Pretty sure I had a couple Omega boars and never liked them much, however, that was a long time ago and maybe their brushes are different now. At the price point, they are low risk, so maybe worth trying for someone interested in a boar brush. Personally, to me, Semogue boar brushes were much better and worth the extra cost. I also liked some Semogue badgers and still have one of those.
Synthetic vs the others?
- Thread starter PrincessMari
- Start date
Synthetic brushes works really well if you are bowl lathering, and just painting on the lather.
Boar and badger feels much better to me when I face lather.
The last two brushes I baught were synthetics from Muhle. These are not like any of my Yaqi brushes. They feel much more similar to a natural hair brush.
I get brush burn on my face if face lather with any of my Yaki brushes. For some reason I don't get that with my Muhle brushes. All synthetic fibres are not created equal.
Boar and badger feels much better to me when I face lather.
The last two brushes I baught were synthetics from Muhle. These are not like any of my Yaqi brushes. They feel much more similar to a natural hair brush.
I get brush burn on my face if face lather with any of my Yaki brushes. For some reason I don't get that with my Muhle brushes. All synthetic fibres are not created equal.
There have been some great points already made in this thread. All brushes have there place and every user is different. Spend what you want, buy what you want and remember that cost does not always translate to the experience.
How can you have such a polarized opinion, and advise against something if you have never experienced it. I don't eat guacamole because i think it looks like baby poop, but I don't go around telling people not to eat it. It could be the best tasting thing in the world.
While not every brush will and the whole YMMV, I do have boar brushes that would blow you away and you would bet me money they are not boar if you tried them without knowing what type they are. So, yes a boar can be as soft as the softest badger and synthetics.
A good example of this would be the Semogue 830. It was one of my first brushes, and it is softer than most of my badgers.
I need to pickup an STF. Using a G7 now and I love it. Soft tips and good backbone.
as it turns out, the EJ STF XL that I have, is not the same fibre as muhle's STF. so what I was referring to was the EJ STF :/
A few years ago I would have said the opposite, but here's my nickels worth of free advice.
I started with a Kent BK8 silvertip and when used with anything from DR harris (soaps or creams) and prorasso it was awesome. Super soft face feel with its massive bloom. I then bought a TOBS giant super badger and this was awesome too but was more my Monday morning brush due to its backbone and ability to really work the weekend stubble. Marginally not quite as good as the Kent but not far off. THEN when I went to buy another Kent but this time a BLK 12 to my disappointment they didn't sell badgers any more, only synthetics. Really! Damn. I ummed and arred but in the end decided that I had to try one before writing them off.....well.....at first I wasn't in awe, because (and I'm still disappointed about this), the synthetics made by Kent totally lack the amazing bloom of their badger brushes and the lather I got off it was neither as great as my other brushes. However I feel it's worth mentioning that back in the U I had a water softener and so could get awesome lathers even off a £1 hand soap. The only soap I could NEVER EVER EVER LATHER even with artificially super soft water was Trumpers, but that's for a different thread.
But when I got over to Japan my synthetic brush has without a shadow of doubt became my most favorite brush (though because it lacks bloom which somehow I really like I can only give it a 9/10). This is because though the water is soft it's not like artificially softened water so my synthetic is the brush that creates the best lathers on whatever soap or cream I use.
It's not as soft as my Kent Silvertip but it creates the best lather!
One peeve I have about synthetics is their lack of bloom, in comparison to badgers. I don't like tight, skinny knots. (I especially liked my old Semogue Finest, with its almost-perfect for me hybrid shape.) For synthetics, my STF has a nice conformation to the bulb, set at just the right loft. Rudy Vey picked out a good one for me.
I have all kinds of different brushes (badgers, boars, combos, synthetic) and like them all for different reasons.
Hands down favorites are my RV Muhle STF synthetic brushes. I had them set at 53mm loft and they are perfection.
Hands down favorites are my RV Muhle STF synthetic brushes. I had them set at 53mm loft and they are perfection.
I agree with the lack of bloom issue. It's the only disappointing thing about my Kent blk12. But having said that, that brush has become my favorite for the lather it produces and the super soft skin feel.
Hmm for me personally I wouldn't want to shave without a brush. I was forced to when I first arrived over here and hadn't caught up with my shaving kit. But tbh the shave just wasn't as good. I agree you I could skip it for a day or two while applying a shave gel but wouldn't to for longer. But as always YMMV.
Some stuff is over priced for sure but I think you can find some great pieces without spending your inheritance.
A decent DE could be say 50euros, the cost of razors is silly cheap, and would last donkeys years. Compare that to a cartridge and refills?
Brushes you can get a Kent for about same now (they lowered their price on the synthetics), and same deal. You will get north of 10years out of that brush.
Guess it's all about personal choice and perception. For some the value of an item is say based on the price paid and craftsmanship, for others the value is the price saved (or not paid). But if something works for you then that is totally cool.
Question for synthetic fiber brush users:
I’d like to try one, but the last one I tried was way too pillowy. The brushes I like are Manchurian and 2-band badger with knots no bigger than about 21mm diameter.
So I’ve been looking at info on these knots:
- Simpsons Platinum
- Muhle STF
- Mondial EcoSilvertip
Would I go wrong with any of them? Are they similar? Does any of them work better or worse in smaller size?
Thanks.
I’d like to try one, but the last one I tried was way too pillowy. The brushes I like are Manchurian and 2-band badger with knots no bigger than about 21mm diameter.
So I’ve been looking at info on these knots:
- Simpsons Platinum
- Muhle STF
- Mondial EcoSilvertip
Would I go wrong with any of them? Are they similar? Does any of them work better or worse in smaller size?
Thanks.
They lather very well, but don't hold any temperature whatsoever.
I like them because they dry fast, I live in very tropical humid weather and can use badger and synth brushes for several days in a row since they are completely dry before the next day. This is not the case for boar which is why I seldom use them anymore.
I like the face feel of broken in boar the most, and my nicer handles have boar knots on them.
I used to have a bunch of synths but have given them away to friends and family to get them into the hobby, and have kept two of them just because I enjoy the convenience of synthetic.
I have a few treated knots on artisan handles, and I like them a lot, but my workhorse brush is a razorock chubby silvertip which I believe is a rebranded Zenith brush.
My biggest pet peeve with synthetics is that they drip a whole lot and make a bigger mess than natural brushes, so I end up using the razorock which has a decent knot for face lathering, but is also affordable enough for be to abuse it somewhat and not stress about it.
