As promised in an earlier thread, here is my report comparing the four synthetic/vegan-friendly brushes Ive located and purchased. Ill be referencing a standard intro-level Surrey-style boar-bristle brush for a few reasons: first because its widely available; second, because I imagine a lot of folks here have used one of them at some point and are thus familiar with it; and third because its one of the few non-synthetics I have wide experience with. Ive tested the brushes below with a variety of soaps and creams.
The four synthetics in question are, from left to right in the picture:
1) The Omega Black & Clear Synthetic Bristle Shaving Brush (also available in Red & Clear) , ~ $12.95
2) The Rooney Synthetic Shave Brush (white pictured; also available in black), ~ $45.95
3) The men-u Premier Shaving Brush (black pictured; also available in white, blue, and red), ~ $53.99; and
4) The Muehle Vegan Shaving Brush (model # 33K257; Muehle also makes another one, the slightly less expensive # 31A824, that I dont have and didnt test, and there may be still another one), ~ $42.23.
In preparing this report I also discovered that The Body Shop also markets an $8.00 synthetic brush, on which I have no testing data.
The first thing I should note is that, as is the case with natural bristle brushes, the synthetics vary widely in personality. A synthetic is not a synthetic is not a synthetic. That being said, what are the personalities of these four brushes?
The two most distinctive brushes are the Omega and the Rooney. The Omega is by far the softest, as well as by far the least springy. In these respects it is least like a traditional, natural-bristle shaving brush as Ive experienced them. Its so soft, in fact, that its a bit difficult to work up a good soap lather with, although with cream this is no problem. If you really want to take it easy on your face, as may be the case with sunburn, windburn, etc., this brush paired with a good cream would be an interesting experience. I kind of like it, even though it is very different.
The Rooney is on the other end of the spectrum. It is the smallest overall of the four brushes I tested, and the knot is also the smallest and tightest, with the smallest surface area of the slate. The bristles, moreover, while very soft, are also very stifffar stiffer than the other three synthetics and considerably stiffer than my boar bristle, as well as the one badger Ive tried out. Almost no bloom here, unlike the other contenders. No problem building a good soap lather with this brush! Plus, the stiffness will really get your beard to stand up.
That leaves the men-u and the Muehle as the more middle-of-the-road brushes. Just as they have a very different character than the Omega and the Rooney, so, too, they are rather similar to each other and to a typical badger (as opposed to a boar). The men-u is both softer and less springy than the Muehle; its not as soft as the Rooney, and still nowhere near the Omega. The Muehle, in terms of softness, springiness, and even overall weight rather closely approximates my Surrey boar, though it is still somewhat softer and more flexible (the me-u is much lighter than the others).
Softness, 1 to 5 scale (5 being the softest):
Omega5
Rooney3
Men-u2.5
Muehle2
Stiffness, A to E scale (E being the stiffest):
OmegaA
Men-uB
MuehleC
RooneyE
Subjectively, I find Im using the men-u the most, followed by the Muehle. The Rooney is a bit too stiff for my taste, along with too small a surface area, though I prefer it with harder and less lathery soaps.
And there you have it. Happy shaving!
hack
The four synthetics in question are, from left to right in the picture:
1) The Omega Black & Clear Synthetic Bristle Shaving Brush (also available in Red & Clear) , ~ $12.95
2) The Rooney Synthetic Shave Brush (white pictured; also available in black), ~ $45.95
3) The men-u Premier Shaving Brush (black pictured; also available in white, blue, and red), ~ $53.99; and
4) The Muehle Vegan Shaving Brush (model # 33K257; Muehle also makes another one, the slightly less expensive # 31A824, that I dont have and didnt test, and there may be still another one), ~ $42.23.
In preparing this report I also discovered that The Body Shop also markets an $8.00 synthetic brush, on which I have no testing data.
The first thing I should note is that, as is the case with natural bristle brushes, the synthetics vary widely in personality. A synthetic is not a synthetic is not a synthetic. That being said, what are the personalities of these four brushes?
The two most distinctive brushes are the Omega and the Rooney. The Omega is by far the softest, as well as by far the least springy. In these respects it is least like a traditional, natural-bristle shaving brush as Ive experienced them. Its so soft, in fact, that its a bit difficult to work up a good soap lather with, although with cream this is no problem. If you really want to take it easy on your face, as may be the case with sunburn, windburn, etc., this brush paired with a good cream would be an interesting experience. I kind of like it, even though it is very different.
The Rooney is on the other end of the spectrum. It is the smallest overall of the four brushes I tested, and the knot is also the smallest and tightest, with the smallest surface area of the slate. The bristles, moreover, while very soft, are also very stifffar stiffer than the other three synthetics and considerably stiffer than my boar bristle, as well as the one badger Ive tried out. Almost no bloom here, unlike the other contenders. No problem building a good soap lather with this brush! Plus, the stiffness will really get your beard to stand up.
That leaves the men-u and the Muehle as the more middle-of-the-road brushes. Just as they have a very different character than the Omega and the Rooney, so, too, they are rather similar to each other and to a typical badger (as opposed to a boar). The men-u is both softer and less springy than the Muehle; its not as soft as the Rooney, and still nowhere near the Omega. The Muehle, in terms of softness, springiness, and even overall weight rather closely approximates my Surrey boar, though it is still somewhat softer and more flexible (the me-u is much lighter than the others).
Softness, 1 to 5 scale (5 being the softest):
Omega5
Rooney3
Men-u2.5
Muehle2
Stiffness, A to E scale (E being the stiffest):
OmegaA
Men-uB
MuehleC
RooneyE
Subjectively, I find Im using the men-u the most, followed by the Muehle. The Rooney is a bit too stiff for my taste, along with too small a surface area, though I prefer it with harder and less lathery soaps.
And there you have it. Happy shaving!
hack
a pox on them all!
