- Joined
- Tuesday May 22, 2012
- Location
- Cumbria, England
Load and hydrate is the way to go with synths, you're probably not going to get enough water retention if you just wet before loading.
Synthetic suggestions
- Thread starter longplay
- Start Date
- Joined
- Monday August 31, 2015
Master the underhand "flip" whereas after you've created a decent lather on your face with the synthetic brush you hold the brush upside down under the faucet with only a slight trickle of hot water and then rapidly bring it up to your face w/o losing the retained water. Works like a charm. 
- Joined
- Thursday August 8, 2013
- Location
- Silly Suffolk
I usually lather in a bowl, and give my natural fibre brushes very little soaking; just enough to assist in getting sufficient soap or croap into them, after which I add water by the drop to bring the lather up to what I want.
From being someone who didn't care for (aka "hated") the older-style synthetics, I'm now a big fan of the Plissoft-type knots and, having started with Plissons, now have some from Stirling, Razorock, Zenith, Muhle etc. As well as the production models, I've had a couple of bespoke handles/synths from Dorian and another. "The bigger, the better" is my view, and I'm pleased that there are many new vendors offering larger knots, as the original Plissons were all one, rather small, size.
Based on experience with older types, I had initially thought that the newer synths wouldn't absorb much water. However, I find that if I briefly dip them, they suck up plenty, and often too much, when I need to shake a fair bit out to avoid watery lather. I can then use my droplet-adding method. I'm accustomed to a bit of "scritch", which the Muhle V3(?) fibre has, but I think the advantages of these brushes outweigh any softness or reduced backbone they may have.
As a bowl-latherer, the big plus for me is that I can give these brushes the kind of "stick" that would, and for me, has, ruined a good badger in a short time. I've not yet had any problems with synth knots breaking, tangling, or falling out, and, if I did, the replacement cost is negligible against that of a quality badger.
When I occasionally face-lather, I use the hydrating technique that @Bogeyman well-describes above, and that works well.
I have all the fervour of a convert, and my next purchase will be the Razorock 400 butterscotch/black brush, when that becomes available.
From being someone who didn't care for (aka "hated") the older-style synthetics, I'm now a big fan of the Plissoft-type knots and, having started with Plissons, now have some from Stirling, Razorock, Zenith, Muhle etc. As well as the production models, I've had a couple of bespoke handles/synths from Dorian and another. "The bigger, the better" is my view, and I'm pleased that there are many new vendors offering larger knots, as the original Plissons were all one, rather small, size.
Based on experience with older types, I had initially thought that the newer synths wouldn't absorb much water. However, I find that if I briefly dip them, they suck up plenty, and often too much, when I need to shake a fair bit out to avoid watery lather. I can then use my droplet-adding method. I'm accustomed to a bit of "scritch", which the Muhle V3(?) fibre has, but I think the advantages of these brushes outweigh any softness or reduced backbone they may have.
As a bowl-latherer, the big plus for me is that I can give these brushes the kind of "stick" that would, and for me, has, ruined a good badger in a short time. I've not yet had any problems with synth knots breaking, tangling, or falling out, and, if I did, the replacement cost is negligible against that of a quality badger.
When I occasionally face-lather, I use the hydrating technique that @Bogeyman well-describes above, and that works well.
I have all the fervour of a convert, and my next purchase will be the Razorock 400 butterscotch/black brush, when that becomes available.
Just recently received mine from the Shaving Station. First synthetic brush (own several badger hair - super and best - brushes and a hair bristle brush). Lovely weighty handle! Love it!! Surprisingly soft bristles but stiff enough to whip up and apply a good lather. Would recommend.