Thread: Moving away from badger

I should try a synthetic. Tried an older one once and one newer one. Seems they would not accept any water at all.

Perhaps the new crop is better? What is the best one? For face-lathering?

I don't like synthetics, every time I use one I get water running down my arm.
I do like horse hair, Vielong and boar, Omega.
When I want a really soft brush I reach for the horse.

I now have over 30 brushes of all variety. There is a reason the top line badgers are... top of the line. My own recent trend is to set top quality knots into exquisite custom brush handles. To some a Lamborghini is just a car.

There is a synthetic in the “Tom” box here. You can try it in February.

I have a few synthetics, I still like my VS two band badger. I have never owed a really expensive badger. For the price difference between a shavemac two band and a VS, that shavemac would have to be magic. I have one old boar brush that I bought when I was in my late teens, and it has always been a little too scratchy for me.

One of the truly great things about this hobby, there something for everyone!

I would not compare a silvertip that came in a shaving kit with a good 2 band badger knot with the right loft to knot size ratio. That said, I have a 2 band badger from The Golden Nib that I set into a handle and 2 custom Shavemac 2 band badger brushes and while The Golden Nib brush knot is not up to the standard of the Shavemac knots it is a very good knot in use. Personally I could not justify the price difference based on performance alone. Personally, a lot of using a high end product, be it a brush or car, is making a statement to a large extent.

For me, there is a difference between the various knot materials in how they feel on the face when face lathering and how they produce a good lather. They will all produce a good lather though.

Synthetic knots do not hold water well but they do take it on only to let it run out of the knot and down your hand and arm. The trick is to stop trying to use them like a badger brush and forget about soaking them. Just wet the tips and load the brush adding a little water as you go to let the proto lather already in the brush hold the water. Then go and start face lathering with the proto lather again adding a little water as you go till you get the type of lather you want.

Only tried one horse hair brush and it did not suit my face lathering technique. Just too prickly for me but I guess if you were mopping on the lather from a bowl it might be just fine. I don't bowl lather so I don't use a horse hair brush.

Bob

Originally Posted by BobH

For me, there is a difference between the various knot materials in how they feel on the face when face lathering and how they produce a good lather. They will all produce a good lather though.

Synthetic knots do not hold water well but they do take it on only to let it run out of the knot and down your hand and arm. The trick is to stop trying to use them like a badger brush and forget about soaking them. Just wet the tips and load the brush adding a little water as you go to let the proto lather already in the brush hold the water. Then go and start face lathering with the proto lather again adding a little water as you go till you get the type of lather you want.


Bob

As usual, BobH has nailed it on synthetics. I have two that I like lot, but as Bob said, they need to be used differently. I use mine with the tips barely wet to load from the soap and then generally face lather, adding just a little water at a time to the tips, to build a great lather and feel very good on the face doing it.

I also second what he said about comparing brushes. I have very good badger brushes and boar brushes, most of which were very modestly priced and they all work great if I do my part. I do have some favorites of each type, and the badgers in my list of favorites were not cheap, but they were not bank account busters either.

Like women and fast cars, they each like to be treated differently.

If price has has been a deterrent for you in trying a good 2-Band badger brush, then Maseto Shaving, The Golden Nib, and Sterling have some good ones at a very decent price.

Originally Posted by sharptonn

I should try a synthetic. Tried an older one once and one newer one. Seems they would not accept any water at all.

Perhaps the new crop is better? What is the best one? For face-lathering?

I have many good badger brushes, and I enjoy them all. There's nothing like the 'wall of badger' feeling on the face with a large, dense, badger knot.

Lately, I've been enjoying the synthetics more and more. Some of this has to do with the fact that when I'm not using an Italian soap, I'm using one of the newer artisan soaps that are full of tallows, oils, and butters.

In my experience, the big badgers-my Simpsons Manchurian Chubbies, the big M&Fs, etc. hold on to those lathers strongly. I suspect it has to do with the emollients.

The synthetics don't hold on. Yes, there is the 'water running down the arm' issue if you soak them, but soaking isn't necessary. Paint a 'dryish' lather on the face, dip the tips and paint on additional water, face lather, then repeat until the lather is how you like it.

The ones I like best these days are the Tuxedo knots-especially the original ones from APShaveCo, and the 'Black Wolf' knots from Wolf Whiskers and Envy Shave. But TBH, the copies from various companies and vendors are not far behind them.

It may be that since I have never really used a good badger brush, I don’t try to use my synths or boar brushes as if they were badger.

The synthetics and the boar bristles both lather well in my bowls and on my face. When face lathering, I don’t soak the brushes too much and build the moisture by adding a little water at a time until the lather on my face is the consistency I want. DItto for bowl lathering.

Badger has always been the brush of choice for the well heeled and that's probably 100 years plus of history talking.

I have one high end synthetic the rest of my brushes are all badger including some classic (and no longer available) true two banders. Personally I don't understand why someone would ditch a quality badger for any synthetic. To me the synthetic "gets the job done" but to compare it to a quality badger is like comparing a tub of Williams soap to Castle Forbes.

If your starting out and are using a pure badger then it's a different story and as usual this is all based on my opinion though history is in my favor. Now who knows maybe someone will come out with some super synthetic which eats a high end badgers lunch.