Opinions on Le Mieux Flexi range brushes and curry comb?

[jkitten]

I need to get a few basic brushes and I like the look of Le Mieux Flexi curry comb, scrubbing brush and goat hair brush. Maybe also the massage brush just because. Has anyone tried any of these? What are they like in terms of quality and durability? Many thanks in advance!

 

[palo1]

No idea about LeMieux but I love my Haas brushes and a simple sheepskin mitten. The trick with any brush is to keep them clean and use a curry comb to do some of that work. I prefer natural bristle and wood backed myself but not exclusively so. I am not especially keen on the LeMieux brand all round either but that is personal preference - they are, I think, continually trying to sell us novelty which isn't necessarily quality.

 

[twobearsarthur]

I have them and yes they are good quality. Excellent quality in fact but I never ever use them as they are just weird to use and I feel like a can’t put much elbow grease into grooming my horse with them as they feel unstable. I thought they’d be perfect for grooming legs as they curve around but again they’re just not my cup of tea. I ended up buying the HAAS brushes and they are sublime. I’ve had two sets for different horses and they are worth every penny. I think the flexi brushes are a bit of a gimmick otherwise everyone else would have a similar product.

 

[jkitten]

@twobearsarthur Weirdly I had the exact same experience with LeMieux! I went to a shop where they had the curry comb and really liked the quality and feel of it in my hand, so I bought it and was pleased. Come time to groom the boy and the tines just kind of ...glanced off his coat? Which is admittedly thick and somewhat impenetrable anyway, but still. Couldn't get any kind of good deep action going at all. Gave up in the end and used the school one, manky but at least it worked! Waste of a tenner there...

At the same place I got a wooden backed HAAS body brush and that one I love.

 

[Widgeon]

I'm not exactly adding an alternative opinion here but I also dislike the bendy LeMieux bushes, it feels like I can't put my back into grooming, which isn't good enough when you have a living-out mud beast. There are a few kicking around the yard and I don't like them at all. I have one Haas brush, the schimmel I think, which is brilliant. I keep it reasonably clean and it does a great job of dry mud removal and getting the scurf out so he has a nice shiny coat. I paid about a tenner for it and it was a bargain. I haven't bought any more Haas brushes because I don't think I need any more, this one is enough!

I also have one of those 99p plastic brushes (like this - https://gsequestrian.co.uk/products/shires-detangler-brush-1089?variant=4747131060257) which I use before the Haas on the unclipped bits and that earns its keep too, as do my cheap pair of scrubby mittens (good for legs, faces, ears - https://www.horze.co.uk/grooming-accessories/horze-super-touch-grooming-gloves/26216.html#color=BL)

 

[catkin]

For good grooming brushes have a look at the Haas range. I have the Schimmel, curry comb and the delightfully named "cuddlebrush" and these three do very well on a blanket-clipped Fell and a fine-coated unclipped Hill pony. The cuddlebrush is a small child sized body brush but there is an adult version too ( will have to check the name think its fellglanzburste.)

 

[PaulineW]

Widgeon, those cheap brushes are actually very handy! I was given one by a friend as they came in a box of three, and it’s great for the wintered out lot. I tend to leave it out in a handy place, and groom them in the field, without worrying about it being damaged by the weather.

 

[Dave's Mam]

If you have a hairy, muddy beastie, the Haas Mustang is an absolute must. I love it.

 

[jkitten]

Haas Mustang

Thank you! He does have a spectacularly thick and dense coat which is remarkably hard to get into. It's not fluffy in the way natives are, rather lays flat so that you hardly notice it until you're right up close, at which point, in the words of the last person who clipped him, 'he's like a bear'! The Mustang sounds like I might need it, only looking at the website it says part of the brush is fine brass wires, isn't that too harsh for the skin?

 

[Dave's Mam]

Thank you! He does have a spectacularly thick and dense coat which is remarkably hard to get into. It's not fluffy in the way natives are, rather lays flat so that you hardly notice it until you're right up close, at which point, in the words of the last person who clipped him, 'he's like a bear'! The Mustang sounds like I might need it, only looking at the website it says part of the brush is fine brass wires, isn't that too harsh for the skin?

It's not harsh on the skin, just the mud!