Erasmic Stick - A Lathering Test!

Here's a little video I put together for the forum members on TSR after a thread regarding the Erasmic stick and how bad it's lather is. Tested four different brushes to show how much of a variable the brush really is:

I hope it is useful to all of you who have never tried the Erasmic stick, or indeed are curious as to the difference a brush can make to the lathering of a given soap.  If you find it useful, please give the video a big fat thumbs up, and possibly a subscribe too if you would be so kind!

Thanks!

REVIEW - RazoRock 'The Monster' 26mm Plissoft Brush

WHAT IS IT, AND WHAT DOES IT DO?

RazoRock 'Monster' 26mm Plissoft Brush.  It is a brush for lathering shaving software.

APPLICATION METHOD AND DESCRIPTION:
I'll start with the description.  It is a substantial bit of kit.  Solid, well made and well presented.  It arrived in a RazoRock branded box, which looks classy.  

When you take the brush out of the box, you immediately notice two things.  The size and the weight.  It is a heavy brush in comparison to my Omega 48 and Body Shop Synthetic.  It is also large, very large.  It dwarfs my Body Shop Synthetic in knot size and heft.  It is rubbing shoulders in terms of size with the Omega as can be seen below.

The knot itself is very dense, and very soft.  It has immensely soft tips, with a sensible amount of backbone to the bristles.  The handle is a solid resin affair, very hefty, nicely polished and patterned with what appears to be a wood grain effect.

I find it best to dampen the brush lightly then load accordingly, adding water to achieve the desired lather as opposed to starting with it overly wet.

CONCLUSIVE COMMENTS:
Well, this is interesting.  I've enjoyed using large brushes and I've enjoyed using smaller brushes.  My first impression beyond size and weight was just how soft the tips are.  They make my other synthetics seem scritchy in comparison.  It is a very pleasant brush to apply to your face if you like soft brushes.  If you like the scritch of a boar or lower grade badger, this may not be the brush for you.  If you like holding a substantial handle, this will be right up your alley.  To coin my initial SOTD using this brush, it rips a hole in both the soap and the space/time continuum!

It is a very capable bowl lathering brush, whipping up oodles of lather from creams, croaps and hard soaps alike.  It is also at home face lathering.  I must say, I prefer using it to bowl lather, but that's all personal preference.

Did I mention the price yet?  No.  Well, it can be had from Shaving Station for a very reasonable £17.49.  Bargain?  Oh yes, of a monstrous size!

REVIEW - The BodyShop Synthetic Brush

Welcome to a review I conducted way back when I first got this brush.

WHAT IS IT, AND WHAT DOES IT DO?
Body Shop Synthetic Shave Brush - A shave brush, designed to build and apply lather to your boat race.  Doesn't get any more complicated than that.

APPLICATION METHOD AND DESCRIPTION:
As with any brush, it's a case of dampen, load with soap cream and whip.  I found with this brush, you have to work creams a little more to get a satisfactory lather.  With soaps less so.

CONCLUSIVE COMMENTS:
Well, I've used it every day for 7 days now, and my findings changed from beginning to end.  Day 1 the brush had ridiculous amounts of backbone, almost too much.  The tips have been super soft since day 1.  As time went by, the bristles seemed to 'give' a little, resulting in a much more pleasant lather application.  I can't say at this point if I prefer bowl or face lathering with the brush, as it seems equally at home with either.  What I can 100% say about this brush is that it is efficient.  Teutonic efficient.  Like BMW/Mercedes/Audi, it does exactly what it should do and does it well with no fuss.  It always lays down an even coat of lather regardless of application method (bowl or face).  It rinses easily, and dries with no fuss.  A good synthetic brush to break into the synthetic brush market.

WOULD YOU BUY IT AGAIN?
Well, it is a budget brush in terms of cost (£7).  I have no other synthetic brush to compare it to, but that's by the by.  If it lasts a reasonable time (I've read a few reviews on the companies website that are showing short lifespan) then I would buy another for sure.  Most complaints seem to be the handle cracking or the knot falling out.  As long as the handle stays in one piece, I can reglue a knot no problem.


UPDATE
Well, I've had this brush for quite some time now, and I use it almost exclusively.  I've had zero issues with the brush at all, so I do wonder what people must have been doing with their brushes to damage the handle or lose the knot.  It has broken in nicely, and performs just as well as it did in those first 7 days.  This brush is a bona-fide bargain, worthy of a place in a beginner and advanced shavers arsenal alike.