Pre-shave: Dr Bronner’s Liquid Peppermint
Lather: Mam Bear’s Awakening
Brush: Semogue TSN 2012 LE mixed badger-boar
Razors: German Balelite Slant with a fresh Feather, and Gillete ’58 TV Special with a fresh Wilkinson
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest Prototype Menthol
Pre-shave: Dr Bronners Liquid Peppermint
Lather:Proraso menthol and eucalyptus croap
Brush:BodyShop Synthetic
Razors: Racer and Yuma, both with a Wilkinson blade
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest
About eight months ago I bought a limited edition brush from the Portuguese brush maker Semogue, who made a mere hundred of the beauties for my favorite shaving forum – The Shave Nook.
It have become one of my most treasured brushes – along with my Vie Long 14033 mixed badger/horse – and yet somehow I have not yet written a review for it… well, consider that fixed at least.
The TSN ’12 LE is a wonderful brush; it has just the right mix of backbone and softness to make it great for both face and bowl lathering, good flow, great handle and it holds enough lather to do three passes with ease. It’s also rock solid – to my knowledge it hasn’t lost a single hair yet, despite being used one to two times a week since I bought it. With a bit of proper care it should last longer than me, which means whoever gets to clean up after me can put it up for sale in fifty years time…
The knot is about 22mm wide with a 55mm or so loft, and is a 50/50 mix of boar and badger. For me – who isn’t all that much into badger – it served as a beautiful introduction to badger hairs… to the point where I can both see what all the fuss is about and realize that for me it’s not worth bothering putting down a large wad of money on a pure badger brush. Your Milage May Vary off course, but I prefer a bit of springiness and scritch.
The TSN ’12 LE is also very quick at picking up soap, making it the only brush I own that is liable to be overloaded – something to keep in mind since my favorite lathering bowl isn’t that large. It works just as well when face lathering, but since I only face lather when using a shave stick the risk of overloading is non-existent.
While the majority of the brushes ended up with regulars on The Shave Nook, it was also picked up by members on other forums. If you spot one for sale it’s definitely worth picking it up… if not, you’ll just have to do what I am doing now; wait for the 2013 LE brush.
Pre-shave: Dr Bronners Liquid Orange
Lather: Prairie Creations Walters Soap
Brush: Semogue TSN 2012 LE brush
Razors: Racer and Yuma, both with a Wilkinson blade
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest 80 Below
Some time ago I picked up a GzD shaving stick, partly to bulk out an order from Turkey and partly because I suffer from various Acquisition Disorders… like many shavers do.
It is natural to compare and contrast the GzD against the one Turkish stick ‘everyone’ knows; the Arko stick – it don’t matter if you love it or loathe it, it seems everyone has an opinion on it.
The GzD is just as good at making lather as the Arko is, it’s a bit softer so it might be easier to bash into a bowl if you’re not a face latherer. The scent is not nearly as strong as a freshly unwrapped Arko, and reminds me more of an Arko stick that have been left unwrapped for a month or two.
The GzD gives decent glide and cushion, and can be recommended if you just can’t handle the scent of the Arko. It seems to in general be more expensive than the Arko though, and it comes without a wrapper in a card board box – the box don’t stand up to much abuse, and I had to wrap mine in some parchment paper so I could handle it better.
Pre-shave: Dr Bronners Liquid Peppermint
Lather: RazoRock XXX
Brush: Vie Long 14033
Razors: Racer and Yuma, both with a fresh Wilkinson blade
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Pre-shave: Dr Bronners Liquid Orange
Lather: GzD shave stick
Brush: Turkish No7
Razors: Cadet TP-01 OC and Cadet TTO-13 TTO, both with Lord Cool blades
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
A while ago I reviewed two Turkish brushes – the imaginatively named No6 and No7 – and was in general pleased with the result. Sometime after I had bought the two brushes however, the No6 was ‘upgraded’ by the manufacturer:
Please note, this product has been revised according to customer requirements.
Now, more quality, and aesthetics
Seeing as how I PIFed my original No6 away, I just had to get a new one… well, so I told myself at least.
The handle sits somewhat better in my hand than the original No6 did, due to the slightly more bulbous shape. The knot is very similar to the original, but the mounting of it is now done with a slightly better looking plastic ring.
In use the new No6 is more or less indistinguishable as the original No6 – good backbone, good flow, very little scratching. It’ll make lather just as good as a more expensive brush, but you’ll find it’ll hold less of it – more than enough for two passes though.
There is – as it was with the original No6 and the No7 – some discussion online as to the nature of the knot – horse or pig. Personally I suspect it’s a case of ‘whatever we can find’, but since Turkey is a predominately Muslim country I lean towards horse. Or at least partly horse – my original No6 certainly smelled rather strongly of stables, but a few hand lathers fixed that.
There is also a lot of indications that the quality control can be at best spotty – some users reports their brushes developing a ‘crater’ in the middle after a while. But for a brush costing about the same as a cup of coffee, can you expect perfection?
To repeat what I said in my original review; the No6 would be an excellent first brush for a newbie not wanting to spend much money on a new hobby. It’ll would also be a good “first horse” for more experienced shavers who wants to try something new. Or you could simply get one just for the fun of it – letting you get one more brush in your rotation without laying out more money than you would for a cup of coffee.
Can you afford not to try one?
Pre-shave: Dr Bronners Liquid Peppermint
Lather: Mike’s Peppermint & Rosemary Soap
Brush: Vie Long 14033
Razors: Cadet TP-01 OC and Cadet TTO-13 TTO, both with Lord Cool blades
Post-shave: Cold water rinse, alum and Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Today; brush handles!
