Trying soaps and had questions about my brushes

[theinternot]

I have finally gone and ordered a tub of Tabac and was wondering what other users thought of the brushes I have for lathering soaps. Up to this point I have been using only creams. I have tried a few times with a puck of Col. Conk's almond soap that came with first kit I bought.

I have two brushes: a silver tip shavemac 23mm, and a Col. Conk pure badger:

shavemac:

Col. Conk's:

I never liked the chrome/nickel Conk's one. It is impossible to hold onto when it gets any soap on it, it's really heavy, and it doesn't produce a very good lather. It does have a nice spring to it, and seems more suited for face lathering than cream and bowl.

The shavemac is a very nice brush, and I have gotten great lather with it using a variety of creams. However, I thought I would get my soap chops up last shave and tried to get some great lather from the Conk's soap with my silver tip shavemac. I followed the directions on the sticky for lathering with soap, but really didn't end up with much on my face other than thin fluff. I had to squeeze out usable lather from inside the brush.

Has anyone had great success with either of these brushes and soaps?

 

[HDPaul]

I have a Conk brush and have used a variety of creams (KMF, Proraso, C&E) and soaps (Conk, L'Occitane) successfully in bowl and on face.

Perhaps you need to load the soap on the brush better, then add additional water to achieve a good lather.

I do find the Conk soap to be harder to lather up well compared to other soaps so don't worry.

On the next shave, try to put a mega load of soap into the brush before lathering. Next, be prepared to add a lot of water to get the right ratio. Also, be sure to spend extra time lathering on your face or in bowl.

Or, since you are an experienced cream user, maybe you should try a super lather before going full soap (load the brush with soap, then perform your usual cream ritual).

Good luck!