Brushes and Lather Quality

What kind of shaving brush do you use? Tell us all about it!
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BeatlesFan
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Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by BeatlesFan »

I'm an old-timer at SMF, but I almost never post in this section of the Forum, so forgive me if this has been asked and answered already.

Basically, I'd like to know what folks think about whether there is or isn't a correlation between brush quality and lather quality.

Suppose you started with a high-end soap or cream. (Call it TrueTayl & Trump).

Next you took out 2 brushes, one high-end brush (call it VulSimp & Plees) and one low-end brush (call it Walgreen & CVS generic boar).

Using identical lather bowls, water, etc. on TrueTayl & Trump soap or cream, will the VulSimp & Plees brush produce lather that is superior to and will provide a better shave than the lather created by the Walgreen & CVS generic boar brush?

Of course, there may be other factors besides lather quality to prefer a great brush (intangibles and subjective preferences of every sort). But I just want to know whether you guys think that Better Brush = Better Lather.

Thoughts?
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M6Classic
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by M6Classic »

Naturally, it depends. Mostly it depends upon what you mean by better lather. Every shaver has his own ideal lather. some of us like it dryer some of us wetter. Some of us want it thicker, some of us want it thinner. Some of us want to apply an inch thick abundance and some of us want to apply a thin scrim. & cetera, & cetera, & cetera. Further, some of us seek out the ideal lather experience, by which I mean we measure the ease with which a brush whips up the type and amount of lather we desire, as well as the brush feel of how the lather is applied to the face; some like stiff brushes, some loose, some like huge brushes, some small, scritch and non-scritch, the elusive (and if you ask me, meaningless) flow-though. On and on and on and on. You can see that best lather can become a bit complicated.

All of that said, one's individual brush or brushes will affect the lather it creates. However, I would never say that a more expensive brush creates a generically better lather. One needs to find the soap and brush combination or combinations that gratify him. Controlled experiments as discussed in the original post are doomed.

Buzz
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by brothers »

Started out with the drug store cheap-O boar brush, discovered the cheap-O badger, Tweezerman. I knew from the outset badger is superior, even in these bargain basement brushes. Moving up becomes real confusing, real quick. Adding premium synthetic adds new dimensions.
Gary

SOTD 99%: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, soaps & creams, synthetic / badger brushes, Colonial General razor, Kai & Schick blades, straight razors any time, Superior 70 aftershave splash + menthol + 444
Oscar11
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by Oscar11 »

IMO, no.
CMur12
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by CMur12 »

It's sometimes hard to separate ease of lathering and the lathering experience from the actual quality of the lather. I think I can get the lather I want from most brushes, but there are some that I am willing to work with and some that I'm not.

For lathering in a bowl or on top of a cake of soap, I find less dense brushes more efficient by far. I also insist on a fanshaped loft. Brushes that work especially well for me, right now, are a Semogue 1305 (boar), Vulfix 375S ("super badger"), HJM Black Fibre, and an old Ever Ready badger that is very sparsely filled. Next in line would be my Semogue silvertips in standard density - 730, 2015, and 2040 - though these are denser than my current preference. Simpsons and Rooneys are way too dense for me.

In my own case, I have very sensitive skin. I lather on top of the cake of soap and I make wet lather for maximal glide and minimal cushion. This kind of lather provides me protection through glide and it allows a gentle razor to be more efficient. (This is my illustration of Buzz's statement, " Mostly it depends upon what you mean by better lather.")

- Murray
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Squire
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by Squire »

Yes, for me there is a difference. With high grade soap/creams I can make an excellent lather with most any badger brush but to get even a decent, serviceable lather with a cheap boar brush takes more time and effort.
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Squire
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jww
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by jww »

For me, I like brushes and I like soap. Although I also like creams. :wink:

It's all about what works for you. I long ago gave up trying to put too much thought and science to my shaving. I just want to enjoy the experience. ymmv.
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ShadowsDad
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by ShadowsDad »

For me no, as long as you're discussing the actual final lather. I regularly use brushes from $.50 on up to mid expensive brushes ($125-$150) in boar, horse, synthetic, and badger and they all produce excellent lather. I'm a stickler for excellent yogurt like, fully hydrated lather and won't accept anything else.

All of the brushes feel different and they require different nuances of using them, but basically they work the same. Used correctly they all produce the end result that I won't scrimp on.
Brian

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Ouchmychin
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by Ouchmychin »

The one great difference for me is that boar bristles absorb water and get soft and floppy. They can get the same lather rapidly but smear it all over the place. I prefer a scrubbier experience, especially with hard soaps in a bowl. Floppy bristles take a long time to scrub up enough soap and then it is very wet at first. A nice medium badger is best for me.
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Rufust445
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by Rufust445 »

I've been in a rut lately of face lathering mostly with a Bestshave Nr. 7 boar brush, $2.55 plus shipping. I've been able to get a lather that suits me just fine with anything from cheap creams (Arko, Real Shaving Co.) to medium-priced soaps (LEA stick, Irisch Moos stick). I find I can get the lather to where I like it by observing it on my face and on the brush better than in a bowl. Naturally, Bestshave no longer offers the Nr. 7 brush, and mine does lose a bristle or two from time to time. The Nr. 7 I bought as backup does not appear to be of as good quality as the one I'm using. Will try it when the current one wears out.

When I bowl lather it's with a Muhle hjm black fiber brush, working on Real Shaving Co. cream, or Cremo laced with KMF fragrance free.
Thalay Sagar
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by Thalay Sagar »

Between "expensive" and "inexpensive", no. Between boar and badger, yes.
Best,
Chris

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EL Alamein
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by EL Alamein »

My short answer regarding lather quality is "I don't know". I *suspect* it's all in technique no matter the cost of the brush. I also *suspect* that comfort is the biggest variable when making lather - and that is personal - so, in the long run, the answer may be a YMMV thing.

For the brushes I've owned I've had many varying experiences. My very first brush at the tender age of 12 or 13 was a boar that my much older brother had bought from the local drug store years before and attempted to use with Williams Mug Soap but abandoned the endeavor. I merely used it to paint Noxzema on my face for the duration of it's use. I abandoned it when it became a prolific shedder a few years later and replaced it with another boar from the same drug store a few years later. That boar was too harsh for me even with a painting motion so I bought my first badger - a Conk Best. So I've never "lathered" with a boar because at the time I couldn't fathom rubbing something so harsh against my face in a lathering effort because mere painting seemed too harsh.

The Conk worked a treat for many years for the painting effort. When I discovered high end creams and soaps it seemed harsh, like the bristles were too coarse and stiff for my skin though it produced loads of seemingly fine lather. It was at that point that I started using Super badger brushes and, at last, found a medium that was soft and pillowy enough for my sensitive skin to use with such products. I've never looked back.

I find that very hot water can mitigate any soap melting/lathering issues that one may encounter with softer bristled brushes. To me, this is key because the stiffer/coarser bristles can dig out more soap and produce a great lather at the expense of comfort for some of us but a softer bristled brush can do just as well loaded with very hot water. Another technique is to soak the cake of soap in hot water to produce the same results - and I've done this with great success - but it reduces the life of a soap needlessly, IMHO, to make lather that is available at a much lower quantity of soap. Many may not find this to be important so chose your road to Rome based on your tastes.

In the end comfort is paramount to me when making a premium lather. You've got to choose what is best for you.

Chris
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gil3591
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Re: Brushes and Lather Quality

Post by gil3591 »

i think it's all about density. a less dense brush (ie. shavemac, kent, vulfix vs. a chubby) is more efficient at getting a good quick lather. the only product that makes my omega boar a super brush is palmolive shave stick ground down into a bowl. THAT combination rivals anything else i use.
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