Lather quality, synth vs badger

[Marco]

When I first started to use synthetic brushes I just could not believe my eyes. The lather from ALL of my soaps was faster to produce, easier and overall better. Ever since discovering synthetics I have basically used nothing else. I am a full synthetic convert.

 

[musicman1951]

I don't notice any difference in quality of the lather, but the technique changes for different brushes and sometimes it takes me a few shaves to get back in the groove if I haven't used the synth for a while.

Whatever you do often you do well.

 

[BigJ]

In my experience, synthetics produce lather quicker and with less effort required by me compared to badgers. This is where the argument "synths are better performing" than badgers comes from and the main argument of the anti-badger wet shaver. There may be some truth to it, but that is not the main purpose of using a brush, if i can arrive to the same point with slightly greater effort with far greater pampering and feel, that's where badgers really shine.

+1! Precisely! Enjoying the journey is the whole point IMO.

 

[ShaverAZ]

I compared my Yaqi Badger with a Semogue 1438. They're distinctly different in their water retention r lather retention properties.
A Badger is soaked, squeezed out, lather is whipped and the brush is wrung out again. When wringing out the badger, it releases watery soap, which is then whipped up to make the actual shaving lather.

The boar squeezes out and whips up about the same, and releases less watery soap when squeezed during building lather. in use the brush applies lather properly; for subsequent passes, the brush is so busy absorbing lather that much less is available to apply to shave with.

 

[Lane101]

An $8.99 (on sale) Razorock synthetic Monster brush has been my primary go-to for over two and a half years. It easily produces great lather from most soaps and softer croaps (Proraso). Only other brush I use regularly is a Razorock Blondie (Zenith 80N) specifically for my two hardest triple milled soaps (Williams and Mitchell's Wool Fat). From a pure lathering performance perspective I don't see the need for any additional brushes. Recognize that many will prefer different brushes from a desire for a more luxurious item/feel, water retention characteristics or for unique designs as collectables.

 

[Andris83]

this morning I left my badge brush soaking while I was in the shower (a good 10 minutes before I got to shaving). I noticed that the level of water decreased in the mug by a couple of mm (maybe 3mm). that was all taken by the knot. I was under the impression that badger brushes don't need extensive soaking before use, but maybe they do (at least mine, Semogue SOC finest 2 band).
2nd, I was generous with the cream, at least 1.5x what I would use with a synth. the badger also works fine with the same amount as the synth, but with this amount it exploded in lather. frankly it was too much, after I was done with 3 passes, I squeezed out what was left in the brush, and it was at least another pass's worth of good creamy lather. nevertheless it did not thin out this time during subsequent passes.
conclusion? soak and use more product but it seems a bit wasteful to have to create more lather than needed, meh.

 

[Phoenixkh]

I've had more shaves with my SV Manchurian brushes now. I have to say.... price aside, for me, they are the best brushes in my small collection. They have a perfect feel on my face..... not too soft... a hint of gentle scrub, lather like a dream. I couldn't be more pleased.

That said, my Semogue Mistura brushes are phenomenal. I have 5 amazing synths now... two of them are duplicates. Boars? I have quite a few nice ones but I've been breaking them in with wet/dry cycles. They'll be ready for December Boar month.

All the ones I've used are great when I bowl lather. I'm sure the boars will be great too.

 

[JPO]

Synthetic brushes are grate, but I also need to be careful when I splay these brushes during face lathering. I get brush burn, which I never get with badger brushes.
Nothing beats the luxury feel of a badger or a boar brush if you face lather. If I only bowl lathered I would not use anything other then synthetics. For just painting on the soap they are hard to beat.

 

[ShaverAZ]

I soak my boars & badgers, then squeeze them out. While building a lather, I'll squeeze out ther soap-laden knot & it's amazing how much water/runny soap I get. I continue whipping up a lather, and squeeze it out a time or 2 more. This way I get an even bowl of lather without any runny spots.

 

[RayClem]

I use a variety of synthetic, badger, boar, and horsehair brushes. I basically use synthetic and badger hair brushes interchangeably. I develop my lather in a bowl as my skin is too sensitive for face lathering with most of my brushes.

If lathering a dark soap, especially one with a lot of vanilla, I will use a synthetic brush to avoid the possibility of discoloring the badger hair.

If lathering a soap formula I have never lathered previously, I always use a synthetic brush as that eliminates a variable from the evaluation process. Once I do that first lather, I have no issue using a badger.

When using badger brushes, I always soak the knot in warm (not hot) water until the hairs have absorbed as much water as they can. Then I squeeze out excess water and then shake out any remaining water leaving the brush damp, but not wet. I add a fixed amount of water to the lather bowl. The biggest difference between badger and synthetic knots is the amount of water they will hold. By soaking both knots and removing all excess water, I insure that the amount of water retained between the fibers is similar. With those precautions, I see little difference between the two during the bowl lathering process. I do not know how the face lathering process might be affected.

 

[Andris83]

It's definitely the amount of water. What I ment to say previously is that the Badger seems to release absorbed water during use so that the lather becomes diluted. After you've applied a lather for several passes, there's a smaller amount of soap remaining in your bowl, and it is more noticibly affected by this water dilution. It doesn't matter how much you wring out or shake out a badger brush, water will release from the bristles themselves.

I think this is what happens, and that badgers require a lot more product. today I adjusted the amount of cream to badger, but it was barely enough. The first application was great, but I had to squeeze the brush during the 2nd application to get enough lather out of it, otherwise there wasn't enough cream around the tips. While squeezing, I noticed some watery clumps coming out of the brush. in the end with some extra work on the face again, the lather was good, but the effort and product required is way more than a synth. there the 2nd application is a simple paint job. The facefeel of my badger is great, so I don't want to ditch it. I'll use it on soaps that I want to go through quickly I will try if bowl lathering makes a difference.

P.s.: in some youtube videos when I saw guys using twice the amount of cream than what I'd use, I was thinking "why so much?", this is why...

 

[Raz0rboy]

Leather is not a problem
Basically you can shave with everything.
synthetics help those who don't have much experience.
I like mine a lot and when I'm in a hurry I use them and I'm very happy.
at the same time i don't regret buying for example a DG b3 because it is worth every penny .
High level experience

 

[CCS]

In my experience, synthetics produce lather quicker and with less effort required by me compared to badgers. This is where the argument "synths are better performing" than badgers comes from and the main argument of the anti-badger wet shaver. There may be some truth to it, but that is not the main purpose of using a brush, if i can arrive to the same point with slightly greater effort with far greater pampering and feel, that's where badgers really shine.

Bingo!

 

[Ron R]

I have shaved with almost every type of brush out there over the last 5 years other than horse hair brush and my conclusion it depends on the what the person is looking for his needs. If a person is in a hurry always and wants lather quickly and does not clean his brush or rinse brush properly he should really consider a synthetic brush as best choice for his or her needs IMO.
I'm retired and have had lots of time studying these different brushes and I can generate bowl lather as quickly as my synthetic brushes under 2 minutes with not a problem with natural hair, but with boar brush you need to pre-soak for 2 minutes prior(wash face, get gear out...... while waiting) , badger you don't have to pre-soak but you should always warm under water for a 10-20 seconds or longer prior to use.
It took manufactures like 40 years or more to even get close to badger hair face feel or a well broke in boar bristle brushes and they are up to like Generation 9(AKA> G9) and they are still tinkering with synthetic brushes.
If a person is wanting a brush for scrubbing his beard and likes that feel, shorted lofted 2band badgers & boar brushes are still king of the heap for this need IMO.
I have a Yaqi 2band 22mm short lofted brush "Ever-helpful brush" and all my synthetics can not even come close to that face feel experience for a nice scrubber and it is soft tips put with back bone. 2 band (Finest)badger brushes usually have soft tips with some backbone.
Boar bushes have so many loft variants, but as a rule shorter loft will mean a good scrubber is my conclusion with any brush.
I have some boar brushes that are very soft to the face as well has been my finding from using them.
I like the different face feels to apricate the different brushes that us spoiled shavers have now a days that previous generations could only dream of for price and availability, you do not have to $400 dollars for a brush unless it is tailor made for that individual desires, lots of quality brushes for $15- $120 US for every brush mentioned IMO.

 

[Phoenixkh]

I have shaved with almost every type of brush out there over the last 5 years other than horse hair brush and my conclusion it depends on the what the person is looking for his needs. If a person is in a hurry always and wants lather quickly and does not clean his brush or rinse brush properly he should really consider a synthetic brush as best choice for his or her needs IMO.
I'm retired and have had lots of time studying these different brushes and I can generate bowl lather as quickly as my synthetic brushes under 2 minutes with not a problem with natural hair, but with boar brush you need to pre-soak for 2 minutes prior(wash face, get gear out...... while waiting) , badger you don't have to pre-soak but you should always warm under water for a 10-20 seconds or longer prior to use.
It took manufactures like 40 years or more to even get close to badger hair face feel or a well broke in boar bristle brushes and they are up to like Generation 9(AKA> G9) and they are still tinkering with synthetic brushes.
If a person is wanting a brush for scrubbing his beard and likes that feel, shorted lofted 2band badgers & boar brushes are still king of the heap for this need IMO.
I have a Yaqi 2band 22mm short lofted brush "Ever-helpful brush" and all my synthetics can not even come close to that face feel experience for a nice scrubber and it is soft tips put with back bone. 2 band (Finest)badger brushes usually have soft tips with some backbone.
Boar bushes have so many loft variants, but as a rule shorter loft will mean a good scrubber is my conclusion with any brush.
I have some boar brushes that are very soft to the face as well has been my finding from using them.
I like the different face feels to apricate the different brushes that us spoiled shavers have now a days that previous generations could only dream of for price and availability, you do not have to $400 dollars for a brush unless it is tailor made for that individual desires, lots of quality brushes for $15- $120 US for every brush mentioned IMO.

I don't have the time in that you do, but I have a very nice brush collection based on what others have purchased over the years. I love all the ones I've used so far.... my 8 boars are in various break in stages at this point.... but they'll all be ready for DecemBoar. My favorites so far are the two band Manchurians I have...so similar to your tastes. I seem to prefer that face feel over any of the others, though the SOC Mistura brushes are very enjoyable as well.

 

[Ckmaui]

water matters !

For my insane hard water some soaps with a badger just do not lather that well and we know water does matter and to that I think the natural fibers do interact in some way no idea how and effect things for the worse sometimes
the synthetic lathers better but its still not a great lather like a great soap delivers so I would not say the synth can make some lower performing soaps perform better or easier I feel ? But they are still not as good as great soaps and for me the great soaps that do well with the badger I have are kinda equal then it comes back to face feel over performance but I only have 3 brushes so this could very well change as I get more and play with more

 

[Andris83]

I tried today bowl lathering again. I didn't run out of lather this time, I even had some left after 3 passes. I used a lot of cream but I tried to use the same amount as for face lathering (not 100% sure though). The results were good, I may have even got more lather this way. Before the 2nd application I noticed again that the perfect consistency lather that I left on the brush/in the bowl got watered down, so I had to work the lather again on the face to get a good consistency. In the end it worked out well. But, honestly, it takes too long and it is a big fuss to me. I'm not sure the face feel alone is worth the extra work required, at least not daily. To each their own, but I'll remain a face latherer (with synths).

 

[Drew]

If I had to do it all over again, I would have purchased a Plissoft and called it quits after that. The Plissoft delivers one helluva a lather, regardless of the type of soap, not to mention the spectacular face feel. I prefer this brush over any badger that I own, whether it is a SB, BB, or ST.

I really like my Razorock plissoft Bruce... After 15 years of using the same EJ best badger (which I still like)... but the RR is really a great tool.

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I face lather exclusively and my Chubby 2 synthetic is quicker and uses less soap than my badger brushes. However I do not care at all about lather quality, as long as I can shave with it then the lather is fine, as is going back to the puck to reload between passes if necessary. For me it is all about the feeling and enjoyment of face lathering, that is what matters, not the lather that is produced, and not the closeness of the finished shave. My badger brushes feel better and are more enjoyable to use and that is why I prefer them. I enjoy them so much that I sometimes lather up some Barbasol or canned Proraso, and it works just fine.