Thread: Benefits from high end badgers?

Hi,

I own a modest priced Shavemac Silver Tip Badger, I think it is 23mm (could be 21mm) but as I purchased it over 2.5 years ago when I purchased my DE I am not 100% sure on the size.

At the time the price was reduced so I think I paid less than $100 US, maybe around $80.

The Shavemac is my first and only brush so I can’t compare it to any other.

I read all these posts about different high end brushes such as the Thater and others and I was wondering if one day I was to buy 1 of these more extravagant badgers how would I be rewarded, if at all?

I mean would I notice a big difference in the way it lathers and would my skin and shave benefit from the more expensive brush and then wish I purchased it years ago?

Just curious.

Thanks.

Shavemac is not a low end brush at all. You got a very nice one there, and as for differences you might notice some more backbone or stiffness in a Thaeter, but in general you won't see a huge difference.

I've wondered about this, too, but started off much cheaper than planetocean, by the sounds of it. Got my first brush and first shaving soap at the local Walgreen's: Van Der Hagen Enterprises, natural boar bristle. Seems to do a good job of creating lather and transferring it to my face, but would a pricey brush transform the shaving experience?

In a previous post, Spendur made the comment; "to me I think sometimes we get overtaken by gagetitis and we wind up in the overkill category." He was referring to a towel warmer but could have easily been talking about a brush. I get caught up in the minutia of these products too and the hype that their manufacturers generate. I've used "High-End Kit" and its cheap sibling, "Low-End Knockoff". The only differences I note is the higher end equipment is made to last.

All things aside though, I really like that towel warmer yohimnbe2 posted...

The only diff you will ever notice in ANY, quality ST badger knot is in the loft setting.
Makes not one Iota of diff, if it is the mythical waterbadger,manchurian badger,A virgin badger or roadkill,Silvertip (from the lower neck area on a prime winter coat) is just badger hair,period,JMO

Yes, there are differences, how big they appear to you is very subjective. To one person the difference between a $5 drugstore brush and a $100 or even $30 badger brush is insignificant and definitely not worth the price, to another it's like the difference between black and white.
Most of the less expensive brushes are shaped by trimming the hairs, the more expensive ones are shaped by arranging the hairs so that the tips remain as soft as possible. Then there is how densely the hairs are packed together, not to mention the thickness of the hairs - that can vary by a factor of 2-3.

The difference between your shavemac and a thater would most likely be in the density of the hairs, may be a bit in the softness of the tips (I have a shavemac and I've seen a couple of thaters and tested one of them). How that translates into your shaving experience nobody but you can determine.

Hmm...high end badgers. What makes them high end do they live in apartment buildings or eat caviar or wear fancy duds?

Oh, you mean brushes.

You pay for the handle and the business end. Forgetting about the handle and assuming they are basic silvertip and the loft and fill are the same I'm not sure about the difference. Maybe more hand crafting, maybe better selection of hair as opposed to generic ready made knots,maybe sourced from different locations. A lot of maybe's there.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Hmm...high end badgers. What makes them high end do they live in apartment buildings or eat caviar or wear fancy duds?

Yes they do and they also drink Champaign cocktails and have scullery maids clean up the mess they leave on the kitchen floor.

Thanks for your replies, by reading the posts so far I will not by rushing out in the near future to purchase a $160 plus brush.

I have expensive badgers and cheap badgers and to be honest for me I like the cheaper ones better. Face lathering I find it easier with a smaller knot and higher loft with less density makes lather quicker, but the shorter loft denser silvertip feels like a cloud on the face. It just depends on what your looking for.

Originally Posted by planetocean

Yes they do and they also drink Champaign cocktails and have scullery maids clean up the mess they leave on the kitchen floor.

Thanks for your replies, by reading the posts so far I will not by rushing out in the near future to purchase a $160 plus brush.

Wait,no hasty decisions,go to the plisson site,ck out the $2800.00 Ivory brush dude,that thing it is said was made from Martian badgers hair,they just have to be better