Show off your TSR 2016 LE Shavemac brushes

chris.hale said:
I think I'm going to swear off the Castle Forbes for a little while (sob!) and start feeding it Harris, hopefully the hard soap will help to soften it up, if the scritch goes it will be outstanding. Mine does still have a faint badger funk when it's wet, so it's obviously not reached its full potential yet as my other two Shavemacs don't smell of anything now. I've had no further hair loss either, so the loose ones seem to have worked themselves out.

The non-D01 two bands are fantastic. At some point I'm thinking of contacting Bernd about a custom but will be waiting until my D01's been well used to see how the knot develops.

It's all Nishy's fault, I was quite happy with my synthetics, dismissing badgers as over-priced and floppy until I got my first Shavemac. :p
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Definitely hit the hard soaps Chris, leave the CF for the softer brushes, as you say. Mine is due its 8th shave today and I'm going to attempt to create non-disappearing lather with my MWF puck. If it fails Tabac will be at hand. It's definitely softening up, once broken in fully, it will be competing for top spot.

One other point of interest is the actual face feel. The DO1 2 band feels very different to the DO1 3 band. The DO1 2 band is somewhat similar to my Paladin Chief when it comes to face feel (obviously a density attribute). The Manchurian badgers (Simpsons) which I initially thought would mimic the DO1 2 band is once again quite different in face feel. This is all IMO of course.

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Nishy, you are correct. The D01 2band is starting to feel a bit similar to my simpson manchurians but with less density to the chubby's. I think the hair thickness is in the same ballpark. These brushes definitely work better with hard soaps in my opinion. MWF was great this morning! :)
 
Chris, I have an old tub of proraso that plays havoc with my skin that I use to do 2-3 hand lathers when I first get a new brush. It seems to clear the funk completely. I leave it sitting for a few minutes with the lather before rinsing it off. In the past I've used shampoo as well.
 
Gordy, longer dark portion on each D01 2band hair stem; significantly thicker than the 3band. I find the 3bands to have more density and they do get really soft and luxurious over time. The bloom on a 3band will be larger. The D01 2bands will always hold a tighter bloom with strong backbone. In face feel, the 2band will feel scrubbier due to the thicker hair and stronger backbone. I find the 2band more suited for hard soaps while the 3band is pure luxury with creams though either are perfectly fine with both. You need both in your den :)
 
Gordy, Bernds 2-band silvertip (non-D01) is a fantastic knot in my opinion. I had been reading about user experiences on this site and on a few others I frequent and around the time of this LE, I placed an order with him for a brush (28mm/52mm). Let's just say that I've been enjoying it so much that I now have 2 more heading my way set to similar specs with the same hair-grade. These 2band silvertips from Bernd have monopolized my brush rotation! You lucky forum members have been enjoying them since previous LE group buys :)
 
Sameer Sultan said:
Chris, I have an old tub of proraso that plays havoc with my skin that I use to do 2-3 hand lathers when I first get a new brush. It seems to clear the funk completely. I leave it sitting for a few minutes with the lather before rinsing it off. In the past I've used shampoo as well.
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I typically just use the brush and let the smell go on its own, it's just a bit like a wet animal, I don't find it unpleasant enough to try to hasten its departure.
 
Sameer Sultan said:
Gordy, longer dark portion on each D01 2band hair stem; significantly thicker than the 3band. I find the 3bands to have more density and they do get really soft and luxurious over time. The bloom on a 3band will be larger. The D01 2bands will always hold a tighter bloom with strong backbone. In face feel, the 2band will feel scrubbier due to the thicker hair and stronger backbone. I find the 2band more suited for hard soaps while the 3band is pure luxury with creams though either are perfectly fine with both. You need both in your den :)
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How would I like the DO1 3-band given the following? I have a beehive with finest, which is superb in terms of density, backbone and overall face-feel. I have a small 3-band Silvertip, which I find very luxurious with the right amount of density and backbone. I also have the 2015 Xmas LE with 2-band Silvertip; I am very surprised by how much I like this brush in view of its large size (for me), and its density and backbone, both of which surpass that of any of my other 28 badgers, but it is on the cusp of being too dense and having too much backbone for me. A couple of years ago I sold my M&F blonde because of its density and backbone. I've scotched the idea of a DO1 2-band because from what I've read it would be over the top for me in terms of density and backbone.
 
Rufus, I've never owned the finest so won't be able to comment, by all accounts it sounds like a fantastic knot! I'm thinking if you like the 2band silvertip then that is your sweet spot. The 3band may be too dense for your tastes but then there's only one way to truly find out :)

I won't comment on the M&F since I've owned many and now don't have any in my den. The fluctuations in knot characteristics finally made me give up on them. I really enjoyed his earliest work and regret selling those brushes but I have not been overly impressed with any newer offerings.
 
So after a standard 2 band fan in a 173 handle, I guess I'll just have to get a standard 3 band bulb, and that can be the barber handle! There, completely sorted! [emoji15]
 
Gordy said:
Is it unusual not to get any smell with these knots? I was expecting it but there wasn't a whiff of really anything with mine, maybe slightly of new upholstery.
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Nope I had around 7 stinky badgers from Bernd and around 10 with no stench.

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My rule of thumb when giving advice on knots is as follows:

Do you prefer boars or soft badgers?

Boars- preference given to 2 bands and finest

Badgers- 3 band and finest

Do you like scrub?

Yes- 2 bands

No- 3 bands and finest.

Do you mind scritch from the box?
No- 2 or 3 band silvertip
Yes- finest and all DO1 knots

Lather placement, face feel, hair feel, lather retention and flow through are all separate too.

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How are the brushes treating you gents? Mine is still beating up soap and the scritch has reduced largely. Still present though probably needs another 10 uses.

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