***Disclaimer as always: These thoughts are my own. I am simply here to give my thoughts on the product I bought. I am not being forced, compensated, or held at gunpoint for this review. As these thoughts are my own let me just say "YMMV". What I may like may not be your cup of tea. With that out of the way...onto the review.*** Total Brush Weight:70g Total Brush Height:4.125in Knot Diameter:24mm Knot Height:~54mm When I heard that Stirling was going to be selling a Badger Brush I was all over it like white on rice. Being a Badger guy (There is nothing wrong with Boar, Horse, Synthetic, or Mixed... I just prefer Badger brushes) I sent Rod a PM asking about the brush (details about it and an ETA of when it would be for sale). He answered my questions and I patiently awaited for it to go on the site as the description of the brush hit all the sweet spots that I look for in a brush. Well I finally place my order and 2 days later (This morning) it arrives. Quickly open it up out of the box and have a few impressions right off that bat. Holding it in my hands the handle is very comfortable. White acrylic handle embossed with "Stirling Soap Co" on it and I am liking the looks of it. As well as looks it also has a decent size weight and seems to be of great quality. Start looking at the knot and I am not disappointed however a little worried as the brush seems dense but not as dense as I like (trust me I was wrong on this and another part) and doesn't look like it will splay like I like my brushes too. (Like I said wrong on two parts.) Not a deal breaker at all I just like dense brushes that splay a lot.. not sure what it is that is just my preference. Well enough gawking I decide it is time to put this bad boy to use. Throw it in my bowl of cold water to soak while I take a shower. Hop back out of the shower and go to grab the brush to ring it out and noticed that while soaking in the water the knot decided to take steroids as once that hairs were soaked I noticed just how big and dense the knot was. Yeah I know I made assumptions before I soaked it so my initial impressions about the density (and splay) where wrong. I rung the water out so it was damp and started to lather up some Glacial MITA. A 20 second load on the brush yielded more then enough soap on the brush to start face lather. Apply the brush to my face to start lathering and as soon as I do I feel a soft pillow on my cheek. It felt as if Cherubs had descended from the heavens to lather my face with a cloud. There was minimal scritch yet the brush had plenty of backbone to pick up more then enough lather from a 20 second load. Again what really stood out too me was the super soft gel tips (even softer then my WD Silvertip) of the brush and the massage like feeling the brush gives whilst lathering. The brush retained water so well that none of my 4 passes got dry. Each layer of lather was perfectly hydrated and even though the brush is dense it was not greedy and did not hog all the lather in the knot without giving any too my face. Fast forward to after the shave and I clean it out and ring it dry. Give it a quick brush on my towel and set it upright and go about my day. At this point I don't even care if the brush splays a ton like I normally prefer as the performance is that good to me. Look over at the den a hour or two later and I see this handsome devil was not done getting on my good side. The picture doesn't do it justice but it has splayed beautifully! All in all I am over the moon about this brush and at the price of $30 you owe it to yourself to give it a try. I recommend this brush to anyone in the need of a new brush or even if you don't I think you should consider grabbing one. Once again YMMV! (Also please don't crucify me for not being a horse, synthetic, boar guy ) I will update and add to this thread the more I use it and if you guys have any questions feel free to ask. I don't bite...well not normally. Don't worry I have had my rabies shot.
Mine arrived today and I couldn't wait to try it out. I rarely shave at night, but I lathered up and did a quick one pass shave. This baby is soft and comfortable. All of my other badgers are pure badger and do not compare to this one. No scritch and very comfortable. I'm going to use this brush exclusively for the rest of the month and see how it goes. Thanks for the initial review as it prompted me to buy it.
lollllllllllllll Your rabies shot!!!!!!!! Bro, that brush indeed looks magnifico. Perhaps, perhaps one day I'll be able to gather up enough courage to buy one!!!
I am so glad for those who got the brush and like it as much as I do. I know YMMV plays a big role but it is nice that to know that I can recommend something that isn't a flop and people enjoy it like I do.
I love mine, better than some that cost from $175 to over $300. You can count on Stirling to have the best of everything. I love everything I have purchased from them.
