Paladin offers an incredible variety of brushes

Like everyone I have my favorites restaurants, though the years I've had hundreds of favorite restaurants as my taste and desires change, the same goes for cars and shoes. Another thing is I've always been a collector of items that interest me starting when I was a teenager, it's ingrained in my nature. 

It was about 18 months ago that I picked up my first Paladin that offered their own knots (actually my first Paladin was a Lee/Blonde). After a few Paladins my opinion was they made the best handle/finished handle in all of wet shaving. So when Ken put out his knot code I read it thoroughly realizing that most their brushes would have their own shaving characteristics, meaning I would not be buying the same 2 band knot like I do with other companies or Artisans in a different size, loft and handle (by the way consistency is good in a brands knots).

I started to purchase a few brushes over the next 4 months with different lofts, knot sizes in bulb and fan along with different handles, I also began to trade brushes to obtain knots, lofts that were in  handles I liked. As Paladin offered new knots and I continued to purchase, I was able to evaluate which brushes provide me with soft, medium and strong backbone, soft tips or the feel of tip presence also there is a difference in L and S knots. Now with all these different eattributes Paladin creates and offers a unique variety of brushes. One such combination is a brush with soft backbone, nicely dense knot (no flop), excellent flow through that provides me with the best 3 band silvertip lathering I've ever used and I have pretty much not touched a 3 band in the last 6-7 years. Or a bulb brush that has strong backbone that provides an incredible scrub with soft tips, if the same brush was a fan the scrub feel would be altered.

So as it stands my rotation again has changed over the last 18 months (it has been evolving for the last 55 years) as I slowly began putting away M&F's Elites, Thaters, Simpsons, Wiborgs, Declaration, etc I replaced them with Paladins that gave me more of a variety of superb lathering experiences (my rotation at the moment stands at 13). There is one characteristic that is the same through out, excellent density.

Yes as you can tell I am very pleased with Paladin but there is one small thing I would like to see changed or added as another choice, this would be a cosmetic change. On a few brushes the engraved wording color blends into the handle color to where the words cannot be read unless your up close (this is just my artistic/marketing opinion). As it is the engraved color wording on most of the handles are excellent making the handles/branding very distinctive accept for the Cobalt (I did have one where the words was in white, I liked that one), Tortoise and Malachite. I believe white worked well on Cobalt, I also believe that the gold that Paladin uses on some of their other handles would work well with the Tortoise and Malachite, again just my opinion..

My thoughts on Paladin knots 
2CLNL2 medium backbone soft tips
2CLND3 medium backbone soft tips
2CLNA4 medium backbone very springy tip feel presence (not scitchy) 
2CSLE4 strong backbone tip presence softens after 6 lathering's
2CSLD4 strong backbone very soft tips

Head shape characteristics
Fan head spreads out to give a lush lathering 
Hybrid gives a plush semi concentrated plush lathering 

Firm backbone scrub
El Dorado Ebony 26 53  48 bulb  2CSLD4  firm backbone soft plush tips  
Cleo 26 Tigris 52 46 bulb  2CSLE4  very firm/strong backbone mild tip feel which soften after 6 lathering's     

Medium backbone
Chief 26  Buttersccotch 52 48 bulb 2CLND3 nice lathering medium backbone very soft plush lathering feel     
PK47 26  Ivory 51.7  48  bulb 2CLNL2 nice lathering medium backbone very soft plush lathering feel     
El Dorado  Malachite 28  55.5  51 bulb 2CSLD4 medium backbone soft full plush tips
El Dorado Summer-set 28 55  52 bulb 2CSLD4 a firm medium backbone with soft full plush tips
PK47 Butterscotch  28 55 51 bulb 2CLND3 medium backbone very soft plush tips     
Chief  26  Jade  53 48 fan 2CDLE4 springy medium backbone that at first there was tip presence which soften after 6 lathering's 

Medium soft backbone
Tut 26 Lapis  51.5  51 fan  2CSLD4  springy mild medium backbone head spread very lush soft tips   
Chief 26 Lapis  51.75  50 fan  2CLNL2  springy mild medium backbone head spread very lush soft tips    
El Dorado Ivory 28 56 54 bulb 2CSLD4 medium soft backbone nice spring simi spread with exceptionally soft plush tips giving an luxurious lush lathering    
Chief 26  Tortoise 52.7 52 fan 2CLNA4 very spring medium backbone head spread with mild tip sensation     

Soft backbone 1 step above a 3 band silvertip
PK47 28 53 53 fan 2CSLD4 if you love 3 band silvertips you will love this brush soft to medium backbone, great head spread extremely soft tips.


PK47 26 Ivory,  Chief 26 Butterscotch
 Chief 26 Jade,  PK47 28 Butterscotch,  El Dorado 28 Malachite Tut 26 Lapis,  El Dorado 28 Ivory,  El Dorado 28 Summerset,  Chief 26 Lapis El Dorado 26 Jade,  El Dorado 26 Ebony,  Cleo 26 Tigris Chief 26 Tortoise

Nice collection of brushes and comments.  I see more Paladin's in my future.

(10-14-2017, 10:59 AM)SCOV Wrote: Nice collection of brushes and comments.  I see more Paladin's in my future. 

Thanks, hopefully what I have learned and written will help others make informed decisions on a Paladin/s. I will continue to read up on the knots and add new ones as they appear. My collection at the moment including the new knot in a PK47 Neptune which I should receive this coming week makes it 20 brushes.

Steven, your OP is a good read. It's chock full of useful information and fascinating insights. I'm sure to reread it many times as I've begun to consider purchasing a Paladin brush. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.

All wonderful brushes.  My favorite ones are the ivory PK47 and butterscotch Chief in the first picture.

(10-14-2017, 11:56 AM)chazt Wrote: Steven, your OP is a good read. It's chock full of useful information and fascinating insights. I'm sure to reread it many times as I've begun to consider purchasing a Paladin brush. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.

thanks for reading I hope it helps

Steven-

I am enjoying that cobalt El Dorado you wrote about. Hope you are enjoying the somerset El Dorado.

-Mark

(10-14-2017, 01:45 PM)Whiskey Sour Wrote: Steven-

I am enjoying that cobalt El Dorado you wrote about. Hope you are enjoying the somerset El Dorado.

-Mark

I am enjoying the Summerset, thank you, but that Cobalt is also a really sweet brush and I very much  like the way it looks with the white lettering. Thanks for the trade all the best to ya.

Ken and Cody offer some real gems , that tortoise chief is a nice example. Great collection there.

Thanks and congrats, love all ivory.
One day

Enviado do meu SM-N9005 através de Tapatalk

Paladins are the best brushes going IMHO.  The knots are wonderful and the handles Ken turns out are outstanding works of art.

2CSLD4 Falstaff 26 in Lapis. Like you said in your thoughts on knots: STRONG Backbone, soft tips from day one, very dense. My favorite brush.

Great collection
Paladins are my favourite too - I havent classified mine in as much detail with the knot codes yet but I do have a feel for my favourite ones. Enjoy

Never been lucky enough to score one when they were released.

Another observation that I did not mention is the L knots (2CL) vs the S knots (2CS). What I've found (again just my opinion) is that the L knots have medium backbone and a little more spring to the hairs/knot, the S knots have stronger backbone and with certain loft configuration will have more scrub or again with a certain loft configuration will have medium/strong backbone. The L knots have not appeared since May and those were the 2CLNA4 that have a tip feel presence. That's it for now I hope all that I've written helps in making an informed decision.

(10-20-2017, 11:02 AM)JHamel Wrote: Never been lucky enough to score one when they were released.

There are many on offer in the store right now...

(10-20-2017, 03:33 PM)mike_the_kraken Wrote:

(10-20-2017, 11:02 AM)JHamel Wrote: Never been lucky enough to score one when they were released.

There are many on offer in the store right now...

Lotus Strawberry Amber strong  backbone with beautiful soft tips Hybrid, 51.5 x 46, 2CLNL2

That's really nice

Left to right: 2clna4, 2csle4, 2csld4.