I hate this battle… is ‘free’ shipping cheaper or is just paying shipping and getting the item cheaper.
Bingo! “Free” shipping ain’t free.
I’m also the queen of ordering a roll of vetrap to get to the free shipping minimum. Somebody will use it.
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Yes. I have a friend who seems to always be losing mane pulling combs, I find those a good way to get to the free shipping too.
I ended up ordering from these guys in the UK – when I ordered, they had a really nice sale, so the shipping/import costs weren’t prohibitive. HAAS Brushes – Showponyprep.com (myshopify.com). Took about 4 weeks to arrive, but I love them! I have the grey combo pack – LOVE the Schimmel; it truly is amazing at getting rolled-in dirt/dried mud off. TBH, I’m not sure if I get the difference between the Military & the Cavalierre brushes (I always forget the order I’m supposed to use them in, lol), but they are both really nice quality and I like the raised edges. The “Welsh Gloss” is a really terrific finishing brush; nice on sensitive skin. Feels like they’ll last forever. I think they’re worth it!
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Hey fargaloo! Do you find it’s cheaper to order items from the UK or are shipping, duty exchange the same as the US,
I remember at the time with the exchange rate, the sale price, etc. it worked out cheaper than wherever I was looking at the the US that would ship to Canada… sorry, this past year is a bit of a blur lol and I can’t remember where I was comparison shopping! I think @BigMama1 also bought some around the same time – she might be more helpful!
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I purchased mine from Eqclusive. Got them super quickly, no duties. Lucked out as a friend ordered with me so we split on shipping.
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Bought brushes, waited foreevvvverrrrr for them to A) go on sale, B) be delivered to cross-border broker, and C) partner to go pick-them up from the broker. I have been talking about these brushes to anyone who’ll listen for the past six weeks and FINALLY had the chance to use them today!
Verdict: I love them. Wish I’d bought nicer brushes sooner! Makes me think my “can-never-get-him-properly-clean-because-of-all-the-dust-under-his-coat” gelding was just a victim of really shoddy brushes all those years. Managed to get a shine on my mare like I can’t get without using water or MiracleGroom … so very satisfying!
I bought the Pony, Parcour, and Cavaliere. Used them on a dark bay (almost black) summer coat. Great results! The Parcour and Cavaliere together did the trick, I’d planned to save the Pony for when her coat starts to get long again. Bonus, she seemed to adore the brushes too … her lips were really going as I brushed around her chest and neck which is never usually the case.
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I ordered mine from Eqclusive too. Fast shipping, no additional fees for customs or duty. LOVE the brushes. They really do make a noticeable difference. Everyone comments on my horse’s coat now. Totally worth the splurge. 100% recommend.
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I just had to come update this thread. Thought of you all last night was grooming and never in 45 yrs of being owned by horses have I EVER (OR MY HORSES) so enjoyed grooming. From the Schimmel that just digs in and gets the dirt out to the softer Grundy’s Finest and then that fabulous Diva with the soft sheepskin in the middle for faces.
My horses look at me adoringly now during grooming.
I also have their mane and tail brush and love it.
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So, this thread enabled me to take the plunge and order the “chesnut” set of brushes for my new lease horse. I AM SO EXCITED. Cannot wait to get to the barn this afternoon to try them out.
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Y’all keep bumping the thread so I’m going to post a picture of my horse.
I’m not going to say all this is good brushes, because I have my pride, but it’s certainly easier to put a gloss on a horse in 5 minutes with these than my previous.
He’s also never been this particular color before, and I don’t get tired of looking at him.
ETA: normal pre-ride is Cavalier, Lipizzaner, Parcour; post-ride Parcour and Coat Gloss, or more realistically a cold shower because he doesn’t sweat. Schimmel brings that mane over to one side of his neck for about 5 minutes. Diva for face and ears.
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@Renn_aissance he’s so lovely. Dappled!
I’m going to post a picture of my lease girl the next time I go out. I was amazed at how much dirt came out of her coat with the curry and brushes! Also, she seemed to really love it. Literally leaned into the experience. 
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This thread is dangerous. Until now, I called my Diva my “fancy brush” and was happy to handwring over spending another penny to expand my collection. But your enthusiasm and your results (!!! @Renn_aissance!!!) are pushing me to pull the trigger.
I have a thin skinned buckskin WB who takes more after her TB daddy than her thicker skinned forebears and who, in her more mareish moments, takes offense to even the Tiger’s Tongue and Haas Diva. She’s got a fairly light coat (last year required no clip even in work, this year clipped once towards end of winter/early spring when she stopped shedding out abruptly.) Pre-Covid I had gotten her to begrudgingly accept the softest of nubby rubber mitts, as well as some other random brushes, but grooming was never her fave passtime.
Lately it’s been Tigers Tongue and done most days, but I would like to expand our repertoire and get her back to shining a bit. She has a nasty habit of sleeping in her own poop and of what I like to call “ruffling her feathers” on her hind end and none of my tools can make that hair lie flat. She lives in the land of the dreaded red clay… mud season is a nightmare (California, I miss you!) Anyways, I want to see her smooth and shiny! I am also sick of low quality brushes that don’t hold shape and that shed.
To that end, what think the Haas experts about the following choices?
- Schimmel for poo stains (and mud?)
- Amazone to bring up the dust and scruff
- Grundy’s Finest or Kopfsburste (must admit I prefer natural colors over blue so leaning towards latter - am weird!) or Fellburste Noir (does it act like a flick brush?) to rid ourselves of said dust and add some shine
- Diva - for final touches which I already have and love
None, with the exception of Fellburste Noir seem long enough to flick. Does that affect your results? Do any seem redundant? Am I missing anything? Are any too harsh for my paperthin-skinned princess? Also, I can’t see either of their curries going over well, since I can barely get her to tolerate one of these some days:
Am I wrong? The curries look harsh, relatively speaking.
Any suggestions or guidance before I drop $$$ would be much appreciated! You all have created a monster… but I am excited about it!
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That selection of brushes (Schimmel, Amazone, Grundy’s Finest and Diva) are exactly the Haas brushes that I have. My own horse is a dirt magnet, or maybe a better way of putting it is that dirt exerts a magnetic pull on her! Rolling is how she rolls. And she’s a gray of course.
That set of brushes does a great job. They bring a (depressing) amount of dirt up from the undercoat as you use them. If my horse has some really thick, caked-on dirt (or poop) I do go over it first with a soft curry. I still own a classic dandy brush, but I don’t use it very often.
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I had two grey mares as a junior and I FEEL YOUR PAIN! I am fortunate that poop kind of blends in with current girl’s coat if I rub enough. Lol. Thanks for the feedback… Seems like I may be on the right track! Is your lady at all sensitive? Are any of those particularly harsh? Thanks again!
She’s not particularly sensitive, no. But she does object to any brush that is super stiff. The stiffest of those brushes is the Schimmel, but it’s not at all harsh.
You may find that your horse, as a sensitive beast, really prefers the Grundy’s Finest. My previous horse was a TB mare who was very sensitive, and the Grundy’s Finest was far and away her preferred brush. But she also was not a hardcore dirt addict.
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My kind of groomer!
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@erinmeri, the curry was not too harsh for my sensitive chestnut OTTB mare (it’s a nice soft material, not hard plastic). But I have two other curries from Epona that are just as gentle, if not more gentle, and you might want to look into those as well.
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