I’ve been addicted to Yaqi brushes over the last few months (as you could probably tell by my multiple review threads!). I really enjoy the variety and I like their handle options also. I wanted to try a few more of their synthetic brushes and received my order a few days ago. Here are some of my SOTD pics with the new brushes: Shedding: No brush has shed at all. Synthetics generally don’t have any issues with shedding and I have yet to receive a synthetic brush with shedding issues. I do at times get a few loose fibres fall out but, in this batch,, not one lost fibre. Softness: The tips are very soft and similar to other synthetic knots. I really find synthetic knots these days allow me to really work the lather vigorously on my face with zero irritation. Even though there is a perceivable difference in the softness levels of synthetic knots, it’s basically relative to other synthetic knots. If we compare synthetic knots to badger or boar knots, I personally find even a well broken in boar or a silvertip badger never get quite as soft as synthetic fibres. Splay/Backbone/Glue bump: This is an area where I feel Yaqi has really listened to its customers and responded very positively! The brushes don’t have huge glue bumps and they all splay very nicely. They feel quite natural and not springy or resistant to splay. I’ve experienced this with the last 3 batches of Yaqi synthetic brushes I ordered. This naturally means the splay is very nice and as mentioned, natural. The 28mm cashmere knot does have a glue bump but this would be intentional I believe as the cashmere otherwise has zero backbone. I have a 25mm cashmere from TurnNShave and whilst I love that brush also, it’s really nice to experience the ultra-soft tips of the cashmere but with a tad bit more backbone. The 30mm tuxedo was a surprise for me! I had anticipated it would be far too large for face lathering, but it really turned out to be a fantastic experience! It splayed out very naturally (little glue bump) but didn’t take over my entire face, as I had expected it to. I’m now keen on trying the 30mm BOSS knot Yaqi also has. Backbone for all the brushes is roughly the same, which is to say, very balanced. The 26mm plissoft would have to be my favourite plissoft knot of all time. It has pushed my Razorock Bruce plissoft to second position. I just find the Yaqi plissoft has slightly more density and backbone, which leads to a nicer experience, but I can still tell it’s a plissoft as this type of knot does have a unique feel when face lathering. The rainbow 26mm faux horse knot was the favourite from this lot! The splay, the backbone, the density…everything is “Goldilocks”. Perfect!! The 26mm Zebra brush knot I find to be similar to a Timberwolf knot, which is great as the Timberwolf it one of my favourite knots! This brush as more backbone than the others, I believe due to the slightly lower loft. The density is great, and the splay is a bit reduced due to the lower loft, but it still didn’t feel springy or lather flinger-y. Drying time: All five brushes dried out in no time. It’s easy with a synthetic and that’s likely why they are so popular with travellers. Handles: I really enjoy the designs Yaqi releases. I refer to them as “Quasi-Custom” because they offer so many designs, there is something for everybody…without the high price tag of a custom. I like the variety the handles offer (of course secondary to the knot variety). They are all very high-quality resins and I’ve had no quality issues with any of them. The 30mm tuxedo barberpole is wonderful and adds a very unique look in the den but the size of the handle did tire out my hand whilst building the lather. The rainbow design feels very unique to me. It looks great and even better so with the brown faux horse knot. The watermelon handle was the surprise out of the lot because it’s not just a solid red resin, no…it has light swirls through it just like you’d see in a watermelon cut open. Brilliant!!
Thanks for the detailed review(s) @nav. Yaqi may have been wholesaling knots to retailers for a little while before going retail themselves. I have a Tuxedo and a Cashmere knot purchased through APShaveCo's Etsy site. Like both of them for all the reasons you listed. If I find a Flat Top fan shaped synthetic knot that looks like boar in the right size it will go in an extra ferrule for my Rubberset 400 replica by Steve @Vlasta. I do like a good boar knot, but synthetics have become The Next Thing.
