Small rotation of favorite brushes

What kind of shaving brush do you use? Tell us all about it!
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brothers
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Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by brothers »

For the past several months I've been rotating every day between 3 great brushes: EJ XL Silvertip Synthetic/Mesquite burl synthetic/Thater 4376/5 badger. Tomorrow will begin a long run of three more of my favorites: Razorock Monster synthetic/Semogue 2000 boar/and the legendary Rooney Finest Plexi. It's going to be something to look forward to. Keeps me coming back. Something to talk about, I suppose.
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
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fallingwickets
Clive the Thumb
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by fallingwickets »

Gary, how big is the rooney plexi? When i think of a plexi i always have to include buzz and his plisson LOL
de gustibus non est disputandum
brothers
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by brothers »

Clive, see the attached photos. The Rooney Finest Plexi is the one that developed a major problem with the knot and had to be repaired in Germany by Bernd Blos at Shavemac. It measures 62 mm loft x 29 mm, and the plexi handle is 70 mm. 132 mm total height.

The giant Plisson Plexi brush measures as follows: knot loft is 79 mm X 31 mm, and the handle measures 70 mm in height. Total height of the Plisson Plexi is 149 mm.

Rooney Finest set in Shavemac Plexi handle:
Image

giant Plisson Plexi:
Image
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
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fallingwickets
Clive the Thumb
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by fallingwickets »

Thanks Gary. For me, the difference between a 79mm knot and a 62 mm knot is in the spelling :D

clive
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brothers
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by brothers »

It appears that the the nature of boar brushes has been eclipsed, through no fault of its own, by synthetic fibre brushes. Evolution, or progress, or technological advantage by whatever name, is to blame. Badger holds its own, but being a natural fibre is a weakness that will probably be it's undoing at some point.

Translation: I love my Semogue 2000 boar brush, but used in day to day comparison with the synthetic Monster by Razorock it simply underperforms. I have made it work, but the extra effort simply isn't worth the trouble. This depresses me because I've got several beloved boar brushes that have just become obsolete. Boar brushes are no longer relevant to my shaving.
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
Rufus
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by Rufus »

Gary, it's clearly a case of YMWV. My two boars (SOC and Omega B&B Essential) more than hold their own against my two synthetics (Muhle Silvertip Fibre and Kent Silvertex). That is not to say, however, that my synthetics don't do a good job, because they do. I especially like the Muhle for travel as it works very well with the shave stick I use for travelling and as it dries very quickly. My badges are still my favourites.
Bryan
CMur12
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by CMur12 »

I, too, disagree about the inferiority of boar to synthetic. I wrote the following in response to a thread Gary resurrected in the General forum and I am copying it here:

"I'll have to disagree with you, Gary. I think the synthetics are pretty good, but I get the best results (better than synthetic or badger) from my Semogue 1305 boar brush. It and the model 830 are made with a grade of bristle different from any other I have tried, and it makes a huge difference. For me, the little 1305 outperforms everything else."

I agree with Bryan that YMWV applies here.

- Murray
LouisIII
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by LouisIII »

My feeling is that quality synths have rendered budget badger brushes superfluous. Boars offer something a little different.
~ Infusing the irreducibly quotidian with sensual pleasure ~
CMur12
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by CMur12 »

LouisIII wrote: Tue Jun 11, 2019 2:45 pm My feeling is that quality synths have rendered budget badger brushes superfluous. Boars offer something a little different.
I think that, over all, I agree with this statement, LouisIII.

- Murray
brothers
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by brothers »

Long live YMMV! :D It fuels the fires of discussion.

I believe it is true that quality boar brushes have also rendered budget badger brushes superfluous. It is undisputed, as you pointed out, that boars offer something a little different. It's the differences that keep the pot boiling.
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
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by Rufus »

I’m on my fourth synthetic brush and none has come close to matching my quality badgers and quality boars in overall performance and face feel. I use a synthetic, currently an AP Shave Co. Synbad, for travel mainly because it dries very quickly and is relatively inexpensive. So far the Synbad is the best synthetic I’ve tried; the others are: Muhle silvertip synthetic v1 & v2, Simpson Case (a dreadful brush) and Kent Silvertex (better suited to dusting my computer keyboard or dashboard of my car).
Bryan
LouisIII
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Re: Small rotation of favorite brushes

Post by LouisIII »

brothers wrote: Tue Jun 11, 2019 8:34 pm Long live YMMV! :D It fuels the fires of discussion.

I believe it is true that quality boar brushes have also rendered budget badger brushes superfluous. It is undisputed, as you pointed out, that boars offer something a little different. It's the differences that keep the pot boiling.
Imo the availability of quality boar brushes for roughly the price of a cream and synthetics of similar price is the best thing to happen in wetshaving in the last ten years. You can have an actual 'luxury brush now on a budget. The neverending conveyor belt of homemade soaps being hawked elsewhere is less appealing, mind you, but at least they're optional; when I joined here and theneother forums you felt you pretty much had to get a high end brush.
~ Infusing the irreducibly quotidian with sensual pleasure ~
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