Thread: common terms

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Very true,two bands have alot more so called backbone and the loft needs to be set accordingly

my two band and my regular silvertip feel pretty similar in "backbone" to me... and I think the only reason my pure feels like it has more backbone is because the opening of the brush handle is a smaller diameter than the other two aforementioned knots.

I agree with thebigspendur, cushion in my definition is not slickness, they are two separate things.

Cushion is, well, a cushion made between the razor and the skin with tiny bubbles. However, cushion is not just a gluggy layer of cream or soap, it's tiny bubbles. If it were just a gluggy layer then you would be sacrificing slickness, which is basically how lubricating the mix is, allowing for a smooth glide.

I agree.
Cushion has to do with how small of bubbles the soap forms when lathered - the density of the lather for lack of a better term.
Oil on your skin is slick but has no cushion. Airier soaps have less cushion. Smaller bubbles means more soap & water at the skin.
I have looked at a lot of lathers under the microscope. Universally, smaller bubbles (denser lather) means better cushion.
Glide seems to be unrelated to any visual indicator in the lather. I believe it's simply a result of the ingredients used. Some are slicker than others.

Originally Posted by HNSB

...I have looked at a lot of lathers under the microscope...

Seriously? Under a microscope? You're not at all obsessive, are you?

I do think one can inadvertently reduce the slickness of a mix by using too little water, thereby making it gluggy...

It started here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...ving-soap.html
After that I looked at several other soaps.
The blog post didn't generate much interest so I never bothered posting any more images.

Could be to a matter of how tightly packed a knot is as to how much backbone there is too. Just another variable.

Bob

Originally Posted by BobH

Could be to a matter of how tightly packed a knot is as to how much backbone there is too. Just another variable.

Bob

To a point yes,another factor is how much adhiesive is used,Use to much and it migrates up into the hairs and makes a solid mass that wil stiffin the knot.Some brush makers use far to much Epoxy,in the case of a standard 24mm Knot which wgts a mere 15 gms, it takes very little to hold it in place forever,You do not need super duper 10 ton marine grade.

Originally Posted by HNSB

It started here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...ving-soap.html
After that I looked at several other soaps.
The blog post didn't generate much interest so I never bothered posting any more images.

I can't imagine why not, it's thoroughly captivating...

Originally Posted by HNSB

It started here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...ving-soap.html
After that I looked at several other soaps.
The blog post didn't generate much interest so I never bothered posting any more images.

I grabbed one for a desktop,
hope you don't mind