Omega 643174 Synthetic

[Latherdude]

I just got this brush from WCS. I thought I would share my thoughts here, since it doesn't have an official review yet, but I feel I should use it several times before writing a review.

I really like this thing!

WCS Says:
Total Height: 104 mm
Loft: 56 mm
Knot: 23 mm​

Price: $30 from WCS (+Tax/S&H)

Quality: Seems to be built very well. It hasn't lost any hairs just yet. Since there's no "packaging" field I think I'll mention that it comes with its own little stand for upside-down drying.

Density: not too thick, not too fluffy

Stiffness of Tips: Not as stiff as a VDH boar brush, but stiffer than my AOS Pure Badger brush.

Softness of Tips: Here's where I was floored. This thing feels even softer than my Shavemac 23mm finest badger brush. The bristles are quite fine, and each one tapers down to an incredibly fine tip.
This brush is the definition of the "stiff yet soft" phenomenon.

Ergonomic: Not really sure how to judge this trait. It has a square-based handle with faceted corners, which kind of adds to its unique "countertop appeal" I suppose.
I did notice that the non-round shape resulted in more CLANGing when whipping up lather in my shaving mug, but this may not matter to face-latherers, hand-latherers or those who use a more shallow bowl.

Latherability: I found it a little tricky to load it with soap, but this could be my own technique. The bristles don't like to splay outward; it takes a good push to spread 'em out on the cake of soap.
Whips up cream with great ease. I've been having trouble getting a good lather from my Classic Brand Citrus Basil shave cream, but this thing whipped it into a nice lather on my first attempt. It didn't "hog the cream" the way my Shavemac tends to do with this particular product.


All in all I am very impressed by how well this brush works. I have face-lathered some VDH with it (only to play with it, and wash my face) in the morning. This afternoon I actually shaved, using this brush to whip up some Omega soap into a luxurious lather.

If any of you all have this brush, speak up! Let us know how it worked for you or left you wanting.

Attached are pictures comparing it to my AOS Pure and my Shavemac Finest w/ 23mm knot

 

[warlandsboy]

I've been curious as to how this brush performs, thanks for the great review.

 

[Latherdude]

Yesterday I used this brush to lather up some Williams in a bowl. Lifting the soap up into the bristles was pretty effortless as they're sufficiently stiff when pumped downward.

I moved over to a bowl and added some water, and then swirling around for a little bit yielded loads of fluffy lather. It didn't look luxurious, but definitely felt slick. I guess that's just how Williams behaves, or at least with my "LA Mineral Water."
That said, it felt very nice when I lathered up my face. I found that you can get a good scrubbing by using a light pressure while swirling, or by making short pumps against the skin. Or, you can push until the bristles splay outward and then circle around for a very soft 'lather massage'.

My only gripe would be about the handle, as it can get quite slippery. Its flat faces can get really slick if you get water on it, or if you lather in a deep mug or bowl. It would have helped for them to put a little nub at the base or something. Perhaps it's something that can easily be adapted to, like what I've read about the Merkur Progress handle; as cool as it looks and works, this handle could definitely be an issue for some shavers.


Anyway, I used it again this morning to whip up some Proraso cream and it worked quite well. I'm just amazed at how this brush can go from scrubby to super soft with just a little push. I'll keep making updates on here before I submit my final review to the Reviews section.

Feel free to ask questions and make requests, and I'll report my findings for all of us!

 

[Latherdude]

Today I used this brush with some Omega soap. I soaked the brush while I showered, and while I applied some Proraso Pre[/Post] Shave Creme. Today it felt a little more scrubby, more or less in line with my AOS Pure Badger brush, but splaying the bristles outward made for a very soft lathering.

Tomorrow I'll try using it with something different like the CS Citrus Basil cream, or my AOS Sandalwood. So far I must say that overall I am impressed by this brush.

 

[du212]

I have a Men-Ü synthetic with the same knot and it's the worst brush that I own,...the cheaper boar brushes are far better than this

 

[SliceOfLife]

Really? I've been nothing but impressed with my TGN badger-style synth. It's softer than any badger could ever be and has the backbone and latherability of a pure. Water retention is a bit less than a badger, but that's a good thing. Badgers tend to hold too much water in my opinion. It may well become my favorite brush.

 

[Latherdude]

Water retention is a bit less than a badger, but that's a good thing. Badgers tend to hold too much water in my opinion.

Well, hallelujah! I'm not alone.

 

[Latherdude]

I have a Men-Ü synthetic with the same knot and it's the worst brush that I own,...the cheaper boar brushes are far better than this

I'm interested to know just what makes it so bad. Care to elaborate?

 

[du212]

I'm interested to know just what makes it so bad. Care to elaborate?

The brush has some advantages: it has a lot of backbone, but is too stiff , the exfoliation is more agressive than in other bruses.

It doesn't retains water, better for dry the brush but not the best to do lather. Usually the lather is flabby, too watery or it has bubbles.

The cheap Men-Ü, an omega boar brush, is a better brush, with a shavestick it gives a thick lather, the tips are soft, once broken after some uses, and it has backbone, a great brush for face lathering.

The Men.Ü Syntetico is not a bad brush but it doesn`t have the perfomance of the boar or badger brushes,

Maybe I am doing it wrong, and I can omprove the use of this brush, but at the moment I can't get quality lather from it (the same quality as I get from boar or bafger brushes)

 

[Latherdude]

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=2085013#post2085013