Synthetic Shaving Brushes – Top 5 of 2023 by Tobin

Welcome back into the den, I’m Tobin! A quick five of my five favorite wet shaving brushes of 2023; synthetic brushes that is! These are the brushes that I reached for most often in 2023. 

1. The Simpson Trafalgar T2

First off, in no particular order, other than we’re going from shortest to tallest, the T2 (I also have the T3 but I found myself reaching most often for the T2)  has a 24mm knot, 44 mm loft, and one of the things, if you’ve never used it before or a knot like it, is its got ample backbone, not a lot, but just enough and I do like the scritch of it. It’s a little scritchy. It’s a great economical brush the cheapest place I was able to find it was at The Shave Supply: that’s $22.95. No one else comes anywhere close, the closest to that that I could find was $28 at Fendrihan, and Amazon is $34.99. You can get the T3 at The Shave Supply for $28. That is still less than what anybody else is charging for the T2. So, The Shave Supply is where you want to grab the T2,  T1, or T3; he has all of them in stock at the time of recording this video and at that price.

The Shave Supply (Best Price): https://theshavesupply.com 

The Wet Shaving Store: https://wetshaving.store/products/Simpsons-Trafalgar-T2-Synthetic-Shaving-Brush-p460727893

2. G5 Knot in The Wet Shaving Store Brush

Second, going in order of height, Franks G5 knot. I have this in two handles and I kind of just reached for whichever one I had out there on the shelf in the rotation. I have a rotation of brushes going; 60 synthetics currently in my collection with two more on the way. I’ll do first impressions of those when I get them. This has a 26mm diameter and a 57mm loft, it retails for $20.99. If you use my code TOBIN at checkout, you’ll take 10% off which brings the brush down to $19.89. I’ll profit nothing but you save 10%. The backbone is more than some synthetics but I’d still say it’s about medium for a synthetic, I just really love the flow and overall feel of this knot. It is a step, there’s a little less scritch than the T2 or the Sovereign Fibers of the Trafalgar. I love it though; it whips up a mean lather so my second brush in this countdown is the Frank G5 knot in the Wet Shaving Store handle.

Panda Handle: https://wetshaving.store/products/The-Wet-Shaving-Store-Black-Synthetic-Shaving-Brush-with-G5-Knot-V1-p535487129

Black Handle: https://wetshaving.store/products/The-Wet-Shaving-Store-White-and-Black-Synthetic-Shaving-Brush-with-G5-Knot-V1-p535555785 

3. PAA Astraeus

The third brush I reached for more than any other (I love this brush a lot) is the Astraeus from Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements. The knot: it’s not that big but it does a killer job, it’s a 22mm diameter with a 55mm loft. It’s a pretty high loft. They call it the Micro Super Future Fibers. This is the only handle that has these fibers in it and it’s replicated after a vintage Ever Ready brush (see screenshot in video). It’s like the flow on these fibers,  and the water and the heat retention, I think it’s fair to say, is better than any other brush that I have in this countdown. Super soft, you got, again, about medium backbone, and for the $19.95 or so, you’re getting a great deal. All the Phoenix brushes are amazing but I was reaching for this one again and again. It’s one of their newer brushes which is also part of the reason I was reaching for it, but I just really love the fibers, the look of the brush, and it’s slick. It’s got that old-school feel and look to it and I enjoy using it. So, the third is the Astreus from Phoenix Artisan Accouterments.

PAA (Tobin Affiliate Link): https://phoenixartisanaccoutrements.com/?rfsn=7794216.1f64086

4. G7 Knot in Sawdust Creation Studios or TWSS

Fourth, again a Franks Shaving knot. We have this in two different handles. I was reaching for this one the most (Sawdust One of a Kind Brush) but I also wanted to talk about it in this handle as well (The Wet Shaving Store Faux Horn Handle), this is the Franks G7 knot in a Sawdust Creation Studio handle for around $60, on average. you can get a one-of-a-kind brush from Bobby. All these other brushes are mass-produced, this one is mine and there are none else like it; kind of the deal, right? So that’s what’s super cool and with this one, the knot diameter is going to be the same but depending on how you have it set in the handle or how Bobby sits it in a particular handle, the loft can vary but has a 26mm knot and the backbone, the way that he has it set in this handle, I love it because it’s a little more than medium and the flow, the density, and everything about the G7 is just fantastic. So for about 65 bucks, links will be in the description for all these, this is the bulb shape and is called a bulb; that’s what Bobby has. Andy at The Wet Shaving Store has the same knot except for its fan shape; this one isn’t packed down into the handle quite as tight as my one from Bobby, and again with this one, if you use my code, TOBIN, at checkout, this one retails for $22.99, so a little bit more than the G5. You can also get the G5 with Bobby, he has the G5 knots as well. At The Wet Shaving Store, my code takes 10% off of $22.99, and that brings it down to $20.69. So you know you can get a one-of-a-kind handle and this is probably the one that I reached for the most like I was saying but still, the G7 in this handle (TWSS) is fantastic. Number four, the G7 knot from Franks in the Saw Dusct Creation Studio handle or The Wet Shaving Store handle.

Faux Horn G7 at The Wet Shaving Store: https://wetshaving.store/products/The-Wet-Shaving-Store-Faux-Horn-Synthetic-Shaving-Brush-with-G7-Knot-V1-p535555786

Saw Dust Creation Studios on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SawdustCreatioStudio

5. PAA Atomic Rocket

Fifth, and the largest brush in this countdown, the Atomic Rocket from Phoenix Atisans. It’s a 26mm swab knot, that’s what they call it, it’s a Plisson type of knot, oh it smells really good, I think I used Diver Down with this last time I used it. The loft on it is 63.5mm, which is super high, and the handle itself is huge. I think the overall length is 5 inches; just a big handle so if you’ve got big hands, this is a great brush for you. A few years back when this brush came out, Plisson types, you know were kind of like the the new thing and all the rage, I feel like this swab knot still stands the test of time. With all these that are still coming out on the market today, the flow is just absolutely amazing. It releases the soap but at the same time… it’s not like it just flops out. A lot of times, you know different synthetics you can flop that out; you can get it to flop out but I’m impressed and I continue to be impressed with this brush; in fact, I have three of them. I love the Atomic Rocket and I will always reach for It year after year. 

PAA (Tobin Affiliate Link): https://phoenixartisanaccoutrements.com/?rfsn=7794216.1f64086

I hope to do this countdown again next year. I got a couple more countdowns for you guys. Some things that I put into play during 2023 and I got behind on videos because of that storm and different things putting me behind. That’s my top five and yeah I’m curious to see what brushes I’ll be using throughout this year. So far the beginning of this year it’s still these guys but like I said, I’ve got some more coming and I’m on the hunt for some more brushes for the new year. I love brushes. I have over 100 now, 60 alone are synthetics. When I get my two new ones that’ll put me at 62. I have an addiction and there’s no help for me so there’s no 12-step or anything like that that’s going to fix it! The only thing that’s going to fix it is my next shave!

You guys take care! Thanks for joining me here. 

It’s the little big things!  

Take Care!

Tobin’s Throwbacks

https://www.youtube.com/@Tobins_throwbacks