Being new to DE shaving, I thought I'd start of with a cheap brush and bought the $2.49 horse hair brush as recommended by Bruceonshaving (http://www.bruceonshaving.com/2010/11/23/669/). It FINALLY arrived today, and seems alright but... it does have a characteristic odour. I'd appreciate any ideas on how to get rid of the smell. (I've tried washing up liquid but that doesn't seem to have worked.) Also, I'm curious - do badger brushes smell a bit funny when they're new? Any advice gratefully received!!
Try white vinegar, or shampoo, Ive never had a badger brush that had any real odoer, i had a boar that wasnt too good, but it went afetr a few days
A few washes with pet shampoo should do the trick. I have heard that those horse hair brushes can be quite odorous.
There are a few of around here that like this brush. I have re-knotted a couple of Green Ever Ready with them. http://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/a-horse-reborn-pic-heavy.22930/ http://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/a-horse-of-her-own-pic-heavy.24402/ Well it looks like the pictures did not make the switch with the new software, but it can be a decent brush.
Getting out the funk from turkish HH is my speciality. Pet shampoo is a good choice. But for me I use a few shampoos of cheap liquid dish detergent. Let it dry in between. Then I use mainly Arko to break it in. Smell should be gone in a week or so. If you were lucky and get a good knot, I've found that violently drying them (rubbing) on a towel will hasten the break in of the stiff mane hair used. I have 1 I've been using over a year and it continues to improve with use. It's a good brush and a you made a wise purchase IMHO.
Thanks, I take heart from that. The brush, after marinating alternately in vinegar, washing up liquid and mint shampoo is now languishing in a bicarbonate solution....
I just received an update to my order of last week. It is now "packaged". I'm not holding my breath waiting for delivery, but I figured two brushes for under $10 delivered from Turkey was well worth trying out.
I've received three orders from Turkey to Canada in about 2 weeks.Also if from Bestshave.net ,that site generally gets good ratings.
They are a great price but I would love to know if the hair comes from Horse grooming or from a knackery? The Spanish companys say they get theirs from grooming but I have not seen any statements about Turkish made brushes.
Sadly, mine arrived yesterday...in a completely crushed and empty box with a big red stamp stating "Received Without Contents". Fortunately, BestShave.net was very understanding and will be re-sending my order as soon as the #6 brushes come back into stock.
I have two of them. Been using ~ Yr. Really like them. Yes, they did remind you of your 1st pony ride. What I did that worked was: rinse with warm water a couple of times and then soak in a mixture of Borax and water for ~ 2hrs. Just the hair part. Then wash was with a nice hair shampoo. I did this a couple of time and it did away with the horsiness of the brushes . You'll like them.
I got mine a few days ago, what a great brush. The quality was very good, the only issue I could see was a bit of glue on the base of the knot, not a big deal for me. The thing lathers like a champ. I washed it with pet soap, rinsed it well and then used it the next day for shaving. It's already got a bit of a bloom going on. I noticed that the tips are splitting, like a boar brush. I have heard people claim these are actually boar due to the hair ends splitting. I can only say that I am fairly familiar with what a horse smells like. Unless the folks at bestshave have a Eau De Horse that they use on the brush, this is most definitely horse hair. I don't know how to account for the splitting ends except to say that apparently horse hair splits too. This is an exceptional value. A really solid brush for $2.45. I have already ordered a #7. I have used this brush every day and I don't see any reason to buy another brush. Of course I will buy more brushes because I am a sick, sick man. I'm just saying I don't see any REASON to buy another brush. If my wife asks, I will deny ever having said this by the way. This post will self destruct.
I've had my Bestshave #6 Turkish horse for almost two years now. I never felt mine was overly smelly, all I did was to give it a few shampoos with Dawn dish soap,Pert hair shampoo, and make a few lathers(practice lathers are always beneficial and fun in the beginning anyway) with I think it was Van der Hagen and Williams at the time. All smell other than shave soap was gone in a day or two. I'm very sorry to hear what happened to your #6. After dealing with Turkish postal authorities, you "REALLY" appreciate our post office!!! Amazing that any mailorder business get done over there,but when your #6 horse arrives if its anything like the ones I've ordered you'll Love it.... . In fact the only bad or good thing depending on how you look at it, is that the #6 has completely killed my SBAD. However now I collect vintage handles that appeal to me in hopes of one day getting a #6 knot put into one or more of these vintage handles.... One more thing I also own a couple of Vie-Long horse brushes. While I prefer the #6, the Vie-Longs are ok and a different experience. So it's like having two different brushes I.M.O. I hope your #6's come soon!!!!
Been buying from Bestshave for sometime. I've never had a problem with their mailings. I did have a package opened by Customs once. All it looked like they did was take the cap off a tube of shave cream, saw that the foil tab was still on and put back in the box (leaving the cap off). No damage.
