New Oumo’s
- Thread starter Holyzeus
- Start date
adrian ivanovici
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Man! That chubby is so dense you can rub clean the carpet with it!
Holyzeus
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Hand tied are now up
BlacknTan
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Shave knots are highly personal, so I really don't want to post anything negative.. BUT, I bought two Oumo SHD 2 band Manchurian knots from Oumo on Ali Baba(?) last year. I used one and was quite displeased with it. It is obviously a quality knot, but in my opinion, a knot can just be too dense to be useful... for me. I've still got the other knot here unused.. and it will probably remain so.
As always, just one man's opinion...
As always, just one man's opinion...
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BlacknTan
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This is precisely what I found with the Oumo SHD knot!
Moriarty
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I’m surprised that none of you seem to be impressed with Oumo brushes. I have a few of their pricier models and for me they stand up against anything on the market, including other top artisan brushes. I would even say that a couple of them are my favourite brushes overall. I think their knots tend towards having softer tips, easy splay and a bit less backbone, which is what I generally prefer in a brush and I guess may be the way the owner and Chinese customers prefer it. They don’t tend to be heavily gelled at all - none of mine exhibit any crustiness when they dry. The manufacturing quality of all my Oumo brushes is excellent, but I cannot speak to their lower-priced and possibly mass-produced models. I was attracted to the pretty ones.
It seems like the owner of Oumo, Carry is an enthusiastic shaving hobbyist and collector, and he puts a lot of effort into ongoing R&D to develop badger brush technology. It may not be long before Oumo is widely regarded as one of the premier brush makers and their knots lead the market. We will see. He has just launched an update of his top of the line Tyrant knot (T-2), and the new ‘Meri’ knot which is all white like a bleached boar knot, but which he says is barely treated at all - I guess it is selected hair from the badger’s underbelly. Very interesting and I am keen to try both of these new knots.
My two favourites that I have are these, and they really are superb (both from Oumo’s “Carry’s Collection” premium limited edition series). As I say, I rank these two specific brushes even above the well-known US and European artisan brushes that I have. They cost about $150-200 each and I would say are very good value for the prices.
’Mars’ ebonite with ‘Silk’ knot (formerly called 3-band High Mountain White). The handle is beautifully polished and extremely comfortable to hold. The knot is amazing - the tips are so soft they feel very close indeed to synthetic fibre, seriously, and it is the single most luxurious knot I’ve ever experienced. Performance is perfect. I was so delighted with this that I bought a couple more Silk knotted brushes, but with batch variations they don’t quite match the incredible softness of this one (though they are still very good). I think this brush is just unique and I may never find another to match it from any brand.
‘Exceed’ ivory acrylic with desert ironwood, ’Tyrant T-1’ 2-band knot. The handle is beautiful, with the patterns in the pour and the gold-embossed design on the wood base. The handle shape with the indentation is more comfortable than any brush I’ve held. The Tyrant knot is pretty close to the softness of my Silk knot, above. More backbone with the 2-band hair, but definitely not a stiff, scrubby brush. Feels luxurious and also performs perfectly.
Don’t dismiss these guys as cheap, Chinese, mass-produced goods. They are making some very fine brushes indeed, and pumping a lot of effort into creating new kinds of premium knots.
It seems like the owner of Oumo, Carry is an enthusiastic shaving hobbyist and collector, and he puts a lot of effort into ongoing R&D to develop badger brush technology. It may not be long before Oumo is widely regarded as one of the premier brush makers and their knots lead the market. We will see. He has just launched an update of his top of the line Tyrant knot (T-2), and the new ‘Meri’ knot which is all white like a bleached boar knot, but which he says is barely treated at all - I guess it is selected hair from the badger’s underbelly. Very interesting and I am keen to try both of these new knots.
My two favourites that I have are these, and they really are superb (both from Oumo’s “Carry’s Collection” premium limited edition series). As I say, I rank these two specific brushes even above the well-known US and European artisan brushes that I have. They cost about $150-200 each and I would say are very good value for the prices.
’Mars’ ebonite with ‘Silk’ knot (formerly called 3-band High Mountain White). The handle is beautifully polished and extremely comfortable to hold. The knot is amazing - the tips are so soft they feel very close indeed to synthetic fibre, seriously, and it is the single most luxurious knot I’ve ever experienced. Performance is perfect. I was so delighted with this that I bought a couple more Silk knotted brushes, but with batch variations they don’t quite match the incredible softness of this one (though they are still very good). I think this brush is just unique and I may never find another to match it from any brand.
‘Exceed’ ivory acrylic with desert ironwood, ’Tyrant T-1’ 2-band knot. The handle is beautiful, with the patterns in the pour and the gold-embossed design on the wood base. The handle shape with the indentation is more comfortable than any brush I’ve held. The Tyrant knot is pretty close to the softness of my Silk knot, above. More backbone with the 2-band hair, but definitely not a stiff, scrubby brush. Feels luxurious and also performs perfectly.
Don’t dismiss these guys as cheap, Chinese, mass-produced goods. They are making some very fine brushes indeed, and pumping a lot of effort into creating new kinds of premium knots.
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Shaverrific666
368
The older SHD Manchuria knots were excellent. I have two of these. They were much cheaper than they are now as well. Great backbone, and tip presence, dense but the right balance to have great performance.
However the newer offerings weren't anywhere as good in comparison. Heavily treated, "mushy" knots with extreme "gelling" and over the top density to make flow through near non existent. They also started offering crazily large knots of 40mm for at time. Why? Well there was a demand for these type of knots.
Just to say I have no idea about the current knots. These are just my findings from past experience.
However the newer offerings weren't anywhere as good in comparison. Heavily treated, "mushy" knots with extreme "gelling" and over the top density to make flow through near non existent. They also started offering crazily large knots of 40mm for at time. Why? Well there was a demand for these type of knots.
Just to say I have no idea about the current knots. These are just my findings from past experience.
p.b
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Thanks for the really informative post. It great to hear first hand from someone who has these brushes. I think many of us, myself included had earlier knots that where not to our tastes but these newer untreated ones do sound very tempting.
Moriarty
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I always wonder where the artisan brush makers source their badger hair / knots. Most likely nearly all source from Chinese companies, and I guess Oumo probably supplies some of them. I have no information whatsoever, and I guess the brush makers all specify their own preferred characteristics and treatment, but I do find similarities between my recent Oumo knots and my recent Declaration Grooming knots - which may mean nothing, of course. The 2-band Oumo knots I have are comparable to DG’s B13 in particular, in the style and feel, but the Oumo tips are a bit less treated than DG B13. B13 was a very good knot, in my opinion, and B14 too, so it is a high benchmark to be compared with.
In any case, if the Chinese producers do work with artisan brush makers and they are motivated to make their own premium brushes, then it is inevitable that they would be learning a great deal from the artisans they supply.
Just guesswork. I don’t want to start any rumours, since I really don’t know anything.
In any case, if the Chinese producers do work with artisan brush makers and they are motivated to make their own premium brushes, then it is inevitable that they would be learning a great deal from the artisans they supply.
Just guesswork. I don’t want to start any rumours, since I really don’t know anything.
BlacknTan
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I agree with you completely!
I would be very surprised if any badger hair comes from any source other than China these days, but, as always, I could be wrong. I also believe the Chinese makers can produce a very high quality brush (knot), and yes, I also believe they tailor their knots to their customer's requests.
I do find it unfortunate that the current trend is toward highly treated knots. White tips, gel tips, super high density. More is always better?
The old American adage.. If a little bit is good, more is better, and too much is just right!
I believe the older established makers had it right in their treatment and density evaluations. There's no sense trying to re-invent the wheel.
Disclaimer.. I have no issues with Oumo or any other Chinese knot purveyor. I have a number of them, and they range from great to not so... Some possibly of my own doing.
Moriarty
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My impression is that the artisan badger brush market is generally moving away from heavily gelled tips to lighter treatments and a more natural feel. The only brushes I’ve bought in the last couple of years with such heavy gelling that it had a slimy feel were Chisel & Hound Fanchurian knots (v11) - I don’t know, but maybe their current v13 has changed too. I’m sure nearly all 2-band badger knots are still somewhat treated to make the tips whiter and softer, and a lot still have some crustiness on drying, but I think it is becoming much more balanced now. I frequently see brush makers advertising that their knots are only lightly treated. I guess buyers were getting a little tired of the artificial, slimy feeling, as well as becoming more concerned about the damage such heavy gelling must surely cause to the hairs.
One day, not too long from now, I predict that we will remember slimy gel-tips the way we remember flared jeans from the 1970s. It was an interesting idea for a time but ultimately a dead end when all badger hair was bleached so much that they all felt exactly the same. I can’t prove it but I bet a lot of those 2-band gel-tip knots were really just low-grade black badger hair, bleached to look like silvertip hair, and the high density and backbone people lauded was simply from the coarseness of the black hair. Or maybe I’m too cynical.