New Stirling Finest Badger!

Freddy Will do. I'm going to give it a spin with the Blackland soap.

Holy cow. That's a nice bloom once wet!

Looks great Hector.
Did you get a chance to face lather with it yet ?

Thanks, not yet.  Letting the funky bunch dissipate a bit.  I'll use it tomorrow and report.

Which synthetic is that next to it? Is it the 26mm?

Looks great Hector.
Did you get a chance to face lather with it yet ?

Thanks, not yet.  Letting the funky bunch dissipate a bit.  I'll use it tomorrow and report.

Which synthetic is that next to it? Is it the 26mm?

Yes sir!

I shaved with it for the first time today. I'm going to hold off on a review until after Hector has a chance to give us his thoughts, since he was the discoverer. I will say, though -- get one while you can.

I shaved with it for the first time today.   I'm going to hold off on a review until after Hector has a chance to give us his thoughts, since he was the discoverer.  I will say, though -- get one while you can.

Go ahead and share your views my friend.  I'm fixing to shave with it in a little bit.

Okie Dokie,

Keep in mind this is a first impression after one use.  I'll try to briefly describe each of the critical brush areas.  Keep in mind that the Stirling brush in the picture is still wet (and even has a bit of lather dotting the i), whereas the Savile Row is dry.

Knot:  This is a 24mm knot. In the picture below you can see how quickly the knot bloomed.
Scritch:  There is more scritch than the Savile Row (which has absolutely none), but it is barely perceptible.  It is very comfortable on the face.
Backbone: Way more than most synthetics, not as much as many boar knots.  It has more backbone than the Savile Row 3324 pictured.
Splay:  Covers the face nicely and the amount of splay can be easily controlled by how hard you press, due to sufficient backbone.
Loading: I used some of my own soap for the test and it's an easy lathering soap.  This brush sucked it up fast.  I loaded it for 30 seconds (same as when I test all new brushes) and the brush contained enough lather for 3 thick face lathers, plus a heaping handful that was left over at the end.
Hogging: As you can see, while the knot is thick, it is not so densely packed that it hogs the lather. The amount of lather it rendered during 3 face latherings was impressive.
Handle: The handle is very attractive, I think and very comfortable.  I do think I like the thicker Savile Row handle a bit better. Still, its very nice.
Smell:  The knot does have an odor.  It's not overwhelming though and doesn't have the familiar road-kill smell that makes you throw up in your mouth a little.  It's probably more along the lines of what a live badger would smell like -- if one were brave enough to stick their face that close to a live badger.  After 3 washings, a little of the smell remains, but it's mostly masked by the smell of the soap at this point.  I'm sure a few shaves and it will be gone for good.  If not, then I'll break out the oxi-clean.

Summary:  My initial impressions is that this is a huge bargain for the price and I'm very glad I got it.  Do I like it as much as the Savile Row?  No.  However, considering that I can have 4+ of these for the price of one Savile Row...  The Savile Row is definitely not 4 times better.  Maybe twice as good?  Maybe. If I could get this for the 29.99 they want for it and the Savile Row for 59.99 -- I'd get two of each probably -- stupid AD!

@"Uzi" Well done. For the price this is a great brush. I actually feels better than some of the more $$ brushes I own. I faced lathered with it and it held a good lather, but it was not a lather hog. Felt soft to my face, not a lot of noticeable scritchy feeling.

Uzi pretty much covered the basics and I agree with him. Of course, it is not a Shavemac knot, but it is very good and I have no regrets. The handle is pretty nice and it feels good in the hand.

Overall, I give this brush an 8 out of 10 in that price range.

doesn't have the familiar road-kill smell that makes you throw up in your mouth a little.  

So perfect.

Thanks for the thoughts to you both @"Uzi" and hrfdez . Sounds like there's another great offering in the badger space that is affordable. The post shave bloom shots look fantastic-well done ezlovan !

Thanks, guys. Glad the brush worked out okay!