I've used the same Raphael 838 mop for glazing for about four years. The handle was starting to feel good, you know, worn in. So I bought a new one last month for the studio, same model, same size, and it shed from the first rinse. A dozen hairs in the rinse water. Then another dozen on the first application. I thought maybe I'd been too rough with it, so I babied it for a week. Still shedding.

Yesterday I actually sat down and counted the loose hairs after a wash. Twenty-three. On a brush that costs what it costs.

The old one has never lost a single hair in years. So either I got a dud, or Raphael changed something. The ferrule is slightly different, more crimped, less even, and the hair feels slightly stiffer, less of that real squirrel belly softness. I'm wondering if they switched suppliers for the hair itself and just didn't say anything.

Anyone else had this with their recent Raphaels, or is it just my bad luck?