I have learned a lot about wet shaving from TSD, but I haven't seen anything posted about why some brushes have collars and some don't. Semogue has a collar on all their brushes ( I believe), Omega has it on some models, Plisson has it on some models. I had assumed it was a "quality" thing; but the other day I saw what looked like a neoprene collar on a $7.00 boar hair brush (price being a proxy for quality). So my question is why a collar? Larry
so you can take it for a walk on a leash, duh My suspicion has always been either for aesthetics, or for bristle/hair control or protection.
Collar Its because they machine one hole for all and fit a collar to reduce hole size for different knots this is why you normally only see it on the lower end burshes (but I could be wrong)
The rim or collar you see on top of the handle is actually the upper rim of a little cup or sleeve (metal in Plisson and maybe in Semogue and black plastic in the case of Omega). The hairs or bristles are held in these cups with glue and then set into the handle. I have taken apart several of the above brushes and always seen this little cup. Why I don't know, maybe just another way of making a knot. I also have some of the cheaper Shavemac machine tied knots and they come in a cup or plastic sleeve as well. BTW, the Omega and the Shavemac are straight tube-like sleeves, whereas Plisson and Semogue are cups and they are slightly rounded at the bottom and are closed. I have only taken apart one Plisson and one Semogue, but many Omegas, so my experience of the first two is somewhat limited.
My Omega's collar broke in several places and a couple of pieces fell off. I was sure that I would have to replace it but in the intervening months there has been no problem with bristle shedding or the knot falling out. It appears that the collar is purely decorative and has no real function.
thanks to all Thank you to all who took the time to respond. I had originally thought that the collar was there for one of two purposes. Either to support the bristles and/or as suggested by RV as a cup. The cup approach would make sense in a wooden brush handle in that, in theory, it would protect the end grain of the brush handle from moisture. wouldn't serve any purpose in non wooden brushes though. The sleeve approach wouldn't be quite as protective unless the seal between the sleeve and the knot is completely waterproof. again thanks to all larry
the "cup" is what I meant above for bristle/hair control or protection, I didn't word it very well. The "cup" may be fairly common for getting a standard size knot for mass-produced handles. I've bought ~10 knots, and there's some small variation in size even among knots of the same size. Perhaps gluing them in the cup helps for more accurate holes in handles, instead of having to accommodate slight differences? And there are some instances where that cup is necessary - clear acrylic handles. If the inside of the knot hole isn't painted, the base of the knot would be very unattractive. A cup for the know would be more uniform and less likely for scratches as paint may be, and would make for quicker and more efficient brush assembly. To make the open end of the cup rounded and look like a collar is probably for aesthetic purposes. But, despite all the logic, I'm still going with the "so you can take it for a walk" option
I hadn't thought about a hollow handle - makes sense to use a collar/sleeve or cup. That plus the earlier post about size of hole would explain why there are collars on inexpensive brushes Thanks Larry
