Yaqi M150801 Shaving Brush Review
Yaqi M150801-S2 Shaving Brush
Yaqi M150801-S2 Short Heavy Metal Shaving Brush – This is an affordable synthetic shaving brush from the popular company ‘Yaqi’ that makes affordable brushes.
Pros
Short handle for those that prefer them short
Lathers up well
Soft bristles if that is your preference
Good value for money
Good beginners brush
Cons
Short handle will not suit everyone
Bristles may be to soft for some gents
Yaqi is a Chinese company that specializes in synthetic knots for shaving brushes. They also have some unconventional designs when it comes to their handles, including metal, resins, and plastics. Some of mine and others favorites are the Yaqi R2002-S Tuxedo Shaving Brush, Lucky Dice and the Yaqi R210409 Cavern Lake Shaving Brush.
Today I am going to review one that really jumped out at me: the Yaqi M150801-S2 Short Heavy Metal Shaving Brush, sometimes referred to as the Timber Wolf for the black and silver knot.
What Do You Think About The Handle?
The Timber Wolf brush has a hefty 48mm handle made from aluminum with a brushed metal finish. It is stamped with the Yaqi logo on the base. The handle is all one solid shape, and doesn’t come apart at all.
Shape
The Timber Wolf handle is all one solid piece, meaning there is no place for water to leak into and possibly corrode the metal, which is always a major plus. It has a flared out base that tapers toward the knot of the brush, where it opens up again to contain the base of the knot itself.
The shape is a classic design with the edges being somewhat more sharper than the smooth curves of your typical brush. This is a very good thing in this case, because the brush is very stable when you set it down and doesn’t really roll around.
The shape does have a downside, in that it is hard to find a good stand that will hold this brush while you are attempting to dry it. In my case, I had to guess. The wire stand I have wouldn’t fit it, leading me to have to physically bend the wire in order to get it to fit correctly.
Weight
The handle has an almost perfect weight to it. There is just enough of a low-built weight to make sure the brush stays upright and doesn’t tip over easily, even when loaded up with shaving soap. It is actually relatively hard to tip over at all, and means it’s easier to swirl around the brush to build lather when you are getting ready to shave.
Feel
The handle is just slightly short for my hands, but I really love how wide this base is. It feels comfortable and easy to manipulate, though the smooth finish can sometimes make it feel like the thing is about to slip out of your hands at any moment.
The width of the base can sometimes be a pain though. This brush was really designed with lathering in a soap dish in mind. If you are using a mug to lather, your fingers are going to mash against the rim of that mug repeatedly because the handle itself is rather short.
Given the choice, use a shaving bowl or your hand.
Can You Describe The Knot And How It Performs?
Yaqi uses their own type of synthetic bristles called Tuxedo, meant to invoke a more bespoke or luxury style of brush to set it apart from other companies. The knot on this brush is where the Timberwolf gets its name, as it is very much like a stronger or stiffer form of the Tuxedo bristle.
The brush has a diameter of 24 mm and a loft of 60 mm, making it very tight and tall. It is shaped in a bulb cut, which some may feel doesn’t cover enough space on the face.
Density
24mm is a very dense type of knot for shaving brushes. Typical brushes are between 24 and 26 mm, with the 24mm brushes being just a bit tighter packed. In this case, the bristles are very densely collected, making for a really solid knot that is almost completely impenetrable. This makes the brush feel almost overly luxurious when going over the skin and makes for a good amount of lather in just 30-40 seconds of starting your shaving routine.
Double edged sword though, because it can sometimes feel like it takes forever to get all the shaving soap OUT of the brush after the shaving is done. Multiple squeezings and shaking the brush over and over are required to make sure it’s empty so it will dry overnight without issues.
Water Retention
Leading out of the density of the knot, this brush is very quick to soak up moisture. It holds onto the water you give it very well. It will build a particularly rich and thick lather, and keep it for a good long while. So much so, that I will often have to wash out a good deal of lather when I am done shaving completely. It stays moist for a good while afterward as well, even when left to drip dry.
Backbone
What sets the Timberwolf apart from the normal Tuxedo brushes that Yaqi uses is that it has a much higher stiffness than the others. There is an obvious thickness to the strands of the brush, making them really bounce back after use. There is some manner of flop, due to the high loft of the knot, but just running your fingers over the top of the knot causes the bush to immediately return to its shape with no discernible change.
Softness
This is where the knot may start to lose some fans of wet shaving. This brush is very soft to the touch, feeling less like something to exfoliate your skin and more like a makeup brush.
I enjoy that feeling, as it’s soothing and feels great on my skin after I’ve already made a few passes with a razor.
Though I know there is a good majority of shavers out there who are going to want something much more stiff against the skin to really scrub away dead skin.
Durability
This brush seriously feels like it was built to last. I have been using this brush steadily for almost a month now, shaving every other day. So far I have seen one (1) strand of hair in the brush fall out. The knot is just as dense as when I got it.
With the reputation most synthetic Shaving Brushes have, that is amazing and definitely worth the time and money.
Value for Money – It Is Worth Its Price Tag?
Other than the knot being one of my favorite parts of this brush, I do have to say the cost of it is a really great selling point.
Shaving supplies, and brushes in particular, can get very VERY expensive. There are some brushes that can go all the way to $150 to $200 USD for what amounts to just some badger fur on the end of a nubby stick.
This brush is a major step in bringing shaving to the masses. At only $18.99 USD (sometimes less if you can get it on sale), you really cannot argue with the price. This one is a majorly good deal. Though, I do wish it had come with a stand or shaving dish to use with it.
Any Common Consumer Issues, Complaints or Positive Reports?
For the most part, the common reviews found online for this brush very much mirror my thoughts on the brush. Many people really do enjoy the feel of the handle, and the softness of the bristles. While this isn’t something like silvertip badger hair, this is a great and inexpensive way to get started in wet shaving, or to just move to synthetics.
The few complaints I did see (that I have not experienced myself), is that overtime the gray in the bristles will fade, leaving with a black and white two tone. I haven’t seen that at all in my time with the brush, but that may have come from a defect in the brush bristles themselves in that specific brush.
Some have mentioned a heat loss in the bristles. This specifically is a complaint that after lathering with warm water, the water will have cooled off. I have noticed this in my brush, but it really is something that (for me at least) only comes up in the last pass of the brush. This is when I am running the razor against the grain of my beard. At this point, I have already shaved once with the grain and once across the grain, so the coolness of the water is actually a rather soothing feeling. While that might be a complaint some people have, it is situational, and more to taste than to anything else.
Final Thoughts
Overall, the Timber Wolf is a really great product in my opinion. It comes in at a relatively low price with a great deal to offer for any user who is either experienced in wet shaving or just getting their start.
It isn’t the overall best kind of brush on the market, but it is a really solid option for anyone. I love it, and it is a joy to get to use. I look forward to my shaving routine with this brush, and get really excited when I get to use this brush.
Who is the Yaqi Timber Wolf Best Suited For?
The Timber Wolf brush is obviously not going to be something the most hardcore of Silvertip Badger Fans is going to drop everything for. It’s good, but not truly amazing. Overall, I would have to say this brush is really for the beginner getting into wet shaving for the first time.
Though I could also see someone who is wanting to switch to synthetic brushes picking this one up on a lark to try out. There is a push in the shaving industry to move to a cruelty free method of creating products. This is a major step in that direction.
This would be great as an inexpensive gift for someone in your life that is an avid shaver and wants to try something new.
Overall Rating
For the Yaqi M150801-S2 Short Heavy Metal Shaving Brush I give an overall rating of 8 out of 10. Not perfect but a great synthetic brush overall that’s good value for the money. Great choice for a beginner brush or for someone wanting to branch out into synthetics.
