SharpSpine
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Post by SharpSpine on May 1, 2013 12:18:14 GMT -6
While I'm no expert I do remember that most of the issue with hair breaking in the handle area or core of the knot is more from rot because the brush wasn't dried well or left in a ventilated area. Again, the tip treatment that most brushes undergo in order to give us the soft tips we desire is far worse than anything we will ever do to them in regular use. I personally feel that many companies provide an over exaggerated care instruction so that they can use it as a way out if something is thought to be wrong with the brush. I see this in the healthcare field. People will be prescribed an insane amount of precise exercise so that when they don't respond well the provider can find out that the patient couldn't follow their instructions to the letter and then it becomes the users fault and not the provider. I'm not saying that Thater is doing this by any means, but they have to know that face lathering is by no means as rough as bleaching tips.
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SharpSpine
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Post by SharpSpine on May 1, 2013 15:05:33 GMT -6
There is definitely a change in the quality of badger hair. It's primarily because of the increase in demand for badgers for whatever reasons. Badgers are now being more highly sought after and are thus being harvested at a younger age. This doesn't allow the hair to get as long. Hair quality is not graded solely on the tip color, but rather by length. The longer the hair, the higher the quality. Manufacturers use different techniques to work with what they can get yet still "create" the effect/feel that they are going for. Simpson Manchurian is a big example of this. Manchurian hair is not some mythical hair that only Simpson can source. Rather they utilize what they have and do their special magic to it to create what they are after. Glue bumps are also used to shorten the effective loft to maintain a certain look to the brush while preventing it from being floppy; shavemac D01 is a prime example of this.
Bleaching the tips is how some manufacturers can maintain a consistent look among their brushes regardless of batch variation. The same goes for other chemical & possible mechanical processes that are used to soften the tips. I'm not privy to all the "tricks of the trade" but I have been informed of some of them and they are widely used. I really don't care what process a brush goes through as long as it feels the way I want it to feel. Price of a brush will limit me to a degree, but really we know that the premiums we're paying for many brushes are for name recognition, social status, and marketing.
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SharpSpine
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Post by SharpSpine on May 1, 2013 16:39:51 GMT -6
Hmm, interesting. I know there was a post there that I was replying to, but now it just looks like I'm talking to myself.
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Post by wchnu on May 1, 2013 21:10:51 GMT -6
Ok folks. Lets look at some of these last post and see if maybe we went a little far. Here at TOST we like to keep it a family place. Discussion is great... but let's not let it get too personal. Everyone grab a beverage of your choice and pull up a chair around the table.
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ShadowsDad
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Post by ShadowsDad on May 2, 2013 0:07:16 GMT -6
Brian I have to wonder if that's (bleaching, etc) why Thater requires/suggests using their brushes so delicately? So as to prevent damage because of their using chemically/mechanically processed hair. But I'll never know.
My other uncut tip brushes don't require such care during their use. Heck, not even my extremely inexpensive Omega boar brushes require that spleeny sort of care. But they aren't bleached to achieve the white tips and softness, neither are my uncut badgers. My understanding is that many manufacturers do that processing, especially with badger, to make folks think they have something of really high value. It wouldn't surprise me if Thater is among them. A quick look of their brushes would certainly tell the tale. If they're all of uniform white tips, they would be bleached since untouched badger hair isn't like that. But I don't have enough interest to do that; since I know that they're delicate they're not even on my radar.
I have a Rooney super silvertip and I have no doubt that it's been bleached. But even it doesn't have tips that break in normal use.
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Post by HoosierTrooper on May 2, 2013 4:35:55 GMT -6
And, to add to wchnu's comments, lets refrain from taking shots at other message boards and their members. Keep in mind, we're a very small part of a much larger community that shares a similar interest so let's try to be good neighbors.
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Post by wchnu on May 2, 2013 5:46:38 GMT -6
And, to add to wchnu's comments, lets refrain from taking shots at other message boards and their members. Keep in mind, we're a very small part of a much larger community that shares a similar interest so let's try to be good neighbors. I'll second that. Thaks HT!
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Post by HoosierTrooper on May 4, 2013 10:47:32 GMT -6
What I mean by "thin" lather is that it contains a lot of water, to the point that it actually slides a little down my neck. Maybe I misunderstood what was meant by thin lather, as in a thin layer of it on the face, as opposed to being thin and runny.
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Post by InfernoOrangeSS on May 4, 2013 16:02:20 GMT -6
I thought it meant thin as in the physical layer.
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Post by razorx on May 4, 2013 19:20:11 GMT -6
For me a successful thin lather is similar to the consistency of latex indoor paint
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Post by InfernoOrangeSS on May 5, 2013 19:13:32 GMT -6
For me a successful thin lather is similar to the consistency of latex indoor paint That's the same for me. I want a thin layer, but not watery.
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SharpSpine
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Post by SharpSpine on May 6, 2013 13:46:01 GMT -6
I want the lather to be dense, but it doesn't have to be put onto my face thickly. So dense with a thin application. Make sense?
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Post by HoosierTrooper on May 6, 2013 15:50:03 GMT -6
I want the lather to be dense, but it doesn't have to be put onto my face thickly. So dense with a thin application. Make sense? So, you like for it to be thick, as long as it's thin. Makes perfect sense to me.
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SharpSpine
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Post by SharpSpine on May 6, 2013 16:25:51 GMT -6
Good! I figured it would be easy for the group here to comprehend!
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Post by wchnu on May 7, 2013 2:32:38 GMT -6
Lmao. Glad that is all hammered out.
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