Simpson Brushes Appreciation Thread

BlacknTan

Forum GOD!
I'm into wetshaving for many reasons, and much of it has to do with tradition. I know that there are many great brushmakers out there, but few can boast the traditional aspect of the Simpson name. Now, I'm aware that Simpson brushes are made by Progress/Vulfix on the Isle of Man, and that's fine with me since, aside from the handles being formed on CNC machinery, all aspects are done in the traditional manner.
I've been a Simpsons fan in the past, and remain one... actually, this feeling being somewhat reinforced over the years.

Anyway, I've been looking at this brush on Simpsons site for ages, and finally saw my way clear to make one mine. The Simpsons "58" LE in faux Tortoise... a nice chock of Manchurian hair ...

 

MPH

Forum GOD!
I'm into wetshaving for many reasons, and much of it has to do with tradition. I know that there are many great brushmakers out there, but few can boast the traditional aspect of the Simpson name. Now, I'm aware that Simpson brushes are made by Progress/Vulfix on the Isle of Man, and that's fine with me since, aside from the handles being formed on CNC machinery, all aspects are done in the traditional manner.
I've been a Simpsons fan in the past, and remain one... actually, this feeling being somewhat reinforced over the years.

Anyway, I've been looking at this brush on Simpsons site for ages, and finally saw my way clear to make one mine. The Simpsons "58" LE in faux Tortoise... a nice chock of Manchurian hair ...

Lovely! :)
 

Boojum1

Cosmic Cowboy
I'm into wetshaving for many reasons, and much of it has to do with tradition. I know that there are many great brushmakers out there, but few can boast the traditional aspect of the Simpson name. Now, I'm aware that Simpson brushes are made by Progress/Vulfix on the Isle of Man, and that's fine with me since, aside from the handles being formed on CNC machinery, all aspects are done in the traditional manner.
I've been a Simpsons fan in the past, and remain one... actually, this feeling being somewhat reinforced over the years.

Anyway, I've been looking at this brush on Simpsons site for ages, and finally saw my way clear to make one mine. The Simpsons "58" LE in faux Tortoise... a nice chock of Manchurian hair ...

Beautiful!
 

Dipesh

Forum GOD!
Staff member
Quick (possibly daft?) question - are Simpson brushes up there with other more expensive brushes that get a lot of forum coverage, such as Shavemac?

Cheers
Taking everything into account and in my opinion, if you were compared the two, shavemac offer a brush that's of better quality, fully customisable for less. People tend to be a bit wiser to that these days. Wind back 5-7 years, Simpson is all everyone used to talk about.
 

BlacknTan

Forum GOD!
Here's my take on this question ..

Yes, Simpsons brushes are as good as any brush out there. But, we all are individuals and seek different qualities in a brush. The Shavemac knots, in my humble opinion, are as good as anything out there, and better than most. However I like a brush with extreme backbone, hence I've gotten DO1 Two band knots, which I've been very happy with. I cannot comment of the other choices, having no experience.
I favor Simpsons old Two Band Super hair, unavailable now, but I still seek out older Simpson brushes with the Two Band hair. Manchurian is nice, and a close second, but not my favored badger hair. Shavemac hair, as I mentioned, is decidedly nice!
I've mentioned before that one of the reasons I use a straight razor and whip my lather with a brush is for the traditional aspect. The Simpson name goes back a long way, even though manufacturing is not in the family anymore, so to me at least, that fact carries some weight. For others, it may not, but, when I form my Mitchell's Wool Fat lather with an "old name" British brush, and finish off with Penhaligon's English Fern, I can picture myself off to Ascot with Kate for a day at the races.
So, we all have choices to make for a variety of reasons, and we never know what we're truly happy with until we have tried a wide variety..
 
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MPH

Forum GOD!
Hi,

Just to add a different perspective... :)

I personally found the newer Simpsons Manchurian to be ultra soft tipped. More so or equal to any other brushes I own. I love the softness of Shavemac Silvertip 2-band, but prefer a little more backbone. I have had two Shavemac 2 band D01 and sold them both as they were too scitchy for me.

My ideal seems to be Simpsons Silvertip, with Manchurian being a close second.

However... The Simpsons are a lot more money..... Are they worth the extra? Not sure. Do I regret buying them? Nope.

I have owned M&F, Palladian, Shavemac D01&2 band, Romera Manchurian, El druida Manchurian, and Simpsons are my favourite, closely followed by Romera.

Each to their own. :)
 
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