Kobayashi brushes

[Fred L]

So a belated follow up to my thread (in resources sub forum) about Kobayashi synthetic hair brushes. Shipping was pretty quick at one week from Japan to Canada.

Finally had time to do a side by side comparison between Kobayashi-san's brush and the Toray brush. 5x7 negative on Revere Platinum. Platinum solution only.

Observations- The Kobayashi felt better in hand vs the Toray. The bristles/hairs were very different (see attached photos) and this may relate to the following observations.

The Toray seemed to soak up solution more so than the Kobayashi. Perhaps because the hairs were in a larger group whereas the Kobayashi less so. Edge control was much better with the Kobayashi, whereas the Toray seemed like it required more effort to keep a straight edge. The Toray seemed to coat the paper quicker whereas the Kobayashi took a bit longer before the puddles were soaked in.

Visual results showed areas of *slightly* brighter areas with just a bit more contrast, or at least cleaner highlights. A colleague who used the Kobayashi as well, compared to her Richeson, had the same observation. All steps were replicated as close as possible so not sure why the difference, so hoping someone here might have an idea. Did the Japanese brush get the solution deeper into the paper (Revere Platinum).

Long story short, based on brush handling feel and resulting print, the Kobayashi will be my go to brush for Platinum.

[jurgenestanislao]

Absolutely agree. Also apart from all you mentioned, I won't worry about the metal part rusting, and/or the metal part affecting or contaminating my coating (if that even happens).

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[Alan9940]

And, another emphatic agreement! I was a die-hard Richeson "Magic Brush" user for many years until I stumbled on to the Kobayashi brushes. Haven't used anything else for many years now. Great product!