It is personal preference, but I look at it similar to a good pen; A bic works fine as a pen, but a weighty pen feels better. I like a little weight. A brush that has a larger knot and is full of lather, it tends to be top heavy; the weight keeps it from falling over. That said it's still just personal preference.
most new brushes made today are solid resin or other materials .old school brushes to me are a little cheaper feeling due to lack of weight.a coin or 2 or other medium makes them feel a little more solid ..for lack of a phrase..
After reading this, I picked up up my AOS brush and could tell the difference. I never noticed it before. This is the first vintage brush I have owned. I’m looking up different knots from Amazon and EBay and will be making an order soon.
Are you looking at synthetic, boar or badger? I use a few vendors on Ebay and Etsy, but Maggard's has some great knots as well.
Definitely not going with boar. I am undecided on badger or synthetic. Although I am leaning towards synthetic.
I measured the opening of the Ever Ready handle. It came out to just under 18mm. I see that knots start out at 20mm and go up from there. Already starting out I know I must open it up to at least 20mm. In ones opinion, and I understand it’s a matter of preference, should I stick at 20 or take it to the next size?
When increasing the size for the knot, I use a step drill bit. They can be had for a very reasonable price from Harbor Freight. I personally go to either 22or 24mm, so as to have a greater variety of choices to choose from.
I would say so for more variety. Maggards has a lot to choose from. I think that is where I will be getting it from.
I've had great luck with knots purchased from Shave Forge. I bought boar and synthetics from them off ebay, though they do have their own site. I haven't had any loss issues with the boars in any if my hand mades and the synthetics are dense enough and soft. Really good price points, though a little limited in size choices.
ds cosmetics is my new favorite. https://shavingbrush.aliexpress.com/store/600244?spm=2114.12010612.pcShopHead_6078987.0 They also sell on ebay.
Though the tuxedo style Ever Ready brush in not unusual; your particular brush would have been a higher model and valued more due to the badger knot. In that particular model I've set a 22-24mm knot. It would be appropriate to set a nice badger knot, but I've been known to set beautiful synthetic knots that look amazing as well.