The softest brush I own

[Rudy Vey]

The softest brush I own is my "Favorite", a superb Shavemac two-band silvertip....

 

[TexOkie Shaver]

The softest brushes I own and my favorite are synthetic. RazoRock 400 with the Plissoft knot. It’s like lathering with a makeup brush.

 

[Cino]

The softest brush I own is my "Favorite", a superb Shavemac two-band silvertip....
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That's a nice looking knot. What are the dimensions?

 

[Merle]

I bought a Semogue 2000 but was so distracted by other brushes when it arrived that I never gave it a proper breakin. I should really give it a go; Semogues take so long to break in though and I'm getting old

How do you like it?

They do take time. I found it paints brilliantly. Like others of its kind does not compound to a thickened cream but that's the experience of the archetype. However, I do not care for scritch when I use it as a twirl & swirl. Either it is a demonstration of needing more break-in or the bristles are just too thick and will never yield. There's just something about poking boar or synth, or even inverted badger tips into pores while attempting to lather on the face that ruins a portion of the shave for me. Otherwise, the S2000 fans beautifully when dried and does a fine job picking up soap while lathering.

In direct comparison, the Omega R&B does twirl and swirl nicely.

 

[haggis]

But I can't be arsed even putting all the badgers back in their fancy boxes, let alone sending them all over the world

Eh, just dump them all in one box and ship them off to me naked. $50 should cover the lot. I'll send you a prepaid shipping label to make it as painless as possible.

 

[Owen Bawn]

Eh, just dump them all in one box and ship them off to me naked. $50 should cover the lot. I'll send you a prepaid shipping label to make it as painless as possible.

I wouldn't be giving them away. I can send you a photo and you can make an offer on the entire lot. It should be around $2500 USD, however. Plus the $50 for shipping.

 

[haggis]

Rats! I just spent my budget on a bunch of scrap steel.

 

[Rudy Vey]

That's a nice looking knot. What are the dimensions?

about 28 mm with a loft of approx 51/52 at exit from handle

 

[Cino]

about 28 mm with a loft of approx 51/52 at exit from handle

Oh, that is a sweet spot. Beautiful handle too. It looks like the real deal.

 

[crazy shavers]

Kent BLK12S

 

[tjsgarden]

I've been on a bit of a badger binge for the past year or so. Now that the weather is heating up I've decided to give some boar brushes a go for some cold wet shaves from a chilled scuttle. First up was the Omega Italian Flag. The hair is much finer than Omega's other offerings. This is possibly the softest brush I own. It exhibits absolutely no scritch or scrub. It's like lathering with a brush made only of lather.

Now if you are looking for a face massage or some scrub, this is not the brush for you. It requires a lighter touch and side to side movements rather than swirling or mashing. Used properly this is a delightful brush. I use it with creams and an ice cold scuttle. It's a nice departure from my other brushes.

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Italians know a thing or two about brushes. And bicycles.

I just ordered the Omega Italian Flag.
Any suggested links to speed the process of soften the tips?
Thanks

 

[Cino]

I just ordered the Omega Italian Flag.
Any suggested links to speed the process of soften the tips?
Thanks

There are lots of methods. My favorite for a while was to soak only the tips in very hot water until the water cools. Then brush on a towel and allow to dry. Repeat. I think a kinder approach is to soak the knot in the refrigerator from overnight to several days, then brush vigorously on a towel, air dry for a day or two and repeat.

I've since found that a prolonged soak before shaving does a lot to soften the knot and make it more receptive to lathering. Now I soak bore brushes anywhere from 30 minutes to hours before shaving depending on when I get around to shaving. It seems like the bristles just keep absorbing water and softening. In the meantime, the more usage/ drying cycles they go through the softer and more uniform they become.

After every use I rinse them thoroughly and then vigorously dry the tips on a towel. Then air dry them for a couple days before using them again. It is the wet/ dry cycles that split the ends and soften the tips more than anything.

I hope you love it!

 

[Ron R]

I have a dedicated Yaqi 24mm Cashmere knot that I use every day for cleaning my whole face, its soft and gentle around the eyes for allergies, summer forest fire smoke, dirt, facial oils, dry eye ...... it works wonders and have faithfully used it for over 2 years and highly recommend it for a facial cleanse.
These are my Pre shave products that work well for my skin and do not oil up my shave gear. CeraVe hand bar cleanser you do not need a lot and will almost last a year of cleaning because using a brush is so more efficient to create lather.

Have some great shaves!

 

[tjsgarden]

There are lots of methods. My favorite for a while was to soak only the tips in very hot water until the water cools. Then brush on a towel and allow to dry. Repeat. I think a kinder approach is to soak the knot in the refrigerator from overnight to several days, then brush vigorously on a towel, air dry for a day or two and repeat.

I've since found that a prolonged soak before shaving does a lot to soften the knot and make it more receptive to lathering. Now I soak bore brushes anywhere from 30 minutes to hours before shaving depending on when I get around to shaving. It seems like the bristles just keep absorbing water and softening. In the meantime, the more usage/ drying cycles they go through the softer and more uniform they become.

After every use I rinse them thoroughly and then vigorously dry the tips on a towel. Then air dry them for a couple days before using them again. It is the wet/ dry cycles that split the ends and soften the tips more than anything.

I hope you love it!

THANK YOU for the detailed reply!

In your comments you said:

It is the wet/ dry cycles that split the ends and soften the tips more than anything.

What do you think would happen if I used a hair dryer (on medium heat) to speed up the drying process?

 

[SterFry]

Cashmere and PAA Peregrino no question about it. Although just about any modern synthetic is ultra soft.

Softest boar is my Zenith

Softest badger is my shaveforge 2 band

 

[Cino]

THANK YOU for the detailed reply!

In your comments you said:


What do you think would happen if I used a hair dryer (on medium heat) to speed up the drying process?

I'm not sure. I wouldn't try it for fear of heating up the glue.

 

[tjsgarden]

I'm not sure. I wouldn't try it for fear of heating up the glue.

Good point! I will scrub, rub and swirl the brush on a bath towel to dry it.

 

[Ron R]

I just ordered the Omega Italian Flag.
Any suggested links to speed the process of soften the tips?
Thanks

This should help and it worked well for my Yaqi bore brush, I like a boar when it is broke in and this will speed it up a lot IMO.

Breaking in a NEW Boar brush a little quicker!

Thought I would do the proper method of breaking in a new 2nd boar brush. My first boar brush attempt of breaking in (4 years ago approx) I read a few articles and tried to remove the funk smell out of the brush because I have a keen sense of smell and did not like it. I used all the wrong...

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