don’t want it to be something that is crappy or doesn’t work properly.

I saw some options compared on this site and am leaning towards the Parker Safety Badger Brush.

http://theshaveauthority.com/category/s ... h-reviews/

What do you guys think? Trying to get some input.
Thanks for the help in advance.

Take a look at the various synthetic brushs offered by several vendors. They are a fine alternative to badger and also much cheaper.

You're going to get a myriad of different recommendations to sort through, especially since you haven't used a shaving brush before. Some people will recommend a badger brush, some a boar brush, some a horse hair brush and some a synthetic brush. None will be wrong since it all depends on what you're looking for in a brush a how much you're prepared to spend. Although price is no guarantee of quality or user satisfaction I wouldn't go too cheap. My preferred brushes are badgers, of which I own 32, but I do have 2 boars that I really like. In general, boars are less expensive than badgers, but they do require, in most cases, a goodly breaking in period, which might turn you off them. On the other hand, I've found that my badgers are good to go out of the box. If you're looking for a good all round badger that is suitable for bowl lathering or on-face lathering, shaving creams or shaving soaps I think a Simpson The Colonel 2XL best badger is hard to beat; in the US they sell for about US$65. A less expensive, at US$30, but very competent brush is the Vulfix 404 Grosvenor which is a mix ofbadger and boar. Good luck in your quest.

pausted wrote:Take a look at the various synthetic brushs offered by several vendors. They are a fine alternative to badger and also much cheaper.

+1

After all these years, and owning some of the pricier Shavemac, Thäter and British made silvertips, I can still say that a Mühle Silvertip Fibre® synthetic brush will not disappoint.

B.

Term', I use pretty much all of the common brush types, badger, boar, horse, and synthetic. They all work and work well. They all are different as they perform the same function.

I do have one question that is more of a warning. Fingers can have a certain sort of massaging feel and they don't splay the way brush fibers do. If the potential massage is what you like then maybe a brush isn't for you. But if you do go to a brush be acutely aware that only the end 1/3 of the fibers get used. It's easiest to see this at the start of lathering. Once the lather begins to develop the fibers will splay on their own. But at no time should the brush handle be pressed against the face. You can go onto youtube and watch folks who don't know how to lather display their ignorance of how to use a brush, to see what I mean.

Just stay with a name brand in any of those fibers and you can't go wrong. Synthetics have huge advantages if you think the brush might see abuse. But synthetics are so different in feel from one manufacturer to the next, and in some cases from model to model, and there is no scale to quantify the fibers. Pretty much the best way to get a feel for a brush is to go into the brush section and start to read. At first it might not mean much because you'll have no frame of reference, but get a brush or 2 and it'll start to mean something.

+1 On the Simpson Colonel. It became my go to brush almost immediately for when I am home and have time to savor my shave.

For those times I am a bit rushed and need to shave in the shower I use my trusty Tweezerman. In fact, this topic finally spurred me into action posting about my Tweezerman, along with an picture I took of it.

I am not alone in recommending a Kent BK4 badger brush, an Omega 10048 boar, and one of the inexpensive range of current generation synthetic brushes offered for sale on most if not all of the popular internet shaving websites. $25 to $50 more or less is going to be a general price range for any of those I just mentioned. Kent might cost a bit more.

Rufus wrote:You're going to get a myriad of different recommendations to sort through, especially since you haven't used a shaving brush before. Some people will recommend a badger brush, some a boar brush, some a horse hair brush and some a synthetic brush. None will be wrong since it all depends on what you're looking for in a brush a how much you're prepared to spend. Although price is no guarantee of quality or user satisfaction I wouldn't go too cheap. My preferred brushes are badgers, of which I own 32, but I do have 2 boars that I really like. In general, boars are less expensive than badgers, but they do require, in most cases, a goodly breaking in period, which might turn you off them. On the other hand, I've found that my badgers are good to go out of the box. If you're looking for a good all round badger that is suitable for bowl lathering or on-face lathering, shaving creams or shaving soaps I think a Simpson The Colonel 2XL best badger is hard to beat; in the US they sell for about US$65. A less expensive, at US$30, but very competent brush is the Vulfix 404 Grosvenor which is a mix ofbadger and boar. Good luck in your quest.

In my opinion, Bryan is right. I always recommend a first timer start off with a $10-$15 boar brush. There is a very wide assortment to choose from and they all work, some work extremely well. If you want to expand from there, like some of us and get SBAD that's up to you and your wallet. Keep in mind there is nothing wrong with owning one brush (buzz comes to mind).

From the pic on Amazon that Parker has very long bristles - my guess is that it will be floppy and feel rather mushy. For $65 you have a lot of choice. Maybe a cheap boar is a good place to start. A Simpson Colonel or similar would be as well.

Termada, what have you decided to do?

Termada, I hope you're still around after you last posted a couple of months ago, and maybe you've had time to find yourself a new brush by now. How's it going?