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First Shavemac Synthetic has landed in the USA!!

They are slowly starting to show up.
I received my Shavemac synthetics yesterday.

Don’t want to jump to premature conclusions, but during the first shave this morning I certainly liked it better than my Simpson synthetic, and found the new Shavemac close to my Mühle Silvertip Fibres that have until now been my benchmark for synthetics.
The Shavemac seemed to have more backbone than the Mühle that are somewhat lacking in this area, but after only one shave it is a bit early to tell with certainty.


B.
 
What size knot and loft did you choose? Any pics? The configorator doesn't assemble a picture of your final choice so it's hard to visualize all the options.


They are slowly starting to show up.
I received my Shavemac synthetics yesterday.

Don’t want to jump to premature conclusions, but during the first shave this morning I certainly liked it better than my Simpson synthetic, and found the new Shavemac close to my Mühle Silvertip Fibres that have until now been my benchmark for synthetics.
The Shavemac seemed to have more backbone than the Mühle that are somewhat lacking in this area, but after only one shave it is a bit early to tell with certainty.


B.
 
What size knot and loft did you choose? Any pics? The configorator doesn't assemble a picture of your final choice so it's hard to visualize all the options.

Two brushes,
- one fan-shaped, 26 mm knot, 52 mm loft, caramel handle,
- one bulb-shaped, 28 mm knot, 56 mm loft, imitation horn handle

Once you specify the size of the knot in the configurator the size of the loft is automatically inserted.

Sorry, no pics at this time.


B.
 

Rhody

I'm a Lumberjack.
Two brushes,
- one fan-shaped, 26 mm knot, 52 mm loft, caramel handle,
- one bulb-shaped, 28 mm knot, 56 mm loft, imitation horn handle

Once you specify the size of the knot in the configurator the size of the loft is automatically inserted.

Sorry, no pics at this time.


B.
i believe you can check the knot size and edit the auto suggested loft. The backbone / stiffness of these knots are in question
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
Ok, I promised some first impressions of the Synthetic Shavemac. I ordered based on this thread, as noted above. At that time there were a number of options, basically you picked knot size, loft, handle, resin color, etc. I ordered as shown below on St. Patrick's Day:

Type Synthetic Fibers Shaving Brush Configurator

Shavemac logo:Logo on bottom
Hair length ( Loft):54 mm
Quality and Size:28 mm Synthetic
Knot Shape:S-Bulb Knot Shape
Color:Tiger
Shape:82

It was received here in Michigan 4/8. Shavemac had a glitch in shipping, FedEx was slow & required a signature to deliver etc. Still fairly rapid for a semi-custom item from across the pond.

First impression was that it was way bigger than I had imagined it would be. I have little experience with Shavemac handle patterns, the 82 seemed like a M6 type, but it is more like a Polo 10 or Captain in Simpson's. Very substantial in hand. The knot I measure as more like 56 mm loft than the 54 ordered, but 2 mm on handmade goods is within the realm and given the distance & cost of returning it I didn't quibble, though I ordered low in hopes of approaching the feel of the Chubby 2 Synthetic.

I've owned many brushes, mostly natural hair but have tried at least a dozen synths as well. The pinnacle of them (SYNTH) so far has been the Chubby 2 Synthetic from Simpson's, and I had hope the Shavemac would give that one a run for it's money. Here they are side to side ..

IMG_9260.JPG


Aesthetically, the Shavemac Tiger matches the old school, so that is fine, though that rod was somewhat irregular in the swirling. That knot looks a little raggeddy .. but I ordered a bulb since with the Synthetic there wasn't a hybrid bulb available to pick. I prefer the coloration of the fibres in the Simpson's as well, but no accounting for taste.

I waited until I used the Shavemac twice to make an impression .. it whipped up a great lather (see picture above, that was Blenheim Bouquet). It hasn't quite the backbone I had hoped for, but not bad and not as drippy as other synthetics I've tried. Fibre density is not quite but almost that of Simpson's Chubby. My Simpson has a 52 mm knot though

As you might guess, I am at this point ambivalent. The Shavemac, with the degree of customization available and relatively low price compared to the Simpson's, promises to get some attention in the high end synthetic market. Of the two, though, I prefer the knot of the Chubby



 
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A Chubby synth would be much too firm for me. I wouldn't want much more firmness that the old L'Occitane Plisson.

Some people's criticisms about density and firmness are actually making me more and more interested in the shavemac.

I anxious to hear more reviews.
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
I'm interested in other opinions also, since it is all subjective, what seems a criticism turns into a plus for the limply inclined. This one was firmer than the wet L'Occ/Plisson, I had one of those before selling it on.

Hopefully everyone will get a review that suits their tastes, but with the variation permitted by Bernds product it might be a bit of a wait ..
 
A Chubby synth would be much too firm for me. I wouldn't want much more firmness that the old L'Occitane Plisson.

Some people's criticisms about density and firmness are actually making me more and more interested in the shavemac.

I anxious to hear more reviews.

Shavemac synthetics will not be for anyone who looks for Plisson style softness, as they have definitely more backbone and firmness than the Plisson, the Simpson’s Chubby 2 synthetic, and - from what I can tell after using the Shavemacs synthetics for about a week - Mühle Silvertip Fibres.

In fact, when I think minimal firmness in synthetics, I think Plisson.


B.
 
Congratulations for acquiring these beauties . I was wondering if any of you could compare the new Shavemac synthetic brush/knot to a badger knot. I have never used a synthetic that comes even close to a badger, but hoping Shavemac is the ticket.
Many thanks.
 
Congratulations for acquiring these beauties . I was wondering if any of you could compare the new Shavemac synthetic brush/knot to a badger knot. I have never used a synthetic that comes even close to a badger, but hoping Shavemac is the ticket.
Many thanks.

The game-changer, as far as synthetics are concerned, was IMO when Mühle introduced the Silvertip Fibres® a few years ago. For the first time a synthetic brush came close to the feel of a badger brush.

I consider the Shavemac synthetic a further step in the evolution.
If you think of the Mühle Silvertip Fibre as a stand-in for a silvertip brush, then think of the Shavemac synthetic as a stand-in for a two-band silvertip, as the Shavemac has more backbone than the Mühle (keeping in mind that my Mühle Silvertip Fibre has extensively travelled with me over the last few years and may have lost some of its original backbone).

I say “stand-in”, because they cannot quite replace true silvertips, but I unquestionably prefer them over pure badgers, horse hair, or boar brushes.

If however one of the synthetics that you tried was a Mühle Silvertip Fibre, and you found that this one did not measure up to your expectations, then you are unlikely however to have more luck with the Shavemac.


Hope this helps....


B,
 
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I believe the Muhle STF made people first consider a synthetic, but the brush that made even die-hard badger and boar lover reconsider everything was the L'Occitance Plisson. That one brush open the synthetic floodgates.
 
I believe the Muhle STF made people first consider a synthetic, but the brush that made even die-hard badger and boar lover reconsider everything was the L'Occitance Plisson. That one brush open the synthetic floodgates.

That may be true for people who prefer extremely soft brushes.

If someone is looking to have some feedback or backbone in a brush, however, then the Plisson is not particularly well suited.
In my case, due to the pronounced lack of backbone the Plisson never managed to make it into my regular rotation.


B.
 
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