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Post by bprendie on Apr 2, 2013 11:42:41 GMT -6
I got a bit of a late start this morning, and didn't actually get my shave in until nearly lunchtime. What should happen not even an hour later? My new Proraso Boar's Hair brush, and Aftershave came in. So excited about the new gear, but now I'm really wishing I had waited another hour or so.
This is my first go with a boar's hair brush, I normally use black badger, but I can tell I'm probably going to like its stiffness. What's everyone else's experience been with boar?
Good shaving, Bob
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Post by birdlives on Apr 2, 2013 15:15:18 GMT -6
I love boar...I have a small Omega Baby-Pro Boar, and it's like getting a facial massage every morning.... I hope you love the experience as much as I do....Keep us posted...
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ShadowsDad
Gem Star
None boring shaver!!
"It's not the bow, it's the Indian"
Posts: 4,534
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Post by ShadowsDad on Apr 2, 2013 16:53:52 GMT -6
I tried posting earlier, but after writing a reply the bear told me he screwed it up and it went into no mans land. If you never meet the bear count yourself lucky.
Much shorter reply this time.
I love boar brushes. After it breaks in you'll like it even more.
What did you buy?
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Post by wchnu on Apr 2, 2013 17:00:10 GMT -6
I am a boar guy also. I use badger and horse but love my boars. A well broke in boar is a thing of beauty.
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Post by razorx on Apr 2, 2013 18:44:18 GMT -6
I have a cheap Van Der Hagen Boar brush from Walgreens that's my most frequently used brush,it's tough as nails and can create a workable amount of killer lather out of Williams in about 6 seconds flat.
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Post by bprendie on Apr 2, 2013 19:26:48 GMT -6
That's all great news to hear! The brush came in a Proraso box, but some investigation tells me that it's an Omega 48. What's the best method of break-in? Just use it every day? I whipped up a quick lather with it tonight just to try it out, and it definitely seems to be big and effective. I'll be sure to post my results after I get to give it a go.
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RocketMan
Gem Star
RazorAddict
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Post by RocketMan on Apr 2, 2013 23:15:10 GMT -6
I prefer boar for hard soaps but find the badgers make better lathers for me with creams in bowls. I have been face lathering with creams lately though and find good success with the boar.
If I was stuck on a desert island and could only have one type? Boar hands down. I can use any soap or method with a boar.
Enjoy the new brush. I think you can best break them in with use.
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ShadowsDad
Gem Star
None boring shaver!!
"It's not the bow, it's the Indian"
Posts: 4,534
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Post by ShadowsDad on Apr 2, 2013 23:33:32 GMT -6
Yup, just use it. Or you can speed it up if you find that it's dry a few hours after use, then hand lather it. But...!
New Omegas appear to be treated with something in the manufacturing process. The last few inexpensive ones that I've purchased have "broken in" in under 3 uses. That's unheard of with an untreated boar. Now, did you get a new Omega? Who knows? But look at the tips of the bristles. when it's broken in they'll have split ends. You want that. In time the entire bristle will age and get even better. Boar brushes are simply fantastic, enjoy!
OK, FWIW, I just counted brushes. I have at least 15 boars (1 boar/badger hybrid), 5 synthetics, and 8 badgers, I may have some others I don't remember that are uncounted (no syn' or badgers in that). But the weight is heavily toward the boars if that tells you anything.
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savagejoerude
SE Super Freak
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Post by savagejoerude on Apr 3, 2013 5:45:24 GMT -6
I also favor boar. I have an Omega 100066 that I like. My favorite is an older Burma-Shave that I've had for several years even before I really knew what wet shaving was. It was dropped and the handle broke. I epoxied it back together. I call it "Frankenstein" with all of his scars...
ALAS, To me it's more about the razor and blade. As long as I can swoosh a brush to make Ultra-lather I'm happy.. I have way more experience making lather than I do using traditional razors... That's not a problem for me with most any brush. I guess once I have this process to where I always get great shaves with any razor, then I'll become a brush snob....lol
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Post by bprendie on Apr 3, 2013 7:29:22 GMT -6
Reporting in on the boar brush. It definitely has a different feel to it, but I really like the stiffness. You can really feel it grabbing your beard and pulling the hairs up to attention before they get sheered off by a slab of metal. It took significantly less effort to get a great lather, but I didn't realize it immediately because the brush holds SO much lather in itself. The only downside I've seen so far, is the unpleasant smell from the bristles. It definitely smells like it came from a pig. I'm looking forward to breaking it in a bit and getting quite a bit of life out of it. I also decided to attach a pic of the brush with my SOTD.
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RobinK
Lather Catcher
Posts: 505
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Post by RobinK on Apr 3, 2013 11:18:54 GMT -6
I don't really get your comments about hard hair for hard soaps. What I do is sprinkle a few drops of hot water onto my soap from the brush before fully soaking it in water and taking a shower. After the shower, any soap is good to go with a badger brush. Problem solved.
As for boar, horse, whatever hair brushes: No other material can compete with silver tip badger when it comes to holding water. Mind you, I am talking about the upper end of the Shavemac and Thäter product lines, not some pedestrian China made stuff. They cost a little extra (still a steal compared to similar Rooney brushes, not to mention the completely overrated Plisson ones), but then again, they will easily last twenty or more years if properly cared for. So who cares?
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Post by razorx on Apr 3, 2013 18:52:19 GMT -6
I also favor boar. I have an Omega 100066 that I like. My favorite is an older Burma-Shave that I've had for several years even before I really knew what wet shaving was. It was dropped and the handle broke. I epoxied it back together. I call it "Frankenstein" with all of his scars... ALAS, To me it's more about the razor and blade. As long as I can swoosh a brush to make Ultra-lather I'm happy.. I have way more experience making lather than I do using traditional razors... That's not a problem for me with most any brush. I guess once I have this process to where I always get great shaves with any razor, then I'll become a brush snob....lol Yes Sir....Emphasis on razor and technique,let the other stuff take care of itself. That's been my deal for quite a while,it's helped me learn where I want to be and how to get there. I'll throw in a nice brush or two before long,I'm beginning to lean strongly towards quality synthetics
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Post by razorx on Apr 3, 2013 19:11:55 GMT -6
I don't really get your comments about hard hair for hard soaps. What I do is sprinkle a few drops of hot water onto my soap from the brush before fully soaking it in water and taking a shower. After the shower, any soap is good to go with a badger brush. Problem solved. As for boar, horse, whatever hair brushes: No other material can compete with silver tip badger when it comes to holding water. Mind you, I am talking about the upper end of the Shavemac and Thäter product lines, not some pedestrian China made stuff. They cost a little extra (still a steal compared to similar Rooney brushes, not to mention the completely overrated Plisson ones), but then again, they will easily last twenty or more years if properly cared for. So who cares? I shower immediately after shaving... I used to sprinkle a few drops of hot water onto my soap in the way you've described,now I pour at least an ounce of scalding hot tap water onto the surface,pour off the excess about 20 seconds later and start loading my brush.The resultant lather form this method seems to be richer and slicker than that of any other routine I've tried.
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Possum
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Post by Possum on Apr 6, 2013 3:15:22 GMT -6
Not a huge fan of boar here. I do use them most times when I face lather with one of my soaps. But since I use creams for like 80% of my shaves I like the badger brushes best.
The boars that I have are vintage ERs that are in very good condition and make great lather on the face. The only badger I have that is a "name" brand is my beloved C&E BBB. The others are all refurbs using nice looking handles that I acquired very cheaply due to lousy and unusable knots in them. Had each refurbed using TGN badger knots, from a Best badger to Silvertip badger and also one that is a Grade A Super badger.
The TGN Best badger is set in the handle to mimic the dimensions of my C&E BBB. I did that so that I would have a "backup" or sorts for my C&E BBB as that is the one brush that I go to most often. It makes great lather with all my creams as well as with my soaps, even my MWF. When I travel I always take along the C&E BBB because of the nice soft feel and because it makes great face lather with my Tabac shave stick.
Have never tried a synthetic or horsehair brush simply because I don't need another brush. Very happy with the boars and badgers that I have now and also have no more room to store more brushes.
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ShadowsDad
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None boring shaver!!
"It's not the bow, it's the Indian"
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Post by ShadowsDad on Apr 6, 2013 15:24:33 GMT -6
<snip> As for boar, horse, whatever hair brushes: No other material can compete with silver tip badger when it comes to holding water. Mind you, I am talking about the upper end of the Shavemac and Thäter product lines, not some pedestrian China made stuff. They cost a little extra (still a steal compared to similar Rooney brushes, not to mention the completely overrated Plisson ones), but then again, they will easily last twenty or more years if properly cared for. So who cares? I've never used any chinese badgers so I don't know, but the various Simpsons and Rooneys I have and use hold far too much water, so do my synthetics. So for me at least, water holding ability isn't high on my list of desirable attributes for anything but a sponge or a chamois. After loading my soap I don't want froth, I want a paste, so too much water is a bad thing for me. Restricting the water makes it much easier for me to produce the ultralather that I make and demand for every shave. As you can imagine, for me, synthetics are the worst since they hold so much water and release it so freely, but I can use them, and I've learned to use badgers, but the best for me are the boars. I've also actually learned to like all 3 bristle types though. They bring their own unique qualities to the shave and helps shaving remain interesting and varied. When I shave I'm in absolutely no hurry. I enjoy the loading of the soap and then the slow build of the lather on the face and the sensuous feel of it. If I need to dip a few more times? OK, that extends the lather build that much longer. I'm enjoying it, so let's extend it, that's perfectly fine. On days where I need to get out early I shave the night before so that I don't need to rush. I don't rush anymore... period. Those days are over and have been for 5 years. Too, I use any brush for any soap/croap/cream. I have no soap brushes or cream brushes. On any day any brush is called upon to handle the days soap, whatever form it's in. Today it was a Vulfix 2234 boar for BurmaShave soap, tomorrow (since I'm working my way through the boars currently) it'll be a Semogue 610, a boar with a bit of splay compared to the Vulfix that I used today, and probably a cream of some sort. But I won't really know what the lather making product will be until tomorrow. FWIW, For those interested, Connaught Shaving has a few (all?) of their premium Omega boar line on clearance pricing. Never having had a premium Omega I ordered 2 #36 brushes. One for my buddy if he wants it.
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