Thread: GOT MY 1st razor!!, so how much should i spend on everything else?

I went with a Vulfix boar brush for about $8 from Classic Shaving on the net. I still use it about once a week and after four years still works great. If you go that route, they also have quality soap that's pretty inexpensive. Erasmic comes to mind and is a favorite of mine. It's available from West Coast Shaving. You don't even need a bowl or mug. Just face lather.

Also, if you want to try out mug lathering, you don't need to buy any specialized or fancy shaving bowl or mug while starting out. You can definitely use a coffee mug/cup as your shaving bowl.

Interesting to hear the positive comments about even inexpensive boar brushes (versus the lowest-end badgers). I have a Kent VS80 boar brush--at least, I assume it's boar--that cost me about $8 at CVS pharmacy in the US. Since brush-talk is so often all about the badgers, I have always felt that I shouldn't like it as much as I do! But it's well broken in to relative softness while still keeping a strong backbone, and it tapers well to help me get the moustache area or other detail work.

My other brush is a high-end silvertip badger, but I rotate them evenly since I like the cheapo boar brush so much.

Originally Posted by deepweeds

My other brush is a high-end silvertip badger, but I rotate them evenly since I like the cheapo boar brush so much.

I actually have the exact same experience. The two brushes I use the most is a silvertip and a CVS $8 boar. While I love the feel of the silvertip on my face (it's like rubbing my face with a kitten) the boar lathers hard soaps much, much better.