I never soaked a brush prior to lathering until today. I face lather. Heard it mentioned on this forum by GDCarrington so I thought I would give it a try. I filled my shaving mug prior to showering with warm water letting my Omega Pro 48 soak. NOTE: My mug contained a pressed Arko stick soaking along with the brush. I must say, I was able to get a better balanced lather more quickly. Dry lather has always been an inconsistent bugaboo for this wet shaver. Took about a dozen swirls to load the brush as usual, but the difference showed in the 'balanced' nature of the lather created on the face in a quicker fashion. Thanks to everyone.
I normally wet it under the tap, but soaking it worked better. A moist lather whipped quickly. The lather seemed to go on the skin instead of absorbing into the brush. If this makes any sense.
Boars and some Badger brushes are notorious for absorbing product. Soaking allows the hairs to fill with water so that the product (lather) has no where to go into the hairs (displacement). That way you get some on your skin and not all in the brush. I am glad this helped.
I usually soak my Brush and Razor in Hot Water. I can't get it hot enough from the tap so I use a microwave safe bowl to heat the water in, then put some of that water in my shaving mug and then lather it up.
Until yesterday morning and this morning I always thought Colonel Conk's Shave Soap and Wilkinson Shave Soap were abysmal failures. Then I took the advice given the other day in The Shave Den about letting them presoak with much more water and for a longer time than I have been. What a revelation! They are both excellent products. But they both lack adequate instructions for their use. I now have 5 products from which to choose every morning. Can life get any better? Mickey
Kilgore, it's good to hear of your discovery. I have always soaked my badger brushes before using. Not soaking my brush is like brushing my teeth with a dry tooth brush.
I always soak my boar brushes before lathering up. It is my understanding that a boar absorbs the water into the bristles but a badger does not. All I know for sure is my boar brushes function much better after being soaked in hot water.
Me too with the boars. However, I did not know badgers do not soak up water. I have been soaking the badgers. Guess there is no reason to??????
My badgers soak up water. I watch them expand in the sink while they're under water. To help speed up absorption, I'll "Fan" the brush while it's under water.
I do the same with my Badgers. I have 1 Boar Brush {VDH} and 1 Pure Badger Brush {VDH} and I have 1 WD Silver Tip Badger. I use it more than the other two. It is by far my best brush. It also soaks up water.
I don't know about that because my WD Silver Tip seems to expand when I have it soaking in Hot water.
I'm not sure about the badger brushes. Just something my father told me years ago. He said the badgers gathered the water around the bristles and the boar actually absorbed the water. Anyone really know?
All animal hair that is removed from the animal (which generates protective oils) will absorb water. Some more than others. Boar really soaks up water compared to Badger and then Horse.
Since beginning this learning journey, I've read (I'll try to find the exact article) and understood that if left to soak in water for a sufficient period, boar "bristles" will actually absorb water and become saturated, and badger "hair" will not. Occasionally, you'll see a warning about not soaking a boar brush in something such as a disinfectant. While such a practice may not permanently damage the bristles, it is not a good idea because the disinfectant will be absorbed into and remain in the bristles. When this happens, the only way to get it out is by repeated thorough soakings to dilute it. I've always remembered this because the thought of scrubbing Mr. Clean into my face along with shave soap made me shudder just a bit. (ok, more than just a bit...) In past posts, you'll see where I encourage those with lathering problems to soak their boar brush in warm water for at least 2-3 minutes before attempting to lather. If using a hard soap, such as MWF or Tabac, it's good practice to immerse the soap right along with brush. The plain fact is, whether you are a face latherer or bowl/mug latherer, a saturated boar brush is a more consistent lathering tool than one that isn't. So, soak that boar for 2-3 minutes before using! In my opinion, it's also important for one to understand how and why the badger brush is an altogether different lathering tool. Conversely, the badger "hair" (not bristle) attracts and holds onto very tiny droplets of water on it's exterior, (until somebody proves me wrong) something like static electricity on the surface of a balloon allows it to "stick" to a wall, let's say. For a given knot diameter and loft, the badger brush typically contains many, many more hairs than does the boar, and thus the available surface area for those tiny water droplets to attach is much greater than that of the boar. This is also why some badger brushes tend to turn into a "mush mop" when soaked. If you've a silvertip with a great many really fine hairs, you likely find that soaking such a brush for 2-3 minutes will usually result in it's becoming noticeably heavier, and it's hairs to sag and droop. In short, those relatively thin badger hairs just cannot support the weight of all those attached water droplets, and they sag. I think that there are few here who would argue that a badger brush dries much more quickly than a boar, and it stands to reason. If all (or most) of the water attached to the outside of each badger hair is removed by brisk shaking, there is just less water left in the brush to dry. I'll not get into the science behind the whole thing, because it would likely put most chaps to sleep, but personally I'll not use a badger brush for shaving. I find the well soaked boar brush a much superior lathering tool, and I really enjoy it's firm but soft bristles. If you are just starting out, you'll do well to spend $10-$15 for a nice Omega or Semogue boar brush and learn to use it. (Soak it first!) After that, if you're still itching to spend $50-$200 for a badger brush, then by all means give it a go. Just don't it expect it to be a magic machine that far outruns the boar in the lathering department.
