I have never really had much exposure to boar brushes but would like to get 1 or 2 to give them a try. I realize they are nothing like badger/synthetics and have a break in period. There is a plethora of brushes available for sure. I have looked at various vendors and other online sites and am dazzled by the variety available. But where do I even start? Omega? Semoge? Jaguar? Mondial? Any tips/info would be greatly appreciated.
What kind of badger do you like? If two band, then yes, you will probably enjoy boar very much. A good boar has the backbone of a two-band badger, and when well broken in, the face feel of a silvertip. I would stick with Omega or Semogue. Omegas will look prettier, but Semogue will break in much, much faster.
Zenith make the best boars in my opinion...but Semogue and Omega are perfectly serviceable, too. We can't suggest specific models without knowing your size, backbone and loft preferences.
I recommend the Semogue SOC Boar Brush. Once broken in it has just the right backbone, yet it is soft to the touch. Sent from my SM-A526U using Tapatalk
If I could only own ONE boar brush, it'd be the Semogue 1438. It's a $15 brush. I experimented with different boar brushes and as soon as I tried the 1438, my search was over. The knot size, length, fan, loft, etc pretty much make it an average "in the middle" sort of brush that does everything pretty well, from cream to stick to puck. I uses badger brushes for soft creams sometimes, and horsehair brushes on really hard pucks. But if called upon, the Semogue 1438 can do it all. It's the '57 Chevy of shaving brushes. Or the Swiss Knife of shaving brushes. As an added bonus, the handle has an attractive two-tone classic barber look that is pretty cool. And it's sort of an in-between size that's just as comfortable at home on a spacious shelf as it is in your compact travel shaving kit. As always, your mileage may vary. - Bax
That was my first boar brush. I've since replaced it with one of their acrylic handled brushes. ...same knot, as far as I know. Edit: the 830. The 620 is the same knot as the 1438. The 830 is set a little deeper, if I remember correctly, and is a bit softer. Edit: They no longer use the Excelsior label for this 'tier' of brush, which is a pity. I always liked it.
I have three boar brushes. They work great with harder soaps, though they are fine with softer soaps as well. They take a bit of time to get broken in, but the end result is excellent. I will continue to keep badger brushes as well, but you are not likely to be disappointed by quality boar brushes.
It's a great little brush. Then again I've never owned a bad Semogue. Sent from my SM-A526U using Tapatalk
I use different types of brushes, depending on what soap or cream I use. As Ryan, @PLANofMAN, mentioned, that Semogue Excelsior is a great brush. When broken in, it's very soft, yet very effective when using harder soaps.
The top list is the old system, with new equivalents. The bottom list is the most up to date one, as far as I know. "Extra" is likely the same as the old Extra 75% tops grade - typical bristle quality, about 75% of the tips reach the top of the knot. "Extra IT" is the same knot plus the stripe. "Best" is likely the same as the old Best 90% tops grade - same bristles as Extra, just tied more orderly with more bristles reaching the top of the knot. Looks like it's only available on the 1470 now; some of the less-reliable sites still say it's on the 1250 but I suspect they're wrong. "Premium" is likely the same as the old Premium 90% tops grade - better-sorted / more consistent bristle quality, about 90% of the bristles reaching the top of the knot. "Premium IT" is the same knot plus the stripe. One website is calling this grade Extra Premium but I think that's a misnomer. "Premium, Select" is likely unchanged. Well-sorted, consistent, high quality bristles, 90% tops, and tied denser than the standard Premium knot. Credit to @USS-SpongeBob for the info above.
Just to clarify, the 75% tops, 90% tops, etc. is the percentage of uncut bristles used in making the knot, not how many hairs reach the top of the knot. Uncut bristles means the naturally split ends of the hair are left uncut; giving the knot a rather tousled look, and speeding up break-in time considerably. Edit: that's what I get for copy pasting without reading carefully.
This info deserves a dedicated Semogue Bristle Grade thread. It’d be a great place to talk about Semogue brushes.
