Badger is far superior to synthetic for lather application

[Borderboss]

I know some will think my statement is sacrilege and I'll get some flaming for it, but this has been my experience.

I have 14 brushes in rotation. Ten are Silvertip Badger, three are synthetic, and one is Best Badger. Of the three synthetic, one is a Razorock Plisoft, one is a synthetic from Maggart's, and one is a vintage nylon Made Rite. All three synthetics drop lather when applying it to my face, while none of the badgers ever do this. Synthetics just can't hold on to lather when fully loaded.

This morning's shave was the last straw. I'm going to drill out the three synthetic brushes and replace them all with badger.

 

[Acmemfg]

Boar brushes can hold lather....they’re great!

 

[GearNoir]

I guess it depends on what you consider to be fully loaded and why you would do that. I have a brush of each type (badger, boar, synth), none “drop” lather, and all hold enough lather for 4+ passes easily (3 shaving passes and one moisturizing rinse).

 

[Bikac]

Badger is what i want. But synthetic is good too, boar too, horse too. Its matter of taste i think...

 

[Toothpick]

It’s really all a matter of opinion. Use what ever you like. I prefer badger. But my synthetic is PDG too.

 

[Bikac]

Me too. Badger are soft and good backbone. Best for me. But I cant say tuxedos are not good lol. They are excellent too. And sometimes I dont want soft and then use omega boar. You cant get that massage with badger. Matter of choise!!

 

[ackvil]

A majority of my brushes are badger and they are my favorites. However, synthetics have come a long way since they were introduced.

I first purchased a synthetic brush in 2012. It was made by Parker and you can read about it here. This brush was terrible. The hairs clumped together and it would not hold lather as the OP described. However, since then I have purchased a number of synthetic brushes and as time went on the brushes that came out in later years improved. They all do a nice job of making lather and work for me. However, the only synthetics I have that are as good, for me, as my badger brushes have the Muhle Silvertip Fibre Knot. Today I have five synthetic brushes in my regular rotation and a Muhle synthetic that is my exclusive travel brush.

I think my preferences may be the result of how I started shaving. My first brush was a badger and I used badger brushes exclusively for more than 50 years. Probably, my mind was trained to think that a shaving brush should feel and act as my first brushes did. About 10 years ago I tried my first boar brush and liked it. I then bought a few more. The only boar brush that rivals my badger brushes is the SOC boar.

 

[Bikac]

Yes i bought synthetic like 10 years ago maybe. It was not cheap but it was terrible. Now synthetics are 100x times better...

 

[Anick]

Im never going back to synthetic. I love my badgers.

 

[cw62803]

I like 'em all, but seem to go for the simplicity of a synthetic more than anything else. I can't deny the luxurious feeling of a dense silver-tip badger, though.

 

[Bikac]

What badger you have and whats your favoruite?

 

[ackvil]

Here is a photo of my badger brushes:

My favorites are the Paladin El Dorado (top row far left), the Paladin Chief (front row center), the Da Vinci 290 (front row second from left).

 

[Marcos1]

Synthetic is collecting dust. Badger all the way for me. The splay and rebound characteristics of synthetic fibers kill it for me. Too springy.

 

[Member 113878]

I like my Omega Hi-Brush very much, after tring several synthetics.

 

[muzichead]

@Borderboss

If your dropping lather off a synthetic brush you have way too much water in the brush. Try working it thicker to an almost yogurt type texture that will lay down some peaks and valley's. I switched over a year ago to an all synthetic line up and sold everything else off...

 

[Hannah's Dad]

My RR Barber Pole synthetic beats my WSP silvertip badger and my Stirling Boar like a rented mule.

 

[kluber]

I prefer synthetics.

 

[Ron R]

Synthetics brushes 95% of the time and my Omega boar brush gets a whirl once a month.

 

[BigJ]

Obviously YMMV! For me it is badger 90% boar 10%. But my choices may change (or not).

 

[StillShaving]

I recently picked up a Yaqi synthetic from WCS and it is many times better than my nearly decade old synthetic. I have not used it enough to critically judge other than to say I still prefer a badger brush, though the gap between badger and synthetic is narrowing.