The Paladin™ Chief™ handle-design reflects traditional influences that proximately include the Morris & Forndran L7 and several timeless Simpson models (notably including the venerable M7 and AS3), which themselves have antecedents in US-made Rubberset shaving brushes dating to the early 1900s. The basic shape has been around for a long time (probably because it was easy to produce on primitive lathes, looks good, and works quite well). Our design objectives for the Chief aimed to achieve subtle yet distinctive aesthetic and ergonomic refinements. This brush is especially well-suited to bowl-lathering, but it also works just fine for face-lathering. 

We introduced the first Paladin shaving brushes made with synthetic knots in September of 2020. Those knots were designated as either 3SSBA7s (all 3-band semi-bulbs) or 3SHYH7s (all 3-band hybrids).  We subsequently commissioned the production of knots made with structurally similar synthetic fibers but simulating the appearance of 2-band badger hair. Those third batch knots are associated with the simplified code SYN-B3. We plan to carry forward that format (i.e., B3, B4, B5….) in assigning codes to synthetic knots in the future. Although we believe it’s unlikely that synthetic fibers will ever fully mimic the characteristics of badger hair, significant progress in that direction has been made over the past several years, and the fact is that synthetic knots can fairly be claimed to offer functional advantages as compared to knots made with badger hair. We will continue to strive for improvement as opportunities arise.       

Material: Ebony (polyester resin)
Socket diameter: 26 mm
Handle height: 59.5 mm ± 1 mm
Handle diameter: 36.9 mm ± 1 mm
Knot measurements: see accompanying front-side (top) photo.