Thread: Question about Brushes

Greetings once again

I purchased a very nice Omega silvertip brush yesterday from a gent on this forum, and I'm looking forward to trying it out.
However, it got me wondering about brush quality in practical terms.
While I am a "gear nut", and really appreciate good tools, I wonder if there is any practical difference between a $10 brush and a $100 dollar brush.
If all the brush does is whip up lather and deliver it to your face, why spend the extra money?
I know the better brush will last much longer, and it will probably feel nicer. But are there any other benefits?

Cheers,
Rick

there are functional differences too, but as you can guess the price doesn't always reflect the quality. a better and more expensive brush will typically have
* badger hair
* denser knot (i.e. more hair)
* hair tips not trimmed for shaping the knot
* more rare type of hair (e.g. finest, but that's $200 level, not $100)

these things result in lather being created much quicker, in a lot easier way and the brush contains more of it.

For 20-25 years I only used cheap boar brushes that found in drugstores. Honestly, I didn't realize there was anything better till I joined this forum. Given that each of my cheap brushes only lasted 2-5 years, with more than half of the hairs falling out, I didn't have to be convinced too hard to try something better. I bought a Crabtree and Evelyn Edwin Jagger badger brush and it has made a huge difference. Aside from not constantly losing hairs, I get a much better lather from the badger brush than I ever did from the boar.

There is definitely a point of diminishing returns on the price of the brushes, but a better brush will give you better lather and shaves.

I agree with what the gents have already said. Different brushes have a different feel - different lofts, density, size, brush shape, hair grade, etc. Which combination of qualities works best is a personal choice - which can involve trying many different brushes . If you just want to "get the job done", a good mid-level brush is probably all you'll ever need. If you think a different brush may improve the quality of the experience....well there go....

I prefer a brush with some "backbone" in the bristles. I like "Best" grade more than Silvertip, but prefer the Rooney Finest over all of them. To me, it is worth the $$. Just my experience.

Jordan