This is my observations on a couple of Synths.
Stills has already done a Badger-Synth lather demo here. I'm also looking at the MuJagOp (Aesop rebranded Muhle STF knot/Jagger handle) and the cheap Body Shop. No lather porn or demo pics, sorry. Just facts and overinflated opinion.
I’ve probably tried most grades of badger and a few brands of these. Was never interested in Synths, as the only offerings til late were nylon filament boars, which sound awful and look shyte. Or the Men U brushes, which looked all right but had cheap shit handles, yet were asking $80.
Then these newer fibres came out and I’ve finally got round to trying one. I got the BS brush a week or so ago, and then couldn’t help myself in the Aesop shop when there on another errand. But if the BS brush was BS, I wouldn’t have plonked down $65 for the Aesop.
Specs. Stills listed these, but the Aesop is a 23/54 knot. The BS has none given, but at a good guess, I'd say it was 19/54. With badger, and especially the higher, softer grades, those sorts of specs would mean the Aesop was a floppy mop and the BS a gutless, useless bastard. With this fibre, they’re neither.
First off, the fibre has similar properties in both, but the Aesop is softer. And like a dry Badger knot, it’s springy. However, Synth retains those properties when wet, whereas a badger will soften up right through the knot. The BS has more resistance and spring than the Aesop. That means it needs working a bit harder to splay. So the old rules of knot width/loft ratios go out of the window with Synths.
Pros:
They both work really well. They don’t retain much water, so a wetted soap is advisable for loading. Creams? Meh, whatever you want to do…
They dry really quick. Shake and towel dry and you could put them away in a case. Perfect travel brush material.
Synths work up lather quickly; very little air, bubbles worked out very quickly and lather is very creamy.
Cons:
No bloom porn. They look the same towel dried as they did when you started. But the Aesop is more aesthetically pleasing to begin with.
Can be a bit tricky to add enough water while lathering, without it dripping.
Verdict.
The BS is undoubtedly the buckbangingest, the Aesop is nicer to look at. Looks well made and the handle feels quality I prefer the handle, softer flex and look of the Aesop, but if you were going to try a Synth (and if you have a passing interest in brushes), get a BS. They’re $12 FFS.
Stills has already done a Badger-Synth lather demo here. I'm also looking at the MuJagOp (Aesop rebranded Muhle STF knot/Jagger handle) and the cheap Body Shop. No lather porn or demo pics, sorry. Just facts and overinflated opinion.
I’ve probably tried most grades of badger and a few brands of these. Was never interested in Synths, as the only offerings til late were nylon filament boars, which sound awful and look shyte. Or the Men U brushes, which looked all right but had cheap shit handles, yet were asking $80.
Then these newer fibres came out and I’ve finally got round to trying one. I got the BS brush a week or so ago, and then couldn’t help myself in the Aesop shop when there on another errand. But if the BS brush was BS, I wouldn’t have plonked down $65 for the Aesop.
Specs. Stills listed these, but the Aesop is a 23/54 knot. The BS has none given, but at a good guess, I'd say it was 19/54. With badger, and especially the higher, softer grades, those sorts of specs would mean the Aesop was a floppy mop and the BS a gutless, useless bastard. With this fibre, they’re neither.
First off, the fibre has similar properties in both, but the Aesop is softer. And like a dry Badger knot, it’s springy. However, Synth retains those properties when wet, whereas a badger will soften up right through the knot. The BS has more resistance and spring than the Aesop. That means it needs working a bit harder to splay. So the old rules of knot width/loft ratios go out of the window with Synths.
Pros:
They both work really well. They don’t retain much water, so a wetted soap is advisable for loading. Creams? Meh, whatever you want to do…
They dry really quick. Shake and towel dry and you could put them away in a case. Perfect travel brush material.
Synths work up lather quickly; very little air, bubbles worked out very quickly and lather is very creamy.
Cons:
No bloom porn. They look the same towel dried as they did when you started. But the Aesop is more aesthetically pleasing to begin with.
Can be a bit tricky to add enough water while lathering, without it dripping.
Verdict.
The BS is undoubtedly the buckbangingest, the Aesop is nicer to look at. Looks well made and the handle feels quality I prefer the handle, softer flex and look of the Aesop, but if you were going to try a Synth (and if you have a passing interest in brushes), get a BS. They’re $12 FFS.