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Dupont bristles

spruce

The Sprucefather
Messages
8,994
Location
Teesside
This is seriously not a wind up.

I have to admit that all this brush talk of late has just gone right over my head. The latest talk is of Dupont bristles. What is that? Why are they better than ordinary bristles? Why do we need hybrid bristles and why do cleaners rave about hogs hair bristles? I have no understanding about these. 

I have a brush with inner hybrid bristles but I can't tell if the brush works better that one of my standard brushes or not. I can't tell the difference between them in application.

I have been hoping that someone does an indepth explanation of the advantages and disadvantages of these various bristles so I can understand what benefit I'm supposed to be getting.

I understand splay and stiffer inner bristles.

Simply, I prefer a sill brush over a standard Ultimate brush as it does 2 jobs at the same time and has more bristles. But I don't like the extra weight penalty.

 
This is seriously not a wind up.
I have to admit that all this brush talk of late has just gone right over my head. The latest talk is of Dupont bristles. What is that? Why are they better than ordinary bristles? Why do we need hybrid bristles and why do cleaners rave about hogs hair bristles? I have no understanding about these. 

I have a brush with inner hybrid bristles but I can't tell if the brush works better that one of my standard brushes or not. I can't tell the difference between them in application.

I have been hoping that someone does an indepth explanation of the advantages and disadvantages of these various bristles so I can understand what benefit I'm supposed to be getting.

I understand splay and stiffer inner bristles.

Simply, I prefer a sill brush over a standard Ultimate brush as it does 2 jobs at the same time and has more bristles. But I don't like the extra weight penalty.
I must admit, I don’t know what makes DuPont Bristles any better than standard nylon, but having got 15months out of a Tucker DT with hardly a lost bristle and it’s still Cleaning well there must be something in it. It’s been the longest lasting brush.

I use it every day for all maintenance cleans.

I’ve used mainly Gardiner brushes which are decent and an Xline which was ok, just not as good as Gardiners. Both lost bristles & needed replacing after about 8/9months of daily use.

I use a Gardiners flocked still brush for fascia and conservatory roof cleans,first cleans etc.

Regarding the hog hair, I can only guess that part of what makes it clean so well is the scales on the hair that would lift dirt away as opposed to nylon having smooth filaments.

The filament of natural hair being finer but still relatively hard wearing.

The cons being it’ll probably wear faster.

Why DuPont though? No idea but the one I have does well for me & has lasted well.

Although If someone tried selling a brush with the title

‘Nylon bristle water fed pole brush’

It doesn’t sound very Gucci[emoji23]

That’s my two penn’orth [emoji6]

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I’m far from an expert in my experience i have being using the ultimate range.

what I have found is listed below. 

1. Flock brilliant for leadedgret scrubbing power but get clogged up easily feels a little drag probably because it’s single trim.

2. Medium soft this is a good all round brush especially in summer as I found bird muck cleans quite easily off windows and frames.

3. Medium this I found really good in the winter months where bird muck isn’t baked on  it as a fast cleaning action and good for rinsing on.

4. DuPont hybrid the bristles feel quite fine but firm super fast cleaning on the glass one thing I noticed it glides like a silky smooth action over astragal bars as I prefer a soft bristle just in case I dislodge the bars. The inner bristle with little pressure were cleaning dirty frames with ease today with little effort. 

It has a really fast cleaning with the scrubbing power more than my other brush I own it’s a winner in every aspect apart from leaded I still prefer my flock brush for that. another bonus Alex reduced the weight by 5g lol compared to the other ultimate range.

this is only after one day and I’m already convinced it’s the best brush I own.

 
Brushes are over priced. Nearly £40 for the DuPont! And before people come on here saying how much that brush earns you, yeah it does earn me money but they're still overpriced.

 
The DuPont bristle that Tucker use is a very high quality nylon. The bristle itself is almost transparent so quality control in manufacture is assured. The bristle on the glass is like skating on ice so even if the brush is slightly heavier it simply doesn’t feel like it as it’s very efficient at shedding water with a low absorption level. We’ve been using the Tucker brushes over here (NZ) for many years now and although really quite expensive in comparison to most others the quality of the build and longevity and lack of wear on the bristles pay for itself over the long term. When you talk expensive? I don’t believe they are. Ask a manufacturer and he’ll tell you that depending on quantity the bristle can be up to 6x the price of the bog standard nylon. The latest range of RHG Tucker aren’t at the quality level of the originals but they’ve been lightened and manufactured for the CF Pole market and in my opinion are still excellent. WCW Phantom Dual Trim is absolutely identical (bar block colour) to the UK built Tucker’s before he jumped ship and started waving the ‘Made in the US’ flag.

is this why there are now so many DuPont bristle versions in the UK? Manufacturer left high and dry with a container load of bristle? ?

136AA5E6-4061-4E40-8900-C8E9E652B8DD.jpeg

 
All brushes are a rip off. Most are 30 quid plus vat plus delivery .

£40 quid or so for a piece of plastic with some bristles attached.

Like most window cleaning gear the suppliers are having our pants down.

I mean if you can buy a standard floor brush head for a few quid then why the massive difference for a window cleaning brush? 

 
All brushes are a rip off. Most are 30 quid plus vat plus delivery .

£40 quid or so for a piece of plastic with some bristles attached.

Like most window cleaning gear the suppliers are having our pants down.

I mean if you can buy a standard floor brush head for a few quid then why the massive difference for a window cleaning brush? 
Simple economics. Standard floor brush heads are made in runs of 1000’s if not 100s of 1000s. Window Brushes ... custom specified ... batches of what 25-100? I don’t think you’ll find that suppliers are making obscene margins on them.

 
@spruce you must have missed the other post, So mono bristles on a medium mixed brush fairly stiff can bounce on lead almost swipes over bird muck and other mess at  times and doesn't deal that well with spider poo on frames or spider nests wedged in top corner of door frame with trim round just manages to push it further into the corner. 

Dupont bristles the outer bristles on the Gardiner are almost as soft as flocked bristles melt onto frame and glass and blitz dirt,bird muck and spider poo easily they swipe dirt of the window sill without the bristles become loaded with debris and easily deals with spider nests wedge in corners. The natural inner bristles also easily deal with stubborn bird muck without to much effort. 

The Gardiners is 175g and actually feels lighter and i am also less fatigued at the end of a working day due to the way it easily glides over the glass and frames. Other suppliers selling dupont brushes their weights are 205g, 275g and beyond and one has mono bristles of which I don't see the point.

 
The DuPont bristle that Tucker use is a very high quality nylon. The bristle itself is almost transparent so quality control in manufacture is assured. The bristle on the glass is like skating on ice so even if the brush is slightly heavier it simply doesn’t feel like it as it’s very efficient at shedding water with a low absorption level. We’ve been using the Tucker brushes over here (NZ) for many years now and although really quite expensive in comparison to most others the quality of the build and longevity and lack of wear on the bristles pay for itself over the long term. When you talk expensive? I don’t believe they are. Ask a manufacturer and he’ll tell you that depending on quantity the bristle can be up to 6x the price of the bog standard nylon. The latest range of RHG Tucker aren’t at the quality level of the originals but they’ve been lightened and manufactured for the CF Pole market and in my opinion are still excellent. WCW Phantom Dual Trim is absolutely identical (bar block colour) to the UK built Tucker’s before he jumped ship and started waving the ‘Made in the US’ flag.

is this why there are now so many DuPont bristle versions in the UK? Manufacturer left high and dry with a container load of bristle? ?

View attachment 13213


Are those brushes both from WCW Eric? Their images make them look like they have zero splay? 

 
Simple economics. Standard floor brush heads are made in runs of 1000’s if not 100s of 1000s. Window Brushes ... custom specified ... batches of what 25-100? I don’t think you’ll find that suppliers are making obscene margins on them.


So Vikan only make 25-100 at a time? They sell at about £25 a brush. A mate of mine owns a brush making company, mainly brooms and stuff like that. I tried to get him to into making WFP brushes but he wasn't interested. I bet he could knock brushes out a darn sight cheaper than what we see on the internet!

 
I don't think the amount produced will have that much bearing on cost.

The initial and biggest cost will be in the design and setting the machinery up to produce the design.

Like printers you pay a setup cost.

Once that's done and you have the tooling setup the cost per unit will be minimal .

How much can a slither of plastic and some nylon cost?

 
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So Vikan only make 25-100 at a time? They sell at about £25 a brush. A mate of mine owns a brush making company, mainly brooms and stuff like that. I tried to get him to into making WFP brushes but he wasn't interested. I bet he could knock brushes out a darn sight cheaper than what we see on the internet!
Vikan have made brooms, like forever. They probably fell into water fed by accident when the first DIY guy rammed a pair of jets through their flocked truck brush. ?

 
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Do you guys listen to yourselves? :1f602:  In one post you brag about easily taking home £200+ a day, then you complain about a custom made brush head for our trade is too expensive?

Why does a Makita drill cost so much? Why does Hilti tools end up being extraordinarily expensive? They are quality tools a carpenter can use day in and day out. Do you ever see an professional carpenter with black and decker kit? Not likely, because it's not worth it since the end up breaking. Yes, the higher price can often come down to the quality control in the factory, where cheaper tools are showeled out with lower standards, and more expensive tools are guaranteed to work properly.

Just buy the brush mate, quality has its price.

 
Do you guys listen to yourselves? :1f602:  In one post you brag about easily taking home £200+ a day, then you complain about a custom made brush head for our trade is too expensive?

Why does a Makita drill cost so much? Why does Hilti tools end up being extraordinarily expensive? They are quality tools a carpenter can use day in and day out. Do you ever see an professional carpenter with black and decker kit? Not likely, because it's not worth it since the end up breaking. Yes, the higher price can often come down to the quality control in the factory, where cheaper tools are showeled out with lower standards, and more expensive tools are guaranteed to work properly.

Just buy the brush mate, quality has its price.


I'm a joiner and I have Festool, as you say quality never fails or nearly never fails. The problem is the price. If you work on a building site then you buy black & decker because it might get nicked. We live in a throw away society, so maybe the future is a £10 brush which you change every 6 months.

 
I'm a joiner and I have Festool, as you say quality never fails or nearly never fails. The problem is the price. If you work on a building site then you buy black & decker because it might get nicked. We live in a throw away society, so maybe the future is a £10 brush which you change every 6 months.
But that £10 brush is false economy as it won't clean as well or as quickly as a quality brush. Might save you £30 but cost you a days pay over that 6 months 

 
Less likely someone will steal a bush but they may start stealing the poles when they realise how much they cost! With everyone got their name on the vans it would be an easy target. I would take mine in at night just in case.

 
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