Let's Talk a little about our badger knots, in particular, let's hit on the High Mountain(HM), high mountain white(HMW) knots and the Two band knots.
So here it is, straight and to the point. Two band , HM and HMW are all interchangeable. No I know what you are going to say, I can hear the grumblings..... these are not the same. When I spoke to my knot maker we had a very ling talk about this. It was explained to me like this. The HMW are select hairs that are longer than the normal two band hairs. This makes them softer and they also are a little thicker than normal two band hairs. This gives the HM & HMW brushes a bit more backbone.
There are no Manchurian badgers that are mythical creatures, offering of us knots of their highly sought after badger hair. I don't believe that the HM/HMW, are more than what they really are, Two Band badge knots. Does this justify the extra costs.? In my opinion, not really.
So why do I say this, because I've sourced my knots all over the world. I've found that each manufacturer has their own descriptions for each of the knots that they sell. What some may call a two band knot other will call it a High Mountain White. you would have to get a slide ruler and graph paper to figure out all the changes. When I purchase two band knots, I've found myself asking for two bands now. One manufacturer even asked me if I was looking for HMW knots. I told him no I just want the normal two band . The only real difference between the two bands and HMW are that the HMW are made by hand selecting the hairs. Each Two Band knot takes longer to make them. This is why, I believe that the HMW are more expensive. That make sense to me. Take a look at the pics below to see the difference are, that is if you can find one. Can you tell what the difference is between the two?
maybe only your face & wallet will know the difference. can you tell me which is the HMW and the regular Two band?
2 comments
Timmy, The short answer is yes and no. The HMW knots are chemically treated to get their tips whiter this also leads to the Gel Tips that you see/ hear people talking about. This chemical actually bleaches the knots while it’s breaking the tips down at the same time. It has it’s give and takes. I’m not a big supporter of breaking down the knots more than they need to by chemicals. with use, they will naturally break down and become softer. I think this is the best way to do it. Hope that helps clarify it for you.
What about manchurian? Is that basically HMW?
I have a two band and a Manchurian and the Manchurian tips do look ever so slightly whiter