First off I would like to thank Phil from Bullgoose Shaving Supplies for making this brush available in the Interdependence Day Contest. Having used this brush almost exclusively for the last two weeks, I feel that I can give an honest evaluation. Look and Feel Being my first butterscotch brush, I did not realize how "orange" they where. When I first opened the package I was a little set back by it, as it reminded me (and still does) of a pumpkin. Within a matter of days of having it and looking at other butterscotch brushes, I fell in love with the color. I now find it to be as beautiful as my Vintage Stanley Home (StanHome) Badger Hair in Lucite with a black cap. Where this brush excels over any brush that I own is in the beehive shape. The deep ridges in the brush offers superior holding even with the slickest lather on it. The round shape feels very comfortable and natural in your hands. Hair and Break-In This is my second horse hair, my first being the Vie-Long Sardinero 13800 Horse Hair. The Sardinero, while being a beautiful looking brush was an extreme disappoint. The brush lost all backbone and looks jagged and hollow after break in. My wife likes it, as she tends to paint the lather on her legs, so at least it is being used. The LE Butterscotch Beehive Horse Hair on the other hand has broken in fantastically. The hair is softer than I had expected. I have read many reports that natural horse hair was more stritchy than dyed horse hair, but in this case, that is not the truth. This is much softer than the Sardinero and even softer than any budget badger hair brush that I own. The backbone remains very strong, while the tips are nice and soft. Lathering and Performance Although I bowl lather 90% of the time, I have found that this brush is a joy to use for both bowl and face lathering. Not only does it produce an enormous amount of lather, it holds enough water within the hair that very little, if any additional water needs to be added after loading the brush. When bowl lathering I see immediate results, compared to other brushes that seem to first put a lot of air bubbles into the lather. While face lathering, the hairs are soft enough to not irritate your skin, while there is enough backbone to really put on the pressure and exfoliate your skin. Conclusion I love this brush. It is now my daily go to brush. I would highly recommend this to anyone that would like to try a horse hair. Mountains of lather, soft hair, and good back bone...there is not much more that one could want from a brush.
Arley, excellent review. I have the 13061 Dyed Zurito and if I were buying now, I would stay with the non-dyed brush based on the retention of backbone. Also tail / mane hair mix is important in the backbone versus softness debate. The grip on that must truly be excellent! Enjoy in good health.
I purchased my 13061 dyed Zurito from GiftsandCare.com. Because of their proximity to Vie-Long factory they can offer custom lofts on the brushes so I had mine set at 50mm instead of the 57mm normally shipped from the factory. I've not noticed the loss in backbone with the shorter loft. They dyed horse hair is softer than the natural horse hair IMHO but I love to use both brushes.
I have been seeing your pics of the brush in SSOTD, was hoping you would do review. Great review thank you for sharing your thoughts. There seems to be two camps on horse hair brushes, either they are liked or very disliked.
Beautiful brush.. In my own experience, I've found that the tips of the natural brown continue to get softer and softer with use, but it retains it's backbone.. Or very well Loved. The problem with horsehair is there is no form of grading. (the same as boar) They vary so much from the Bestshave HH #6 (very stiff and boar like and takes a long while to break in) to the Vie Long dyed 2 band ( it is Silver tip soft but once it breaks in, looses it backbone) . For me I'm a total fan-boy of the natural brown.
I love my horses. I've got badgers and a couple of boar and they all perform well but the Horse hair brushes seem to blend the best features of both the badger and the boar. of course IMHO and YMMV.
