Finding a Synthetic Shaving Brush with Scrub & Backbone 

I agree with you about the silk smoke knot. For me it has the backbone of a boar brush with the tips of a tuxedo, and it holds the water of a badger brush. I use to call this knot 'strange animal' because it is not springy or floppy like other synthetic brushes, and because it reacts like a brush with natural bristles. The strangest thing about this knot, (mine is 28 mm), is that its feel changes when you bloom it!!! Believe me Chris, this knot is a strange animal indeed! On another note I really enjoy your positive attitude since you have started uploading videos again 😉 Keep on bringing great content to the community and keep safe. Greetings from Greece.

I have the AP Winter Handle with a 24 mm silk smoke knot and love it. It has soft tips with just enough backbone to lather the hardest soap easily. I also have just the silk smoke knot and intend to reknot a vintage Ever Ready with it.

Haircut and Shave Co had brushes a couple years ago, 24mm tuxedo knot, high density and set to 54 mm height, best synthetic knots I have used so far

I have a Yaqi 28 mm Rainbow synthetic brush. Super soft with dense fibers and plenty of backbone. Love it.

That’s an impressive collection of synthetic brushes! Wonderful video; reminds me why I avoid synthetic knots. But damn, those AP Shave Co and Greydog brushes are gorgeous!

Hi Chris. I found the Maggard Razor Black and white knots have a good amount of push back and above average scrub for a synthetic. I have a 26 mm and Rob Moffett set the loft at 54 mm...great knot.

Thanks Chris, this was a good video, for me, because you started with some examples of knots that don't have much backbone. I like that in a synthetic. I don't have too many brushes that I like to use regularly and I'm thinking of getting away from badger hair altogether. Your Ariana and Evans brush is a beauty. Take care, buddy.

Great video Chris, I loved all of the virtues of synthetic brushes,

Synthetic brush that is a imitation of a boar brush is the Omega S 10018 and 10019 models. There is a bigger knot version, but I find that one too stiff. These brushes are fantastic to lather with. They have all the properties of a synth brush (ease of use, maintenance...) but it has some scrub in it. I love them. And the price of them is excellent.

I have a bunch of these original plissoft style brushes and they mostly feel floppy. I recently(about 2 weeks ago) purchased a razorock big bruce in the 24mm size and was blown away by how much stiffness and pushback it had. It's quickly become my favorite synthetic brush and I've only shaved with it since I've received it. I would give that a try for anyone looking.

Great video Chris, and such a useful insight into some of the newer knots. 😌👍 I agree, my good friend Frank is super talented. A highly technical shaver with an awesome touch and as he learned with shavettes, he had to learn to let the razor glide, and he’s brilliant at it.

Found this good one in the archives - thanks Chris. I have a T3 and like it and wondered if there was anything with a bit more backbone. Seems that is near the top in that category for synthetics. I do like badger and boar a bit better for now but synthetics have their place especially for a quick shave with no soak easy cleanup.

I agree with you on scrubby brushes... One doesn't need to scrub exfoliate with a brush, it can lead to irritation . Splay is important for flow through. . So one need to find a good middle ground between Splay and softness. . Medium Splay, and medium softness, is probably a good place to start with synthetic brushes.. From what I have been reading, scrubby equals glue bump.. Thanks for the video - Sir!

I've tried most of those and would say the synthetic silvertip styles have the most backbone. Best option is to set it yourself so you can adjust the loft to your preference.

Omega makes the Omega S Brush which is a synthetic brush meant to simulate a Boar Brush. I've never used one so i can't speak from experience, but it sounds like that might be what he's looking for. Plus they are $7.99 at West Coast Shave. Maggart Razors has them too, with more variety of handle colors, and still under $10.00. I saw an old video where Nick Shaves used one. Hope this helps.

from what I understand, the Ghost knot from Turn and Shave is meant to be a synthetic boar alternative. It's supposed to be scrubby by design.

The silksmoke is a good option. I picked one up on the PAA Starcraft that works well. Also, the Timberwolf knots on the Maggards red and blue brushes are great too. T3 is great but my issue is that the handle is too thick for most brush holders.

By far the most backbone and scrub in a synthetic brush that I have found is the one from The Body Shop. The same people who sell Maca Root Shave Cream. I bought one in Finland last summer. Wooden handle synthetic brush with all the backbone and scrub you could want.

Man this is an easy answer for me! The ghost knot from Milton over at Turn n Shave! It's bright white and looks innocent but I couldn't get through a full 3 pass shave without brush burn! Heaps of back bone and mad amount of scrub!

I find that my Synthetics tend to be soft on the tips, to get stronger backbone you tend to need a bigger shorter knot like about 26mm or bigger with 50-55mm loft, however, this just confirms what Chris was saying though. The main reason I love synthetics as they give soft feel on the face straight away (no break-in period required) and a sense of bigger backbone because the fibres bounce back. I don't personally have a big enough range of brushes in my collection to say what has the strongest backbone, but I do like my Yaqi Pony 26mm/55mm for a balanced brush with soft bristles and good backbone, although I don't use my brushes for scrubbing too much. PS: The shape of the knot can help too with scrub, I would think a more bulb shaped knot would give more scrub.

Maggard Razors 24mm Tuxedo, hands down best synthetic... Soft tips, great backbone, probably exactly what Frank is looking for. Only synthetic I have kept in my collection, and it's on my regular rotation. At $13, can't beat that value.

This is exactly what I needed, I like the Plisoft knot, but it certainly could use some backbone, stirlihg's tuxedo brushes seem to provide a bit more backbone, I was looking into the Trafalgar T3 because of its price, but it seems to be sold out on WCS, but I feel that the tuxedo knot is almost there on performance. Based on this video I guess I will wait for WCS to restock the Trafalgar since it seems to have a bit more backbone, and has the Simpson brand behind it.

Hey Chris and Frank, i have the Simpson Trafalgar T2 (24mm) the middle version of Chris's T3 and the APShaveCo Silksmoke V1 (with handle and my favourite knot) and i concur, they do have good backbone, the newer version of the Silksmoke has more backbone than V1 but isn't as soft, i also thought the Razorock Bruce had equal backbone but the one with the most backbone and Simpson recommend painting because of how much backbone it has is the Chubby 2 Synthetic but it is on the pricy side but boy, you have put quite a bit of pressure for it to splay, Muhle Synthetic has poor backbone in comparison, possibly worse than a Cashmere. Chris, i am impressed how white the tips are on the two tuxedo brushes from West Coast Shaving, i have an APShaveCo and they are quite grey.

While i will always be a badger man, ive looked into synthetics quite a bit lately. I've dipped into this too. Simpson Chubby 2 Synthetic has some gooooood backbone and proper scrub but feels really nice and soft on the skin. Yes, it needs quite a bit of force to splay, and its pricey. But a damn nice brush Most of the Yaqi brushes do a really good job being a nice softer middleground

Great explanation Chris, think this helps out to when choosing synthetics. 👏🙌👊 stay safe my friend.

The Simpson t3 is a great brush, to me it’s priced well and it has good backbone. Ymmv, but for me it’s great.

Silksmoke in a handle is very very soft, think the knot alone can fool you. Imho, stirling plissoft 24mm type brush is not floppy and has prenty of bakbone, without being prickly. Its due to low setting of knot/higher glue bump. Not sure if that is on purpose or just chinese lack of quality control :)

Really useful comparison, thanks!

The DS cosmetic barber pole brush has a fair bit of back bone, much more than any other of my synthetics.

I find the Razorock Italian flag brush to have have something resembling backbone as it's set so low. I can't use it daily as it irritates my neck, which is why I don't get the allure of backbone/scrub. To me is just another possible source of irritation. The point of the brush is to make lather which they all do, even the softest of them all (especially the softest of them all, the Plisson).

I would say ap shave co g5b has both backbone and scrub more than other synthetics I have tried. Turn n shave ghost knot would be another, but splays kind of easily.

I have a WCS tortoiseshell that has decent backbone and is scruby/scritchy. They don't have the handle i have anymore but the WCS tortoiseshell collection torch is on sale for $17.58 right now (4-24-2020)

Muehle syntethic and Omega Evo. They are on the price side.

Check out the Supply Co Synthetic Brush ($39.00 plus shipping last I looked). It is a Ft Worth, Texas small business with an Austin, Texas distribution center. I think it might meet your “scrub” needs.

Chris, Great information. Nice explanation Thank you

Frugal Shave has a White Feather Synthetic that has good backbone and has some good scrub as well. Check him out on Etsy. Good video.

I enjoy the Omega Evo. The WCS Honeycomb is nice but not the Evo. The Simpson's Chubby 2 Synthetic is better at painting and can splay with the new ones. I know this isn't in the list but the Richman S2 innovator knot Synth and Badger mix knot is wonderful!

I have the Simpson T2. Soft, scrub, and backbone. Perfect! And no animal had to die.

My first synthetic was the satin tip from straight razors.com. After I got my first Razorock, And other synthetics, and went back to the satin tip, I quickly learned that the satin tip was much scrubbier than the other synthetics which I have picked up.

DS Cosmetic 26mm timber wolf/tuxedo(not sure which the correct name is) in Jade green has a dense, relatively low set knot which gives a decent amount of backbone.

The Full moon 26mm from Turn-n-Suave best for me back home and soft

Oh Chris, you made a brush video and didn't do a favorite brush video? I am hurt. Lol I have been waiting for an updated favorite video for quite a while. We have the same tastes in brushes and I want another brush. Maybe you could give me a quick top 3? Have a blessed week.

Hey Im late to the party but Jequil and Corneveo has 2 stiff synthetics, the brown one is scrubby and very stiff. The blue one is denser and softer but still lots of backbone. Both are like 11.99 on Amazon.

Hi Chris. Great video. Nice brush collection! The second brush you showed i believe its a PAA aluminum handle with a synbad knot. My question is will that handle hold a 26mm synthetic knot? Also, is the handle about the same size as the A and E black and white handle brush? And how do you like it? Sorry for all the questions I saw that handle yesterday online and i was thinking about buying one. Thanks man. Cheers!

Over the years I have owned and tried a variety of synthetic knots. I do take one in my RV but I have yet to find one that performs like animal fibers.

I like soft and backbone. Scrub isn't good for me. I think that is why I favor the Razorock Big Bruce. It does a fantastic job lathering anything, splay is on point, and is very soft.

I don't go for synthetics but I have a few. I bought the Ferrari from West Coast and to me it feels very plasticky and cheap. I am considering the tuxedo as I like a little bit of scrub..good review..

Oh man you know what I shit you not I was thinking to myself today that I need to find an amazing synthetic knot. I love synthetic brushes

If want some thing with scrub by a sally beauty supplies store synthetic brush it's 8 bucks it will scrub the hair off your face with out even shaving it rough but it's good it's now 2 years old

Great knot advise 👍👍

The only two that I have had in my den is the turn n shave and the razorock Bruce

IMHO the Simpson Chubby 2 Synthetic and the Edwin Jagger XL synthetic are the best for backbone. Just my opinion.

Big thanks! 🙂👍

The Naked Armor synth brushes are full of back bone and scrub.

Which knot, in your opinion, is the softest? I have a WCS two-tone synthetic. I might want something softer, if one exists. Love your videos!

People don't give horse hair brushes a chance. The are soft with great backbone. I wish I could see more SOTD videos with horse hair brushes.

The PAA Starcraft has good backbone.

I have heard you say that the Italian Flag brush had a lot of backbone, but in this video you you say not so. Has it been changed?

Oumo's ST-1 seems promising.

Kent Infinity Plus? ,I've a Muhle Synthetic already ,i would like to know if It similar or not .

Have you tried the Muhle silver tip fibre? It's AMAZING

AP Shaveco tuxedo knot has backbone though tops are soft

OMEGA S-Brush is dense and has backbone

Rich Hansen has two synthetics both have crazy backbone and one has enough scritch to satisfy any itch lol

Does the Maggard 24mm knot shaving brush have a good backbone?

Really interested in the Trafalgar T3after this.

Hello Chriss I'm sorry but you are confusing scrubb and backbone. If a brush is scrubby it doesn't mean that it has backbone. A brush can have backbone and no scrubb. Those are characteristic of a quality brush. And the opposite is a scrubby brush with no backbone. That's what you usually get with those cheap pure badger brushes. A really scratchy brush with no backbone. Cheers

Full moon back bone and scrub

I’m 3rd lol I love synthetic brushes

The Omega-S Brush has scrub and backbone but is cheap

Alpha brushes

Simpsons Trafalgar T3 is the winner 🥇, I enjoy it too much Amazing backbone, Soft, durable and a royal shape with a good price.

💈👍🏻

I'm here

Scrubby and backbone I like boar brushes for that..

Is this video just an excuse to show off your brushes? 😊 Nice collection.

First

The best Shave Brush on the market today is my Simpson Trafalgar's T-3 better then boar cheaper in the long run it is 29mm. i mic it' it's like buying a $275 badger hair brush, no cleaning the brush, no need for a brush stand, fast drying time, well not fall apart like a badger hair or boar can, cheap to buy, I have owned it for 5 years with no hair loss with no problems wheelchair Larry Merry Christmas

Great video Chris. I have PAA's Roswell knot and that is similar to Silksmoke knot. For me, they feel very close to Tuxedo knots so I think that would be a good one for Frank. In general, synthetics can vary in backbone but I find that they have mid scrub at max.