As the holiday season nears, friends and relatives are starting to ask what I might appreciate in my stocking. The thought occurs to me, in framing my response, that I might like to try a boar brush of a better general reputation than the VDH (this is not to disparage the Van Der Hagan, merely to consider a step up with less shedding). I am very pleased with the general size and loft of the Simpson 56, which works well in my relatively small hands, and so would like to point them to brushes that are of the same general size and fan shaped loft. For reference, WCS lists the dimensions as: Total Height: 90mm Bristle Loft: 41mm Knot Dia: 19mm . . . but many users online report the diameter is perhaps up to 1mm larger than this. Anyone know which boar brushes - that aren't custom jobs - closely match these specs?
this one is the closest I've found http://www.italianbarber.com/omega-10275-badger-imitation-100-boar-bristle-shaving-brush Most boars seem to have bigger knot diameters. The 11047 has a similar knot, but a shorter handle http://www.westcoastshaving.com/Omega-11047-Banded-Boar-Shaving-Brush_p_797.html
I think it's pretty tough to go below much below 50mm with a boar but honestly, I've never messed around much with anything much below a 24mm knot. I have a 22mm travel brush I made that I set at 44mm that works well. You can make lather like crazy with the shorter lofts but they just don't hold a lot. If you don't mind going back to the puck between passes, it'll work fine. JMO. I done just about every stupid thing you can do with a boar, including taking the 10049 down to 45mm.
Lots of boar brushes are still offered in that 19-20mm knots range, and traditionally/historically that seemed to be the most popular size. Omega has several current brushes with knots in that range, and being Omega they have them in quite a variety of handle shapes and sizes, as well as loft heights. Semogues offerings are more limited but they've a few too. TGN also has some excellent boar knots in stock at the moment. I agree with Steve as well - a bit more loft is usually a good thing in a boar versus a badger knot of the same width. Omegas - 10015 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/om103co.html 10075 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-10075--five-color-combina10075.html 10077 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-10077.html 10099 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/om106coco.html 10275 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-10275.html 11130 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-11130--modern-design--avail-in-two-c11130.html 13522 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/om13ebbabo.html 13564 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-13564.html 20086 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-20086.html 21047 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-21047.html 40033 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-40033.html 50068 - http://www.shoeboxshaveshop.com/omega-50068-quotbambin50068.html That's just a quick sampling as well. Omega offers lots of variety in their boar brushes in particular. The 40033 is a bit wider at 23mm, and some of the travel style brushes do have handles shorter than your Simpson. but there you are. Also, the 21047 is mixed badger/boar. Semogue - 1438, 1470 and 1520 are all the same size and close to the size you're looking for. The 1470 is a personal favourite because it's a nice plain brush, but a simple internet search will give several retailers and pics as well. TGN - 18mm - http://thegoldennib.com/wet-shaving/badger-hair-knots/boar-knots/18mm-boar.html These are newer stock and I haven't tried them personally.\ 20mm - http://thegoldennib.com/wet-shaving/badger-hair-knots/boar-knots/20mm-boar.html Ditto re: the newer stock - haven't tried these ones either 20mm - http://thegoldennib.com/wet-shaving/badger-hair-knots/boar-knots/20mm-boar-775.html These are the 20mm versions of what he's had for the past 8 months or so. I've used the 24mm version in a few handles and it's an outstanding knot.
You buy the knot or brush and send it to me and I'll make a handle for free and we'll see how it works. It'll probably need a deep hole to hit the loft. An Omega with the black cup would be the easiest. Let me know if your interested. Actually, all my boars are shorter lofted than factory specs, considerably in most cases. But there is a wall to performance but how do you know where it is until you hit it.
I would listen to Steve. He is right on the money here. 50 is about as low as I would go on a boar. A 1305 set at 50 mm loft is pretty fantastic.
Best of luck with deciding on a brush. I wouldn't overlook some of the larger ones in the Semogues, though.
