Zenith TS506 Synthetic

SeanC

SeanC

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As this is a brand which doesn't receive much exposure, I thought I would share my thoughts...

Zenith is a brand of shaving brushes made by Pennellificio Pandolfo in Palermo, Italy: http://www.pennellificiopandolfo.com From what I have picked up, albeit anecdotally, all knots are hand tied on site, including the synthetics

Now the brush in question:

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A classic barbershop ergonomically pleasant design and turned to a high quality. Where it get's interesting is if we look at the key dimensions:

Zenith TS506 - Knot 27mm, Loft 51mm, Width (Max) 42mm
RazoRock Plissoft - Knot 24mm, Loft 57mm, Width (Max) 44mm

What we have here is a comparatively wide knot, but a short loft which gives a much more density and backbone than the RazoRock Plissoft. In fact out of the synthetic brushes I've used, Whipped Dog, Edwin Jagger, Muhle and RazoRock, this has by far the greatest backbone and density.

As for the fibre itself, not as soft as the Plisson variants, closer to Edwin Jagger or Muhle, but maybe a shade softer. Still fine though in my opinion and certainly not too scratchy or uncomfortable.

The most important factor of course is does it work. Using a decent Italian croap, la Saponeria Artigiana coconut, it was extremely easy to build a bowl full of rich thick lather earlier today:

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My final word is the price. At c£20 (from TVB shaving), not the cheapest on the market, but certainly reasonable

I will follow up another time soon taking a totally different approach, face lathering with a cream and give a final conclusion, but certainly so far so good
 
I used the Zenith brush most of last week in a number of different scenarios:
  • Bowl lathering hard soaps - it would probably even get a good lather out of the 'blue bowl of death'
  • Bowl lathering croaps - as above
  • Face lathering hard soaps - good, although the density of the brush makes 'painting' rather than 'swirling' the necessary modus operandi
  • Face lathering creams - workable, but not brilliant due the density again
To conclude, the densest synthetic brush I've ever come across. I can only assume that the bulb shape, short loft and what must be a fairly low set knot do this. This combined with a tiny bit of 'scritchiness' probably make this brush a good call for those who prefer the characteristics of boar rather than badger knots.

Certainly a keeper for me as I continue to build a collection of synthetics with different characteristics
 
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Thanks for the review. I was interested in this brush, esp. considering the interesting handle. However, the scritch comment knocks this brush off the to buy list - I'm not a boar fan. Cheers, Paul
 
Thanks for the comments. I've done some further tests on my face today, holding the bristles tightly together on other brushes to mimic the backbone of the Zenith. When you take that into account the actual like for like scratchiness is actually pretty low, not as soft as Plisson fibre or EJ V2, more like EJ V1.
 
Paul said:
Would you say the fibre is similar to Omega's Hi-Brush? This fibre is as springy as the Plisson but the tips are not a soft as the Vie-Long.
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I've intentionally skipped the Omega's due to less than favourable comments about the knot dynamics, but the fibre is definitely as springy as plissoft and EJ V2, but not quite as soft. Therefore it could well be.
 
As I've now got an Omega synthetic, the barber pole, I can now confirm beyond all doubt that Omega doesn't contain the same fibre. It's scritchiness is mild by comparison. The one thing now with reflection I love about this brush is the handle. The ergonomics are absolutely spot on
 
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I
Bogeyman said:
So, is it better IYO than the latest gen. MÜHLE, i.e., the Black Fibre & Silvertip synthetics?
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In short nope...

I would rate Muhle / EJ V2 as leading the pack, separated by a frogs hair from Plissoft. This one probably sits in the chasing pack along with Ubersoft, Muhle / EJ V1 et al
 
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