Thread: lets talk synthetics

If you haven't used a synthetic brush before you are in for a few surprises in how to load then without water running down your wrist. They handle water differently and take a little different technique to load them. There is definitely absolutely no need to soak them from my experience. The 4 different makes of synthetic knot I have are all a little different in character but all will lather anything I have thrown at them. The top of the line synthetic brushes with a large sized knot are around $130 USD, give or take, and they start around $30 USD so you have quite a price range to pick from.

One of the first synthetic brushes I had was the Muhle STF XL with a 25mm knot which worked well but being a face lathering person thought it was a little floppy for my liking. I had HARRYWALLY make me a custom handle and had the Muhle knot reset lower to 54mm. Love that brush. Next I got a Simpsons Chubby 2 synthetic from the first run with a 27mm knot and a 50mm loft and love that one too for face lathering. Some found it hard to splay and did not like it. I have no problem with it and I see Simpsons now set the loft at 52mm. Next I had HARRYWALLY make me a custom using a Virginia Sheng synthetic knot again set to a lower loft than factories seem to do for the same sized knot and love that brush too. All that to say that I like lower lofts than are generally available from factory brushes except for the Simpson which was perfect for me from the get go loft wise. OTH none of them were the least bit unusable as they came.

The last one I bought was a L'Occitaine/Plisson synthetic and it is different than the others. It works well and feels like you are lathering with a cloud of nothing. Overall a pretty soulless experience for a person who face lathers and so is my least favourite synthetic brush.

None of the synthetics I have are scritchy/scratchy and once the loft was lowered had the right amount of backbone for me. If you are a bowl lathering person the factory lofts might be just right coupled with an appropriate length handle. Sorry for the ramble but that is my experience so far with synthetic shave brushes.

Bob

thanks guys. you have given me alot to concider

Originally Posted by admvalentine

thanks guys. you have given me alot to concider

And apparently on more than just brushes. ;-)

I should have been more specific lol, i can barely afford the brushes. hones will have to wait.

Originally Posted by admvalentine

thanks guys. you have given me alot to concider

You are welcome. If you need more info on synthetic shave brushes do a net search of the ones you are interested for reviews and comments. The user pool of synthetic shave brushes on SRP is likely pretty thin and other shave forums seem to have more users and more detailed info. At least that is what I found when I got interested in them.

Bob

Another vote for the XL Mühle Silvertip Fibre (STF) that has become my preferred brush and is the reason why I have little urge at the moment to go back to any of my Best Badger or Silvertip Badger brushes.

The SFT is equally at home with creams and soaps and dries in a moment, which is a decided plus if you are travelling frequently, like me. As mentioned before, no soaking required either.

For me, this brush has the right amount of backbone, unlike the Plisson that is too soft for my taste.


While Mühle makes good stuff, I did not care much for the low-cost HJM Black Fibre series that are also made by Mühle. I find the knot simply too small and the fibers remind me of why I didn't like synthetic brushes until Mühle introduced their Silvertip Fibres.


B.

This why this site is so cool no matter how much you know you always learn something new.

I'll also add my recommendation for either the Muhle V2 25mm or the EJ XL. Same size knots although the EJ does come across a little denser. Personally, I prefer the EJ for the heavier handle but both are superb.

I'll throw my 2 cents in FWIW regarding synthetic brushes. I have 4 and I'll offer my thoughts regarding them (I had posted this on another forum). 3 are rather popular (EJ XL, Plisson L’Occitane, Muhle 23mm), and 1 is not mentioned very much (Omega S-Brush). I’ll also briefly mention the EJ L 23mm, though not pictured, because I don’t have it anymore.

The EJ XL: This is advertised as a 25/58 knot, and mine matches exactly. This is a FANTASTIC brush on every level! I intentionally omitted the word “synthetic” because it’s that’s good. Many folks (including myself) have posted about this phenomenal brush, so I’ll just re-emphasize that if all my other brushes vanished and this was the only one left, I’d be quite content. I love the soft tipped, plush, dense feel of this brush - just great!......The EJ L 23mm is a good brush, but the tips felt a tad bit "spiky" to me. An efficient and capable brush, no doubt, but it just didn't make the grade for me. One would think that a mere 2mm difference between this brush and the XL wouldn’t be that big of a deal, but it is, and not in the best way (for me).

The Plisson L’Occitane: I cannot find any advertised specs, but mine measures out at 23/55. The Plisson synth is an equally enjoyable brush, but quite different from the EJ XL in that the Plisson has practically no backbone at all. But that's not necessarily a bad thing - it just takes getting used to and well worth it. It has ultra soft tips (like the EJ XL) but splays effortlessly, which makes face lathering a breeze. And bowl lathering produces a quick lather and paints the lather on with no streaks - it's really nice. The handle is its only flaw, IMO - it's way too light, and the finish is not high quality (mine bubbled up and chipped). But I had mine replaced (Mr. Rudy Vey) and I'll be keeping it for sure.

The Muhle 33K 252: This is advertised at 23/56, but mine is actually 22/53. This brush seems quite diminutive for an advertised 23mm brush, especially compared to the retail price tag. I’ll also have to point out that the difference between a 56mm loft and a 53mm loft with this knot is significant, and not in a good way. As a matter of fact, just to cut to the chase – I dislike it greatly. It is virtually impossible to get the knot to splay. If you like to face lather and use circular motions, you will be out of luck. My particular brush is only good for painting strokes, feels scritchy, and is completely un-enjoyable. It was a very expensive (much more than the comparable EJ L 23mm) roll of the dice, and I truly rue this purchase.

The Omega S-Brush: Now this is a “sleeper” brush. It's only about $9, but very effective! I cannot find any advertised specs, but mine measures 23.5/55. It's advertised as an artificial boar, and I can sort of see why. Out of the box, it's super soft, but the first time I used it, the tips seemed like a not-broken-in boar. Kind of scritchy when face lathering. But I've used it a few more times when I was in a rush and didn't want to take the time to soak a badger or boar. And I bowl lathered instead of face lathered. Lo and behold, I discovered that I had a rather remarkable $9 brush! Talk about whipping up a shave-worthy lather quickly! And painting the lather on my face was scritchless - very nice, at only $9. This is a utilitarian brush, and can me man-handled recklessly - it's only $9! A nice discovery, for me.

Summary: I love the EJ XL and the Plisson – very different brushes to be sure, but equally enjoyable in their own way. Both exhibit a super soft face feel, and whip up an outstanding lather….. I also like the Omega S-Brush; it is a very usable brush. It would make an excellent travel brush (no biggie if it got lost – it’s only $9), and it would make a good all round extra brush to have around…..The Muhle 23mm is the biggest disappointment I’ve had in a brush to date (and to think that I paid retail price for that – ouch!). If I were to use a baseball type analogy: the EJ XL and Plisson would be Major League teams, no doubt. The Omega S-Brush would be a AAA team. And the Muhle? Well, let’s call that one an American Legion team.

Anyway, those are just my opinions, FWIW – YMMV of course.

Let me put my vote in for the Plisson as well. I've tried a bunch of synthetic hair brushes in the past - Muhle, HJM, Frank Shaving, HIS, etc. They were all pretty nice, but they had a 'whippy' quality that I didn't care for. The Plisson is just lovely to use. It works equally well for face-lathering and bowl-lathering and it feels great on the face.

I have some brushes I prefer to it (notably my two vintage Plisson HMW's), but it pretty much retired all my Simpsons and other brushes.

Great price too!

EDIT: I disagree with the comments that the Plisson has no backbone. It does splay more easily than the others, but it also does resist splaying enough to have some backbone. The other synthetics have a point at which you hit a wall, and it takes a lot of pressure to splay them any more. That's a property I didn't like.