# Corona Brush Review



## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

Bush Review

Corona Edge 2.5” flat Chinex

Paint Used-Benjamin Moore Dulamel semi-gloss OC-118 Snowfall White—Pure, no slicker added

I grabbed this brush by accident when I was rushing through the store; I thought it was China bristle. Whoops. I didn’t discover this until I got home and was putting my purchases away. I can’t help the fact that I am a brush *****; if I go in a paint store I usually get a brush or two This translates into having 50 new brushes but only using the same six or seven. I pulled the cover off and examined it. Looks a lot like White China, stiffer than natural bristle and the brush is more densely packed than white china brushes. The extra bristles are a staple in the Corona brushes.

I am painting my wife’s office at home and had three windows to paint. I decided I would have a brush off; three windows, three brushes. My go to trim brush is a Purdy 2.5” Elasco flat. This brush looks like it got caught in the garbage disposal but once it hits the paint it is primo. The second brush was a Corona 2.5” flat Suave 50/50 Black China and Ox Ear.

Paint used was Benjamin Moore Dulamel Semi-Gloss. This stuff levels like no other and you can hide an elephant with it.

The first up to bat was the Corona China/Ox. This brush holds lots of paint and fits my style of painting. I am a brusher not a not a painter; it’s called a brush not a scrub. I love the sound of the brush making that quiet whisper when it passes over the wood. I dip, slap, slap and drag. This brush is beautiful, gets into corners nicely, cuts well and contours to the surround molding perfectly. It leaves an almost mirror like finish when you are finished. The gold standard for oil and trim work.

The Purdy was in the next slot. This is a 2.5” brush that is very thick; it is essentially a 2.5” Swan with a long handle. It is the small brush that paints big. This brush leaves a finish that is only marginally behind the natural brush in finish. It is a bit stiffer and being thick holds a lot of paint. This brush lets me work quicker with my style without too much drop off in performance and results. I do 90%of my work with this brush, I love it.

Last but not least is the Corona 2.5” Chinex. Since it is a new brush it gets my unprofessional break in. This consists of brushing the rough cedar which surrounds my garage door for aggressively for about 5-10 minutes while I have a cup of coffee or a smoke or both. I then rinse the brush in mineral spirits, wire brush, final rinse and spin out with the spinner.

I was amazed that this brush when pulled from the paint and slapped one time on each side didn’t drip. Looking at it you could see that the brush had swelled quite a bit. I was apprehensive about putting to wood for fear of it letting go of all that paint and making a mess. Not to mention making me mad. It didn’t. The paint had a nice smooth release as the brush glided over the wood with that faint whisper. So far so good. This brush is quite a bit stiffer than the other two. While this made it easier to lay down the paint it compromised maneuverability. Corners were a shade tougher but it edge well. All in all a very nice brush.

The finish the following day looked really nice but still behind the Purdy and other natural bristled Corona. The brush marks were somewhat deeper than the previous two but very acceptable. I think with more use or inventive break in regime this brush could run with the Purdy. As it is it is too stiff and leaves a few too many brush marks. But, some of my customers restoring their 1920’s craftsman bungalows actually like some brush marks as a badge of honor(hand painted trim). This brush will work perfectly for those occasions.

I hope this will help if you have thought about picking up a Chinex brush for your quiver; it may be exactly what you are looking for.


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## bikerboy (Sep 16, 2007)

I like the Chinex brushes, but I believe they are for latex not oil use. If that is the case, it's nice to know its versatile.


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## ProWallGuy (Apr 7, 2007)

"Last but not least is the Corona 2.5” Chinex."

Did you mean the Wooster?


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

ProWallGuy said:


> "Last but not least is the Corona 2.5” Chinex."
> 
> Did you mean the Wooster?


I had the top wrong, the review is for a Corona. It was early and I had only one cup of coffee.


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## ProWallGuy (Apr 7, 2007)

Want me to edit that for ya?


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## MAK-Deco (Apr 17, 2007)

All tho I believe wooster came out with a chinex brush too. I have not tried it yet.


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

ProWallGuy said:


> Want me to edit that for ya?


You're hired. Be nice though.


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## ProWallGuy (Apr 7, 2007)

stansoph said:


> You're hired.


Done. I left the invoice on your kitchen table. Please remit full payment within 15 days to avoid penalties and further embarrassment.


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

ProWallGuy said:


> Done. I left the invoice on your kitchen table. Please remit full payment within 15 days to avoid penalties and further embarrassment.


Do you take pennies? I have a lot of them.

Now that I have an editor I can submit my review of One Night With Pamela Anderson; light on the text with crazy video. I also have a Ferrari 360 Modena F1 review as well as a laymans ride on the space shuttle.


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## plainpainter (Nov 6, 2007)

I use chinex for water based oil paints like Devoe Mirrolac. I haven't experimented with much other than that - I have all the different purdy blends and have tried it with different paints - but the more I experiment, the more I can't make up my mind what is the right brush for the job - so most of the time just end up using my wooster lindeback 3" angle sash pro/extra firm. Heck - once I was stuck with a 3" dale purdy pro-extra brush - the really deep blue kind - and had to paint baseboards with Moore's low-lustre oil trim paint - and man it did a great job! I haven't bothered to try it since - as I always reach for china bristle when I get oil paints - old habits die hard I guess. There is one brush that sticks in my mind as great for latex solid stains - the Elder&Jenks china/polyester blend brush. You'd think with china bristles that it would swell with a waterbase paint - but man it really rocks - especially with Sherwin's woodscapes product.


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

plainpainter said:


> I use chinex for water based oil paints like Devoe Mirrolac. I haven't experimented with much other than that - I have all the different purdy blends and have tried it with different paints - but the more I experiment, the more I can't make up my mind what is the right brush for the job - so most of the time just end up using my wooster lindeback 3" angle sash pro/extra firm. Heck - once I was stuck with a 3" dale purdy pro-extra brush - the really deep blue kind - and had to paint baseboards with Moore's low-lustre oil trim paint - and man it did a great job! I haven't bothered to try it since - as I always reach for china bristle when I get oil paints - old habits die hard I guess. There is one brush that sticks in my mind as great for latex solid stains - the Elder&Jenks china/polyester blend brush. You'd think with china bristles that it would swell with a waterbase paint - but man it really rocks - especially with Sherwin's woodscapes product.


I feel your pain brother. I have a couple of the ProExtra Elasco's and want badly to put them into the rotation but I haven't done enough testing. I have 4 2.5 XL Elasco's waiting in the wings if something happens to my current. I have to have a backup for the backup for the backup. Kind of neurotic;but I make my living with it.


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## plainpainter (Nov 6, 2007)

I've actually done better with testing roller sleeves - I got a bunch of these really cheap purdy bright yellow sleeves for putting on primer - and ended up using them for the accolade topcoats - and they rocked - no lint in the paint job whatsoever! You can get three of those sleeves for the price of a purdy dove white sleeve.


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## Dmax Consulting (Jul 22, 2008)

Good info. Where do you get the corona brushes? Does ben moore carry them?


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

Dmax Consulting said:


> Good info. Where do you get the corona brushes? Does ben moore carry them?


I get all my brushes from:

www.thepaintstore.com

They have every brush made by Purdy, Corona and Wooster. The prices are great too.


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