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- #161
Great thread! I had to read as I dug my 1305 from the back of the closet.
Over the years I've had practically every Semogue. 1305 (multiple times), 830, 820, 610, 620, 1470, 1438, 1250, 1800, SOC (multiple times in badger and boar). My absolute favorite was the old Cerda LE, which I think was similar to the C5. It was unbleached with a wood handle and measured 24x50 roughly. It was essentially a shorter loft SOC which was just awesome.
I tend to find that the 55mm loft brushes get to be too floppy and the 50mm brushes feel too small generally. I like a little more scrub out of the boars because when they break in they get kind of soft and floppy, not scratchy at all. And that's coming from someone who is a badger snob and dislikes anything less than Shavemac/Thater to avoid scratch.
So I'm kicking around getting a shorter loft boar again as all those are no longer in the den (aside from the 1305). Do you generally like the 610 over the 620?
How is the Zenith breaking in? I saw there's one for sale that's supposed to be like the Cerda (24 x 48).
Honestly, from what you're describing, I might say the C5 is your best bet in Semogues. It's 24x50, and the hair feels quite similar to the 610. It took a little longer to soften than the 610 but is now really firing on all cylinders. It holds a ton of lather, and the tips are very soft. It doesn't feel as flexible as my 55mm lofts from Semogue.
Funny you post this, as I've been using a 2-band silvertip Shavemac all week after months of boar. It's tremendous. I don't like scritch, but I do like some backbone, and 2-band Shavemac silvertip is just about perfect IMO.
Oh, about the Zenith: it is its own thing, and mine is surely not fully broken in, but I don't much think I'm going to break it in. I think I'm going to keep 3-4 boars, my Shavemac 2-band silvertip, my SOC Mistura, and a couple of synthetics. The rest...I will be selling or PIFing. I may pick up another Shavemac or two down the road - a silvertip or finest bulb would be interesting - and maybe an SOC Finest, but there are no unicorns, or rather, I have them: brushes that work well, feel good ergonomically, and will last for years.
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