a Very basic brush for the folks who like them this way, this kudu inner horn bone was cleaned and dried, then cured with black resin to fill all the voids and cracks, this to ensure it is solid and to minimize the chance of any degradation of the natural material. This was followed by some basic shaping by hand using various grits of sandpaper and a quick polish on the buff.
The brush stands 114 mm tall and a body diameter of 34 to 41 mm. The brush weighs 110 grams, and is fitted with a 26 mm Oumo synthetic ST-1 Silvertip knot, mounted at a loft of 60 mm.
The ST-1 knot is touted for being new technology in terms of the water retention ability of synthetic fibres, and to be quite honest I do not see much of that on the bristles themselves. They do come across finer than other synthetics, meaning more surface area for water to sit on, and in this way bettering the water retention abilty. Also the knot is a lot less rigid than the 'conventional synthetics' the bristels seem to bond more easily to each other, 'trapping' some extra water in the process. We'll have to use and explore them some more before forming final impressions.
They are quite different than the synthetics we've used so far, and I like them a lot! it is the first synthetic knot I like enough to use myself, and we are chuffed that the technology is improving, the durability of synthetic fibres is an amazing attribute, and when these start to behave like natural hair bristels we are heading down the right road!
Are they worth the extra cash? very early to say, but at this stage I'd say yes, not quite there yet in terms of that natural feel and behaviour or animal hair, but you should have good gains in terms of the longivety of your gear and you are funding development for even better products. Pull in cousin, get one!