# Purdy going down hill....



## Kelly Painting (Apr 17, 2007)

Has anyone else noticed a decline in Purdy brush quality lately?
Did they get bought?


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## Thepaintman (Jan 17, 2008)

I heard a rumor that Sherwin Williams bought them out although I am not sure.

Jerry


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## timhag (Sep 30, 2007)

Haven't had any problems with purdy brushes in the past 7 years. Also, haven't heard anything about them being bought by anyone. Tried to do a google search coming up with nothing.


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## ProWallGuy (Apr 7, 2007)

Purdy was bought by SW a year or two ago. I've heard a few complaints on dropping quality, but who says it just ain't in their head. I wouldn't know myself, I use a real brush. :yes:


_*ducks and runs for cover*_


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## Rich (Apr 26, 2007)

Yeah, purdy was bought out by an overseas company a year or 2 ago...
what are you noticing Kelly?


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## Kelly Painting (Apr 17, 2007)

Just loosing more bristles, and warping while drying.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

Say it aint so!! Is nothing sacred! 

I guess if I survived Titan being sold to Wagner, I can try to weather this one out...


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## glenn (Dec 21, 2007)

*superbowl*



timhag said:


> Haven't had any problems with purdy brushes in the past 7 years. Also, haven't heard anything about them being bought by anyone. Tried to do a google search coming up with nothing.


 
gooooooooooooooooooooooooo PATS:yes: :yes: :yes:


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## glenn (Dec 21, 2007)

Purdy has been ok with me however I laid my brushes down 2 years ago except for home,you know the honey do list.I am now running Mythic Paint store in Bedford Hills NY


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## HomeGuardPaints (Jan 17, 2008)

^^^^^^^^^^
Shameless advertiser and only 7 posts in, Good one Glenn, 
hope the pats lose.


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

I just did a quick inventory check, all the Purdys we have in the shop right now still have the little sticker on them that says "made with pride by Mei Ling, and Min Pai and Ji Ya. I guess thats a good sign.


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## The paint whisperer (Oct 18, 2007)

Two years ago, I switched from Purdy Corona and never look back since.:yes:


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## Roadog (Apr 18, 2007)

I prefer Corona and Wooster over Purdy. I will use a Purdy though as a duster brush!


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Shortly after SW bought purdy, the quality started to drop. They are still being manufactured in portland, yet i am sure there are other coners being cut to define the bottom line. 
I still got a good sized stock of older purdy brushes, and i am using more woosters, and coronas as well.


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## slickshift (Apr 8, 2007)

Stop buying them at the Home Despot
They are de-spec'd just like everything else over there


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## T200 (Nov 11, 2007)

Thepaintman said:


> I heard a rumor that Sherwin Williams bought them out although I am not sure.
> 
> Jerry


Aug. 10, 2004 
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) - Sherwin-Williams said Tuesday it'll pay $295 million, including the assumption of debt, for privately-held Purdy paintbrush maker Paint Sundry Brands Corp.


http://www.marketwatch.com/news/sto...x?guid={F8DD5016-B1E5-462A-84CF-43F7F862D21B}

Bought:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb053/is_200409/ai_n13137640


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## slickshift (Apr 8, 2007)

Well truthfully....
Those ferules are copper _colored _now (not copper), and do rust and loosen up over time
Traditionally this has not been an issue
I guess they figure most consumers don't keep their brushes long enough to notice
They are wrong


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## HomeGuardPaints (Jan 17, 2008)

this week at SW they took alot of brands off the shelf and were selling them on 80% clearance, If you want to buy a scraper or putty knife there now it will say Purdy and cost about $16. 

Lets just say I bought quite a few $2 putty knifes while i was there.


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## MAK-Deco (Apr 17, 2007)

ProWallGuy said:


> Purdy was bought by SW a year or two ago. I've heard a few complaints on dropping quality, but who says it just ain't in their head. I wouldn't know myself, I use a real brush. :yes:
> 
> 
> _*ducks and runs for cover*_


Pro is correct Purdy was bought a while back by SW which is owned by a big investment CO that loves to by up Co's and change things around. That is why all the BM stores (at least in Chicago area) dropped all purdy brushes and went to there own line which is made by wooster.


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## AALory (Mar 6, 2008)

I certainly have noticed a drop in quality. I have always shouted praise for the Wooster's hardware. Now I hope to be able to shout about their brushes. There are too few choices at the local retail shops. But we have to keep those guys in business.
Adam


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

slickshift said:


> Well truthfully....
> Those ferules are copper _colored _now (not copper), and do rust and loosen up over time
> Traditionally this has not been an issue
> I guess they figure most consumers don't keep their brushes long enough to notice
> They are wrong


I read that the ferrels were now copper plated. I have dropped a few Purdy;s on the ground and picked them up with bristles resembling a cow-lick. The copper is so soft that it bent when it hit the ground. I have tried to straighten them but they are effed up from then on.

I wonder if you could scratch the ferrel o see if it was plated? Then you know not to buy that brush.

As far as overall quality; I am getting the same as always. I do buy my brushes at the paint store and not HD or Lowes. I hate those two places and won't set foot in them. Even for free naked ladies.


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## Jannie (Dec 6, 2007)

I have been using the 2 1/2" Purdy Blue Jay Beavertail copper for interior work for about 3 1/2 years (and yes I am a brush addict, must have around 50+) but at the end of last summer I stocked up on half a dozen of my favorite brushes.

I had to go through the rack and check the chisel on each one, really terrible, not consistent at all. Then when I got them home I compared a couple and some seem to be thicker, than others and then I got two Nylox which I use of the long handle version for certain things and they paint completely like different brushes than each other, one is quite a bit stiffer than the other and it makes a difference. 

I had gone to my regular stores and they had stopped carrying the Purdy brushes so I'd had to go to HD. 

Anyway, someone on this forum was excited about the Corona Shelby Champagne and I ordered three of the 2 1/2" OMGosh they are wonderful, the new Purdy's are getting left for primer duties. Expensive lesson but my cutting seemed to improve instantly, and I'd thought I was already pretty good LOL, a welcome improvement. 

I've used and have half a dozen of the Corona Chinex ones but they're too stiff for most every interior work I do with the paints I'm using, too many brush marks but I do use them fairly well with Bullseye 123 primer and those brushes are nice because they wash up the primer very easily.
Jan


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

Jannie said:


> I have been using the 2 1/2" Purdy Blue Jay Beavertail copper for interior work for about 3 1/2 years (and yes I am a brush addict, must have around 50+) but at the end of last summer I stocked up on half a dozen of my favorite brushes.


I feel better about my brush fetish.


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## Jannie (Dec 6, 2007)

Yeah, the first couple of years I bought everything in sight, looking for the perfect set of brushes, now a lot of them are good but there's only a few I carry like you, generally 4 or 5 2 1/2", a 2", 1 1/2", 3" exterior and a couple of ovals. This is for interior wall work.
Jannie


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## stansoph (Dec 16, 2007)

Jannie said:


> Yeah, the first couple of years I bought everything in sight, looking for the perfect set of brushes, now a lot of them are good but there's only a few I carry like you, generally 4 or 5 2 1/2", a 2", 1 1/2", 3" exterior and a couple of ovals. This is for interior wall work.
> Jannie


If I buy anymore brushes I'm going to need a 12 Step Program.


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## patriotpainter (Jul 31, 2008)

slickshift said:


> Stop buying them at the Home Despot
> They are de-spec'd just like everything else over there


What proof do you have that the Purdy's at Home depot are Different than the ones at SW or a paint store?
I've heard this before and asked my local Purdy rep and he said its not true and would be the stupidest business decision since the Ford Edsel or New Coke?? Why would Purdy do this, It's not good for business!

I've bought a purdy brush from Lowes before (Sunday, paint store was closed, it was for a new hire) It had the exact jacket with the exact same bar codes with the exact same anti-theft device inside the jacket, the brush was identical to the one I bought online, write down to every letter on the handle.

Wooster does sale cheaper brushes to Lowes, but they have different names and jackets than the professional brushes at the paint store.


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## MAK-Deco (Apr 17, 2007)

Why would a purdy rep tell you that they do cheap down there brushes, that would be bad business for him. The Purdy's I have bought at HD, sucked! Purdy is part of the huge SW conglomerate and bottom line for that investment company is making money.


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## Masterpiece (Feb 26, 2008)

Granted I haven't tried every Purdy out there, but most were too soft and mushy for my tastes. I did pick up a Clearcut 3" flat that was ok but still prefer the Woosters. Last forever and keep their shape....
That being said, I'm still going to try a couple of different Purdys down the road....

Jeremy


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## greensboro84 (Feb 15, 2008)

I used my wooster again to stain a deck today. I've been spoiled by my purdy pro xtra. I strongly suggest trying your favorite style of brush in the pro extra series and give it a shot. I won't paint with anything else, unless I'm priming or staining, or the occasional oil or poly job. Now if i can just get my hands on a 4in pro xtra, ill be set


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## greensboro84 (Feb 15, 2008)

I do still like the xl for when i need a softer brush, I don't care for the nylox, but it is better quality than the xl series, just having the stainless steel ferrule makes it better than the xl in my book. As for wooster...only it i need to brush primer or need a duster.


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## patriotpainter (Jul 31, 2008)

MAK-Deco said:


> Why would a purdy rep tell you that they do cheap down there brushes, that would be bad business for him. The Purdy's I have bought at HD, sucked! Purdy is part of the huge SW conglomerate and bottom line for that investment company is making money.


I want to start by saying i'm not a Purdy man, I love my wooster brushes!
I believe Purdy betrayed and backstabbed all painters when they decided to sell to Home Depot and Lowes, They crapped all over the Mom and Pop Paint stores that built that brand from nothing, at least Purdy could have changed the names of the brushes or jackets or came out with a H.D. only line like Wooster does for Lowes. At least wooster protects the contractor lines by not selling them to Lowes, they have a entire different packaging and names (they are cheapened). But I will come to Purdy's defense when they are accused of Cheapening Brushes to sell to Home Depot.
Purdy is a company that has spent decades building a quality brand name, prefered by nearly 65% of painters and they would flush it down the toilet to screw the painters buying Purdy's at home depot, NO WAY. You don't make money buy LOSING customers. Since the brushes are all marked the same how does Purdy know which ones are "cheaped down"? Did they spend the enormous capital needed to open a "cheaped down factory" somewhere else? It doesn't make sense! It would not be worth the risk to Purdy to attempt this scam. Maybe they cheapened the entire XL line for everyone to push painters into the Pro Extra's, Who Know's?

Well I can go on all night, I like this forum, let me know if you still think they cheapen brushes or not, if so we can agree to disagree. have a good one Mak Deco, i wish you many profitable paint jobs:thumbup:


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## greensboro84 (Feb 15, 2008)

Maybe they cheapened the entire XL line for everyone to push painters into the Pro Extra's, Who Know's?

My thoughts exactly. I love the pro-extra's, hated it at first. I'm still afraid to try it in stain, what is a good brush to keep around for waterbased stain? I'm thinking of trying out another Purdy Nylox brush, 3in flat of course.


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## MAK-Deco (Apr 17, 2007)

patriotpainter said:


> I want to start by saying i'm not a Purdy man, I love my wooster brushes!
> I believe Purdy betrayed and backstabbed all painters when they decided to sell to Home Depot and Lowes, They crapped all over the Mom and Pop Paint stores that built that brand from nothing, at least Purdy could have changed the names of the brushes or jackets or came out with a H.D. only line like Wooster does for Lowes. At least wooster protects the contractor lines by not selling them to Lowes, they have a entire different packaging and names (they are cheapened). But I will come to Purdy's defense when they are accused of Cheapening Brushes to sell to Home Depot.
> Purdy is a company that has spent decades building a quality brand name, prefered by nearly 65% of painters and they would flush it down the toilet to screw the painters buying Purdy's at home depot, NO WAY. You don't make money buy LOSING customers. Since the brushes are all marked the same how does Purdy know which ones are "cheaped down"? Did they spend the enormous capital needed to open a "cheaped down factory" somewhere else? It doesn't make sense! It would not be worth the risk to Purdy to attempt this scam. Maybe they cheapened the entire XL line for everyone to push painters into the Pro Extra's, Who Know's?
> 
> Well I can go on all night, I like this forum, let me know if you still think they cheapen brushes or not, if so we can agree to disagree. have a good one Mak Deco, i wish you many profitable paint jobs:thumbup:


No problem we can disagree, Maybe the new big wigs at Purdy see the DIY market being more profitable than the contractor market. By the way the brushes I bought from HD were XL's...

There's also a risk involved when trying to make money and maybe Purdy see the risk worth taking... Are they even made here in America anymore?


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## greensboro84 (Feb 15, 2008)

Nothig better than the Purdy Pro-extra as far as I'm concerned. I think it's safe to say the XL has been castrated and is now marketed towards diy'ers. I honestly can't remember how purdys were a few years ago because I wasn't painting then, but I have bought some of the older seconds and they were much better quality than the brush in the store.xl's in the paint store are the same ones in lowes or anywhere else,and they just suck all around now, but honestly i think they are still better than woosters grey box brush. The only pro extra purdy ive seen at lowes is the all nylon brush. I'm thinking of getting another one(dont know what happened to the old one) just because it is one of purdy better quality brush with the stainless steel ferrule instead of that other crap on the xl's.


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## daniel (Aug 3, 2008)

SW bought out purdy and closed out Hyde and wooster. I KNOW THIS IS HURTING SW.

Im excited about trying corona after reading some of these


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## Dulles81 (Jun 20, 2008)

I have also noticed a decline in Purdy, tragically. I was using an angled 2 1/2 the other day and I actually had bristles come out. Wasnt very many, but I was still rather pissed off. Not to sound like a drama queen, but I felt betrayed!! Since then I have switched to Wooster and I am very happy with them. Oh well. Times are a changing I guess. I saw titan sprayers at Home Depot the other day and just about sh!t.


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## tsunamicontract (May 3, 2008)

daniel said:


> SW bought out purdy and closed out Hyde and wooster. I KNOW THIS IS HURTING SW.
> 
> Im excited about trying corona after reading some of these


wait, what? Hyde and Wooster still seem to be prominent brands, they do not seem to be "closed out"


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## MAK-Deco (Apr 17, 2007)

tsunamicontract said:


> wait, what? Hyde and Wooster still seem to be prominent brands, they do not seem to be "closed out"


I am assuming he meant that since SW owns Purdy they got rid of Wooster for sale. Just as Corp BM stores do not want to carry Purdy anymore. Not sure about Hyde.


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## boman47k (May 10, 2008)

> Did they spend the enormous capital needed to open a "cheaped down factory" somewhere else?


I rerally can't comment on the tooling down of these brushes, but I can say that when I was in textile, we had different quality shirts. The material for all these shirts, high quality and lower quality were made with material knitted on the same knitting machines. We would just change the weight of yarn and/or the stitch count per inch. Quality may not be the best word. Price range and weight might be better to use. Material with stripes, ribknit, etc was produced with the same machines. But these were priced and marked accordingly. Point is, a seperate factory was not necessary


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## mikepaintbrush (Jul 30, 2008)

Dulles81 said:


> I have also noticed a decline in Purdy, tragically. I was using an angled 2 1/2 the other day and I actually had bristles come out. Wasnt very many, but I was still rather pissed off. Not to sound like a drama queen, but I felt betrayed!! Since then I have switched to Wooster and I am very happy with them. Oh well. Times are a changing I guess. I saw titan sprayers at Home Depot the other day and just about sh!t.


It makes sense that Purdy might be cheapened down after sherwin williams bought them. S.W. is famous for buying companies and it seems the companies are never the same, s.w. squezzes every bit of profit out of them at what cost?


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## patriotpainter (Jul 31, 2008)

boman47k said:


> I rerally can't comment on the tooling down of these brushes, but I can say that when I was in textile, we had different quality shirts. The material for all these shirts, high quality and lower quality were made with material knitted on the same knitting machines. We would just change the weight of yarn and/or the stitch count per inch. Quality may not be the best word. Price range and weight might be better to use. Material with stripes, ribknit, etc was produced with the same machines. But these were priced and marked accordingly. Point is, a seperate factory was not necessary


 
My point was if all the brushes are marked the same, how would Purdy know the cheapened ones from the regular ones.


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## gumby (Sep 14, 2008)

*Purdy Brushes Suck Now*

I just went to buy new brushes for a project and thought I would buy some new brushes and rollers. I got Purdy as I always do, but something seemed off right from the beginning. 

When I got them to the site, They lost hairs like crazy, and the roller pan was complete garbage. I am really disappointed. Purdy was always a high quality EXPENSIVE brush. So now the quality is gone but the brushes are mysteriously still expensive. 

I was angry enough to write the company and reply to this topic. I am glad other people are noticing. When will greedy corporations realize it's the painters that make or break them and we are not stupid. Just because the package said they were the best doesn't mean anything on the job site. I bet the founders of the Purdy would be pissed.


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## Bender (Aug 10, 2008)

Ask Sherwin-Williams


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## ReNt A PaInTeR (Dec 28, 2008)

*so what's the best corona paint brush for latex and acrylic paints ?*


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## NACE (May 16, 2008)

Some collegues in the coating industry were recently in China looking at brush manufacturing. They were suprised to see that some Purdy tools were being manufactured there. May be the issue, not sure as I did not see it with my own eyes. Corona and Wooster tools are still made by hand in the US to my knowledge, and perhaps some Purdy's are as well. But some are clearly being made overseas.


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## Bender (Aug 10, 2008)

Interesting. I have been a purdy guy for twenty years but with all the talk about coronas I will have to try one.
I also wonder if it has to do with recycled plastics?


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Bender said:


> I also wonder if it has to do with recycled plastics?


Interesting idea. You might be on to something there. 

The only Corona brush i have in my arsenal is a 3-1/2" Challenger. It is rounded like a purdy pip. Good brush.


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