# What's more preferred, Wooster or Purdy?



## PaintShopTillamook (May 14, 2020)

What do contractors and homeowners prefer more, Wooster or Purdy paint applicators (brushes, rollercovers etc.) Do you find there's a gap between pros and homeowners, or do they generally align on this? I've always been a Purdy brush person, and until recently their handles were made 10 miles north of me in Bay City. I've always felt they lay paint on much more smoothly and with less brushstrokes, as well as lasting a few years longer.


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## mattbhm (May 21, 2020)

PaintShopTillamook said:


> What do contractors and homeowners prefer more, Wooster or Purdy paint applicators (brushes, rollercovers etc.) Do you find there's a gap between pros and homeowners, or do they generally align on this? I've always been a Purdy brush person, and until recently their handles were made 10 miles north of me in Bay City. I've always felt they lay paint on much more smoothly and with less brushstrokes, as well as lasting a few years longer.



From experience, both make good applicators. I'll use whatever is available.


I find myself using more Wooster rollers and more Purdy brushes. I also find that Purdy makes pretty good stuff across the board whereas Wooster has some pretty awful rollers that they sell at either lowes or home depot(don't remember). Haven't found a Purdy product that I thought was really bad.


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## Joe67 (Aug 12, 2016)

Since there aren't (supposed to be?) homeowners around here, you won't learn much about that one. Is this some manner of marketing research?


Wooster brushes all day long. Can't stand the Purdys except for slop work where I'll use the few I have to spare the Woosters the abuse.


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

Neither. Elder and Jenks all day. Corona if you can't find E&J.


As a dealer get better pricing on E&J covers than wooster as well


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## Joe67 (Aug 12, 2016)

I've never seen an E&J for sale anywhere. Perhaps I'll order a couple and try them out. But apparently they were acquired why Whizz? I can't tell when. I've never been wild about Whizz rollers so I wouldn't be surprised if the E&J quality might slide away after the acquisition.


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

Joe67 said:


> I've never seen an E&J for sale anywhere. Perhaps I'll order a couple and try them out. But apparently they were acquired why Whizz? I can't tell when. I've never been wild about Whizz rollers so I wouldn't be surprised if the E&J quality might slide away after the acquisition.


E&J manufacturers items for whizz, they are manufacturered in the same facility, same equipment and same employees in new jersey. The acquisition happened a bit more than a year ago.

You can order them through thepaintstore.com or I can ship them as well just send me a pm.


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

*Purdy vs. Wooster*

Not gonna say which is better, since it's absolutely a personal preference, but the only Purdy applicators I ever use anymore is their mini rollers. They have some of the best mini rollers in the biz IMHO. 

-Purdy mini roller frames & covers
-Wooster 9"-18" frames & poles
-E & J Brushes, (but don't tell my Wooster Alphas I said that!)

If you haven't tried an E & J Gen X or even their Gen Y, you're missing out, and quite possibly still a Corona fan.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

PaintShopTillamook said:


> What do contractors and homeowners prefer more, Wooster or Purdy paint applicators (brushes, rollercovers etc.) Do you find there's a gap between pros and homeowners, or do they generally align on this? I've always been a Purdy brush person, and until recently their handles were made 10 miles north of me in Bay City. I've always felt they lay paint on much more smoothly and with less brushstrokes, as well as lasting a few years longer.


I like Corona brushes, and I could give a rat's patooty what a homeowner likes.


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## Woodco (Nov 19, 2016)

corona brushes, wooster rollers and stuff. Purdy sucks.


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## cardgunner (Feb 29, 2016)

Both oif those are my last choice. I'm leaning more towards Arroworthy Rembrandt and Corona. The Rembrandts cut in great, clean up better. I'm not sold on the finish. For trim I might go with a Corona. But for those tights cuts the Rembrandt.


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## Vylum (May 12, 2016)

im convinced theres isnt a better brush than the wooster ultra firm


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## celicaxx (May 29, 2015)

I miss the Jack Pauhl special, the Wooster Silver Tip 2.5" Oval Sash. They still make it, but it's 5/8" thick instead of 3/4" now. I could lay down immense amounts of paint with the bigger oval sash. 

Anyway, I would say potentially Purdy _could_ make a better trim brush, due to the tips being flagged, and generally being softer. Now the trend with low VOC fast dry paints is stiff brushes, like the Wooster Golds being fairly stiff. I've used Purdy for situations with trim paint, and on surfaces/situations where brush marks would not level out as easily, but they're not accurate cut brushes. They're sloooooooooooooow, too, and don't hold much paint. A lot of old timers like them as that's what they learned on, but no for me. For trim as well with the little bit of experience I have with Coronas, they're sort of like a Purdy if they were better, if that makes sense. 

Overall a Wooster Silver Tip would be the one brush to rule them all for any circumstance, to me anyway. 

For roller covers, I usually use Arroworthy, and am almost exclusively microfiber, and where I don't use Microfiber I try to ideally use a Wooster Microplush sort of hybrid. But, Wooster's microfibers are quite good as well, and might even be a tad better than Arroworthy. 

I also am kinda literally locked into Wooster, I have their quick connect Sherlock poles, so it's kind of a pain if I'm working with someone else and they have the Purdy pole and frames.


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## kmp (Jan 30, 2011)

I do not have access to a lot of brush's besides Purdy but have used others. I have never liked a stiff brush. they don't release enough paint, fill on a textured wall and just don't perform as well as a soft brush.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

I prefer a Purdy Pro-Extra Glide for cutting in walls and ceilings. Our textured surfaces are murder on softer bristled brushes and this model holds up fairly well. For all of my trim work I go with Coronas.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Here's a link to what I consider the definitive PT thread about brushes: 

https://www.painttalk.com/f12/my-brush-better-than-yours-24/


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## vwbowman (May 15, 2017)

As a contractor I started out with Purdy and then made the move to Corona brushes, as a salesman, Corona out sells all the others, even to the point that dedicated SW painters come in to buy their brushes. Specifically the Excalibur for cutting in and Vegas for applying Benjamin Moore's Advance for trim and cabinets.


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

I just noticed corona labels their handles as 'unlacqured'. are they really not sealed anymore?


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## fromthenorthwest (May 2, 2012)

I like Wooster Alpha, and also those orange Picasso brushes the last few years I have started to use more. Purdy brushes don't seem to hold their shape very good, in my opinion.


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## Joe67 (Aug 12, 2016)

cocomonkeynuts said:


> I just noticed corona labels their handles as 'unlacqured'. are they really not sealed anymore?



No idea. But you can always seal then yourself!


[Random story] In know this is cheezy, but in my early years I spent a summer with a contractor with a whole string of rough cedar siding houses in a newly built cookie-cutter neighborhood. I had a "favorite" siding brush that summer - some manner of Wooster 3" siding brush. It became a mess, of course.


At the end of the whole thing I actually sanded the thing back to bare wood, rubbed on some manner of stain and put some spar urethane on it. The bristles were beat down, but I made it look and feel nice again! And it was still functional for many things. I know that to many it sounds stupid as brushes are just utilitarian tools. But I get attached to things. That summer (sometime in the 90s) was probably when I got to feel like I was a "painter."



I think that brush eventually ended up as a duster, and it might even still be in my stuff somewhere. Funny the life-cycle of a paint brush.


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## STAR (Nov 26, 2010)

Wooster ultra pro firm fanboy here:smile:


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## Krittterkare (Jul 12, 2013)

Purdy has a number of different brushes for different applications and preferences and some lines of brushes do suck but the ones I do like have a great bristle count which I think is important ans the ability of the bristles to basically wick up the paint and then release the paint beyond the paint clinging to the bristles when you apply more pressure. 

I buy "lots" of Purdy Brushes on Ebay, factory seconds that have a crack in the handle or the bristles were not tapered correctly, like 4 or 6 brushes for the price of one and trimming the bristles properly makes them as good as new. 

Cleaning the brushes right is key for long term life, People who soak their brushes in paint water kills the wicking effect. 

People can hate on Purdy but their good brushes are good, I have had brushes that served me well for a few years and lasted another few years for back brushing or used for waterborne stains.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fr...shes+lot.TRS0&_nkw=purdy+brushes+lot&_sacat=0


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## BhamPainter (Mar 6, 2013)

Corona oval sash tynex/orel is my dream brush, but nobody carries them in my neighborhood. People talk about Wooster Alphas like they're all that, but I've never been very impressed--don't clean very well, leave pretty thick brush strokes on interiors, and get ruined pretty quickly. Purdy Pro Glide 3.5" is my exterior trim brush, 3" XL Glide (because I can't find a 3.5") for interior work.

Wooster poles and rollers, including mini-rollers.


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## tomaszg (May 16, 2019)

cocomonkeynuts said:


> Neither. Elder and Jenks all day. Corona if you can't find E&J.
> 
> 
> As a dealer get better pricing on E&J covers than wooster as well


Agree 100%


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