newbie to shaving brushes, need help please

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hey people so im not a newbie to using de razors and blades but when it comes to shaving brushes i consider myself a newbie tbh i dont really know anything about shvaing brushes and i dont understand anything about knots and anything related to shaving brushes tbh

i know that shaving brushes come in badger hair, boar bristle, horse hair and synthetic

what would you recommend for someone like me?

i did get this cheapo from savers uk the other day called erasmic which was only a few quid and i got a wilkinson sword shaving brush the same day too

this is the erasmic one
and this is the wilkinson sword one

i did get a omega boar bristle brush but being muslim i didnt realise it wasnt permissible to use so i've since thrown it away and yea i regret throwing it away because i couldve given it someone as a PIF instead, i also threw away my good quality kent hair brushes because those were also boar bristle too

i do have a muhle badger hair brush yea its good quality and all but believe it or not i prefered the synthetic brush over it,
as the synthetic just felt better and i dont know if this is the right word but maybe stronger or should i say firmer?

the badger just feels way too soft tbh

im open to the type of brush i get, as long as its either badger or synthetic,
i dont really want a horse hair brush because i got a beard horse hair brush recently and its just way too soft,
so i assume that the shaving brush that comes in horse hair would be way too soft too, or maybe im wrong assuming that? i dont know...

i do like the look of those yaqi shaving brushes tbh, look really nice....

so like i said i dont know what size would be good for me?

also dont understand knots like i said earlier

so yea any help would be appreciate like always

thanks saj :)
 
Interested to hear the opinions of the experienced on this, as with yourself not new to DEs or now straights, but my interaction with various brushes is very limited.

It's the one side of the hardware I haven't focused on, and I've settled into using my old Muhle (very infrequently), PAA Peregrino (this is my favourite), and Razorock Monster.

I get the feeling a lot depends on how you intend to use it (face vs bowl), what you use it with (hard soaps, creams, etc etc) but how the types relate that's where I fall down (and I might be talking rubbish).

I'll be keeping an eye on this one to learn myself.
 
hey people so im not a newbie to using de razors and blades but when it comes to shaving brushes i consider myself a newbie tbh i dont really know anything about shvaing brushes and i dont understand anything about knots and anything related to shaving brushes tbh

i know that shaving brushes come in badger hair, boar bristle, horse hair and synthetic

what would you recommend for someone like me?

i did get this cheapo from savers uk the other day called erasmic which was only a few quid and i got a wilkinson sword shaving brush the same day too

this is the erasmic one
and this is the wilkinson sword one

i did get a omega boar bristle brush but being muslim i didnt realise it wasnt permissible to use so i've since thrown it away and yea i regret throwing it away because i couldve given it someone as a PIF instead, i also threw away my good quality kent hair brushes because those were also boar bristle too

i do have a muhle badger hair brush yea its good quality and all but believe it or not i prefered the synthetic brush over it,
as the synthetic just felt better and i dont know if this is the right word but maybe stronger or should i say firmer?

the badger just feels way too soft tbh

im open to the type of brush i get, as long as its either badger or synthetic,
i dont really want a horse hair brush because i got a beard horse hair brush recently and its just way too soft,
so i assume that the shaving brush that comes in horse hair would be way too soft too, or maybe im wrong assuming that? i dont know...

i do like the look of those yaqi shaving brushes tbh, look really nice....

so like i said i dont know what size would be good for me?

also dont understand knots like i said earlier

so yea any help would be appreciate like always

thanks saj :)

Hi Saj, you’ve raised an interesting question there, so I did a little digging to satisfy my own curiousity.

I found a list of animals that are considered Halal and not Halal.


If you scroll down to the red list, you will see that badger is listed as Haram.

I also found a discussion around whether the fur of a non Halal animal is acceptable to use as apparently there is a Hadith where it’s stated that the fur of any animal other than pig becomes Halal after the tanning process? I think you’d have to speak to your Imam about that to be certain.

Personally I don’t use badger for a couple of reasons, firstly I have serious concerns about the welfare of the badgers that are farmed to provide the hair, there are some quite disturbing videos out there showing the conditions they are kept in and the treatment they are subjected to. I’m sure there are more humane farms out there that have better conditions, but how on earth do you know which farm the hair on your brush came from? Secondly, I’ve occasionally had a mild reaction when using a badger brush in the past, so I stick to synthetic now.

The YaqI brushes are a good place to start, they are fantastic value and great quality. They are cheap enough off aliexpress that you can try a couple of different ones fairly cheaply. Occasionally they seem to be on sale on there for about a fiver, so look out for that,

I also have a couple of Muhle brushes, a black fibre and a silver tip. I prefer the silver tip, it has a little more backbone, but slightly softer tips, it’s a lovely brush.

My favourite brush though has been around the forum a bit, it’s. a Mervyn Cadman shaped tuxedo knot, set in a carbon fibre handle, it suits me perfectly and I love it.

Good luck.
 
Personally I'd not bother with badger knots. I sold all my badger brushes last year and haven't looked back, modern synthetic knots are easier to use and whip up fantastic lathers they're also easier to look after long term.

Here's a few commonly available in the UK synthetic brushes I'd personally recommend that won't break the bank

Phoenix Artisan (The Starcraft brush is one of my favorite brushes):


Simpson Trafalgar T2:


The Yaqi synthetics are decent given how cheap they are so they're a pretty safe bet as well.
 
Animals forbidden as food can be used for other purposes ... except pig. Pig is forbidden. Indeed, talk to your Imam for full guidance on this. A mistake is a mistake. Don't worry about that, but ... that Erasmic brush will also be boar hair. As will the Wilkinson Sword.

Be aware that there is a seller on eBay retailing "white badger" brushes. We've had some discussion on another forum about this any while nobody has actually bought one, the seller is being VERY evasive about the material and most of us veteran brush spotters have pegged it as boar bristle. Watch out for that one.

There are many very good synthetics on the market now, I'd go with one of those ...

Muhle Silvertip Fibre is a good choice. Consider it the "gold standard" if you like. I have loads of synthetic brushes and tend to not use the Muhle, but every time I do I am pleasantly surprised with just how good that fibre (still) is.

Alternatively, look to China (on AliExpress) and bag any one of a plethora of good brushes from Yaqi. You'll find a few Yaqi available on eBay. My favourite is the Dandelion with the cashmere knot, but I also like a good, big tuxedo knot.
 
Animals forbidden as food can be used for other purposes ... except pig. Pig is forbidden. Indeed, talk to your Imam for full guidance on this. A mistake is a mistake. Don't worry about that, but ... that Erasmic brush will also be boar hair. As will the Wilkinson Sword.

Be aware that there is a seller on eBay retailing "white badger" brushes. We've had some discussion on another forum about this any while nobody has actually bought one, the seller is being VERY evasive about the material and most of us veteran brush spotters have pegged it as boar bristle. Watch out for that one.

There are many very good synthetics on the market now, I'd go with one of those ...

Muhle Silvertip Fibre is a good choice. Consider it the "gold standard" if you like. I have loads of synthetic brushes and tend to not use the Muhle, but every time I do I am pleasantly surprised with just how good that fibre (still) is.

Alternatively, look to China (on AliExpress) and bag any one of a plethora of good brushes from Yaqi. You'll find a few Yaqi available on eBay. My favourite is the Dandelion with the cashmere knot, but I also like a good, big tuxedo knot.
I thought the erasmic brush looked like boar too but looking on the description on the website it says synthetic bristle..think I would be a bit dubious about whether that description is correct it certainly doesn’t look like synthetic to me
 
I thought the erasmic brush looked like boar too but looking on the description on the website it says synthetic bristle..think I would be a bit dubious about whether that description is correct it certainly doesn’t look like synthetic to me
Hmmm ... you are right!

I can find plenty of sites that retail it as "pure bristle" and use the self-same picture. I can also find a number of sites citing synthetic ... which use the same picture. Both puzzling and confusing. Maybe Erasmic have moved over to synthetic. Either way, there will be a mountain of old stock out there which places like Savers will be moving along.

The actual picture from Savers says: "Pure Bristle" on the picture. For @saj1985 "pure bristle" is almost always the term used for boar hair.

If in doubt, keep clear.
 
Hmmm ... you are right!

I can find plenty of sites that retail it as "pure bristle" and use the self-same picture. I can also find a number of sites citing synthetic ... which use the same picture. Both puzzling and confusing. Maybe Erasmic have moved over to synthetic. Either way, there will be a mountain of old stock out there which places like Savers will be moving along.

The actual picture from Savers says: "Pure Bristle" on the picture. For @saj1985 "pure bristle" is almost always the term used for boar hair.

If in doubt, keep clear.
Definitely one to be aware of for anyone vegan or anyone that has religious beliefs and you’re spot on with eBay and some of the descriptions of some of the sellers they just don’t have a clue what they are talking about or what they are selling, it’s bad really
 
Hi Saj, you’ve raised an interesting question there, so I did a little digging to satisfy my own curiousity.

I found a list of animals that are considered Halal and not Halal.


If you scroll down to the red list, you will see that badger is listed as Haram.

I also found a discussion around whether the fur of a non Halal animal is acceptable to use as apparently there is a Hadith where it’s stated that the fur of any animal other than pig becomes Halal after the tanning process? I think you’d have to speak to your Imam about that to be certain.

Personally I don’t use badger for a couple of reasons, firstly I have serious concerns about the welfare of the badgers that are farmed to provide the hair, there are some quite disturbing videos out there showing the conditions they are kept in and the treatment they are subjected to. I’m sure there are more humane farms out there that have better conditions, but how on earth do you know which farm the hair on your brush came from? Secondly, I’ve occasionally had a mild reaction when using a badger brush in the past, so I stick to synthetic now.

The YaqI brushes are a good place to start, they are fantastic value and great quality. They are cheap enough off aliexpress that you can try a couple of different ones fairly cheaply. Occasionally they seem to be on sale on there for about a fiver, so look out for that,

I also have a couple of Muhle brushes, a black fibre and a silver tip. I prefer the silver tip, it has a little more backbone, but slightly softer tips, it’s a lovely brush.

My favourite brush though has been around the forum a bit, it’s. a Mervyn Cadman shaped tuxedo knot, set in a carbon fibre handle, it suits me perfectly and I love it.

Good luck.
hey thanks for posting that list, interesting to read that, the person who posted that seems to follow the shafi school of thought,
in a nutshell within traditinal sunni islam theres four main schools of thought all of whom are right they just have difference of opinions on some maatters and subjects/topics

i did ask a scholar i know in regards to using boar hair brushes and he said its impure so we arent allowed to use is at all and tbh i was kinda gutted as i really liked my kent brushes for my beard tbh, ill have to ask him about badger hair shaving brushes now or i might just avoid them all as yea i think im just going to stay away from any animal related shaving brushes, just better and safer option to use synthetic and by the sounds of it im not going to be missing out on much as apparently from what i understand synthetic brushes have come a long way from what they once were

thats interesting never heard of anyone having a reaction to badger hair shaving brushes, what sort of reaction? if you dont mind me asking mate
 
Personally I'd not bother with badger knots. I sold all my badger brushes last year and haven't looked back, modern synthetic knots are easier to use and whip up fantastic lathers they're also easier to look after long term.

Here's a few commonly available in the UK synthetic brushes I'd personally recommend that won't break the bank

Phoenix Artisan (The Starcraft brush is one of my favorite brushes):


Simpson Trafalgar T2:


The Yaqi synthetics are decent given how cheap they are so they're a pretty safe bet as well.
yea ill have a look at those PAA brushes look nice
 
Animals forbidden as food can be used for other purposes ... except pig. Pig is forbidden. Indeed, talk to your Imam for full guidance on this. A mistake is a mistake. Don't worry about that, but ... that Erasmic brush will also be boar hair. As will the Wilkinson Sword.

Be aware that there is a seller on eBay retailing "white badger" brushes. We've had some discussion on another forum about this any while nobody has actually bought one, the seller is being VERY evasive about the material and most of us veteran brush spotters have pegged it as boar bristle. Watch out for that one.

There are many very good synthetics on the market now, I'd go with one of those ...

Muhle Silvertip Fibre is a good choice. Consider it the "gold standard" if you like. I have loads of synthetic brushes and tend to not use the Muhle, but every time I do I am pleasantly surprised with just how good that fibre (still) is.

Alternatively, look to China (on AliExpress) and bag any one of a plethora of good brushes from Yaqi. You'll find a few Yaqi available on eBay. My favourite is the Dandelion with the cashmere knot, but I also like a good, big tuxedo knot.
no way seriously? i read on the back of the erasmic brush it actually said synthetic fibres, so i thought it was a safe buy tbh

in regards to the wilkinson sword it didnt say anything about being boar hair bristle it just said finest bristles or something like that off the top of my head, suirely they should make it clear for the consumer, well thats what i wouldve thought they wouldve done...

looks like ill have to PIF the erasmic and wilkinson sword brushes lol :LOL:
 
I thought the erasmic brush looked like boar too but looking on the description on the website it says synthetic bristle..think I would be a bit dubious about whether that description is correct it certainly doesn’t look like synthetic to me
yea thats why i got it, ive thrown away the packaging but it did specficially say synthetic fibres or something like that off the top of my head
 
Hmmm ... you are right!

I can find plenty of sites that retail it as "pure bristle" and use the self-same picture. I can also find a number of sites citing synthetic ... which use the same picture. Both puzzling and confusing. Maybe Erasmic have moved over to synthetic. Either way, there will be a mountain of old stock out there which places like Savers will be moving along.

The actual picture from Savers says: "Pure Bristle" on the picture. For @saj1985 "pure bristle" is almost always the term used for boar hair.

If in doubt, keep clear.
thanks for the heads up, ill stay away from those that say pure bristle thanks again mate :)
 
Any of the Yaqi brushes I've used have been either good or very good. There are a few synthetic brushes I like just a bit more, but they cost quite a bit extra and the lather is no different.
yea ive been eyeing up some of the brushes on the yaqi store on aliexpress

anyone got the defective shaving brushes? some comments of the reviews ive read have said they cant find any detects with the brushes at all
 
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