My beloved Grooma Comb (the one with a plastic body and metal wiggly teeth) finally snapped in half after, oh, 20-25 years and it looks like they are no longer made. Any suggestions for one that’s similar? In perusing the usual sites, I haven’t seen one like the Grooma, especially the wiggly metal teeth part that were so effective at untangling knots without pulling out hair.
RIP Grooma Comb. I should have realized you were too elderly for combing burrs out of donkey fur. 
I don’t use a comb.
Instead, Dollar Tree hairbrushes - the ones with widely spaced bristles, each topped by a rounded end.
I have one that is over 10yo & if/when it does break, replacement is $1.
5yo one works on the trolldoll mane of my mini.
I have converted a friend who does his own awesome show prep for Hackney Ponies & minis.
His mini stud & mare have tails that are double the length of their bodies - kept braided & wrapped, but brushed out weekly.
Tail Brushing method taught to me by a showgroom:
Twist entire length of tail into a rope.
Starting at the bottom, brush through small - 6" - sections, working your way up.
You will never find more than a couple hairs in your brush doing this.
I used cheapo, wide spaced brushes like 2DogsFarm. The method I was taught by an old school TB farm owner was:
I don’t use a comb. I use the Oster brush like this:
https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/oster-mane-and-tail-brush-8857
Really, any human or horse mane/tail brush will do as long as it has wide rubber-tipped bristles. This is just the one I personally like.
I also use this to brush out the tail:
https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/carr-and-day-and-martin-canter-silk-mane-and-tail-conditioner--80
Now, this is not an every day product as it’s still silicon-based so can be drying when overused, but it’s MUCH better than Show Sheen. Show Sheen feels atrocious after using this stuff. It’s a little more expensive, but you use it sparingly and for clinics/shows, so it’s really not too bad.
The tricks to not ripping out the hair are to using the spray and letting it dry. That’s what gets a lot of people. They spray the tail and then immediately start ripping at the tail, which causes a lot of damage. Wait for the spray to dry, then hold onto the tail and start brushing from the bottom without pulling on the top (you pull against your hand that’s holding the tail instead of pulling on the actual hair.) There shouldn’t be much real pulling either because the brush should glide right through. You work your way up the tail slowly, takes 10 minutes and bam, show-ready tail.
Best tail photos I could find. 99% of the time his tail goes untouched except for picking sticks or hay out of it.
I use a Wet Brush on my hair and my horse’s tail. We each have our own 
The flexible bristles are very effective at detangling without pulling.
https://www.target.com/p/the-original-wet-brush-detangler-hair-brush/-/A-54282451
Believe it or not, I mucked out the bathroom closet today and unearthed one of those, still in the package! Did consider it for barn use. 
I love the Tail Tamer brush.
Put me down in the camp of human brushes for horses. I use a generic wide-toothed comb made for curly hair rather than a horse-specific brush. It doesn’t snag the hair like the pin brushes. You can find them all over the place and for only a couple bucks.
That! Hate watching people rip out a freshly sprayed tail while complaining about poor tail quality. Spray first. Groom rest of horse. Gently pick through tail last.
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