This extra-soft horsehair shaving brush by Zenith has a tall blue resin handle. No harm is caused to the horse because their hair is trimmed while grooming. Because of this, the knots take longer to break in than a boar brush. Unless you like the horsey smell, let it soak and shampoo several times before use. Vie-Long is not the only company making quality horse brushes. While Zenith is more known for their boar and badger brushes, they have been making horse hair brushes for several years. I think of them as initially softer than pure or black badger, but with time, they will break in nicely. They initially hold more water than a boar, so they don't need as long a soak. One criticism of the Zenith Horse brushes is that they tend to be floppy. These are specially ordered with a lower loft to reduce floppiness. One can always use the traditional Italian Barber pinch by holding the knot rather than the handle for more control. This brush has a large 27mm knot. The loft is set at about 52mm, with an effective loft of 48-50mm from the glue bump. The handle is 70mm tall, with a total height of around 122mm. The total weight is about 80 grams. The knot is Zenith's extra soft version with more mane than tail hairs. I've been unable to get the exact ratio.