About the breaking in of those boar brushes

Boar had practically no smell...vie-long horse hair brush....lot's of smell.

One topic of ongoing conversation here at DFS, and rightfully so, is the breaking in period of a boar brush and the methods used to achieve those perfect bristles.  Am I the only one here who just uses the brush from the get-go and just lets it break in from use?

Yes, once boar hair splits, the feel on the face is usually a wonderful experience. However, I have never had a new boar brush prove to be too scritchy or irritating on my face. Obviously, after a few weeks the feel is much better but I rather enjoy the subtle changes over those weeks.

Once again, am I the only one who does this? Could it be the differences in our skin makeup? Could it be the way the brush builds lather as it breaks in?

I am in no way suggesting that one way is better than another but I am curious to know what others think about this. Thanks.

I'm with you Freddy, I just use it everyday and enjoy it. I've noticed the lathering abilities of my Semogue 1520 improved as it broke in and bloomed out. It's a great face lathering brush.

Clayton

One topic of ongoing conversation here at DFS, and rightfully so, is the breaking in period of a boar brush and the methods used to achieve those perfect bristles.  Am I the only one here who just uses the brush from the get-go and just lets it break in from use?

Yes, once boar hair splits, the feel on the face is usually a wonderful experience. However, I have never had a new boar brush prove to be too scritchy or irritating on my face. Obviously, after a few weeks the feel is much better but I rather enjoy the subtle changes over those weeks.

Once again, am I the only one who does this? Could it be the differences in our skin makeup? Could it be the way the brush builds lather as it breaks in?

I am in no way suggesting that one way is better than another but I am curious to know what others think about this. Thanks.

Freddy, I concur. My thoughts exactly.

I'm a very impatient type,like you guys I put it to use,but I help it along some too.I will palm lather new soaps I pick up to test and revisit old soaps(palm lather as well)that I have binned for one reason or another with a new brush.I have even been known to take a new brush into the shower and scrub my face with it,I find this step really preps the beard well(especially using a good glycerin face soap)for a shave.Plus I have a nice broken in brush a lot sooner.

I know I'm late to the thread but I just jump in and use it with lots of soaking. I have both the 1305 and 830 and the both work extremely well. They just keep getting better with every use. No smell at all from my brushes.

My Semouge 830 took about 30-40 lathers, but boy is that thing nice and soft now. I reach for it often.

I don't mind the smell of boar or badger, Horse can be pretty bad though. I break in a boar brush by just using it then giving it plenty of time to dry. How long it takes seems to vary depending on water hardness and what soaps you use. Some people like to let it sit in soap high in steric acid. Though I'm not sure if this really helps seeing that all that steric acid is soaponified. I think the drying cycle makes the biggest difference. with 6 weeks of regular use you will have a well broken in boar.

Like most guy's here I'll palm lather a new brush a few times to get any funk out of it. It depends I've had boars and badgers that have came out the box with very little smell and one's that have taken as much as a dozen lathers to despatch the funk. Either way I'll use it from the beginning and not endure an quarantine period.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

One topic of ongoing conversation here at DFS, and rightfully so, is the breaking in period of a boar brush and the methods used to achieve those perfect bristles.  Am I the only one here who just uses the brush from the get-go and just lets it break in from use?

Yes, once boar hair splits, the feel on the face is usually a wonderful experience. However, I have never had a new boar brush prove to be too scritchy or irritating on my face. Obviously, after a few weeks the feel is much better but I rather enjoy the subtle changes over those weeks.

Once again, am I the only one who does this? Could it be the differences in our skin makeup? Could it be the way the brush builds lather as it breaks in?

I am in no way suggesting that one way is better than another but I am curious to know what others think about this. Thanks.

I, too simply break in the boar through consistent usage. I used my SOC for 30 straight shaves and was able to able to make, what I thought were informed comments. BTW, it was well worth the effort. Except for some slight shedding at the onset, this boar really turned into a soft and efficient lathering machine.

I only have experience breaking in one boar so far (my Semogue 620), but I just used it like usual. The only extra thing I did was use it on alternate days, so it had 48 hours to dry between lathers. I'd read somewhere that this helps the break-in process by getting those hairs splitting. I have a new Semogue 830 that's at the very start of breaking in. I'd almost forgotten how little these boars hold on to lather until they're broken in! I remember being frustrated with my 620 until it was set, and with the 830 right now I just have to know to load more or re-load. Looking forward to where it ends up, though.