Brush break in.

Not sure if anyone else has done or tried this but I've just been swirling this brush around on my hand and a quilt for a little while and it seems this might could be a way to break in a brush quicker ? Anyone else tried it? Looks like I got a few split ends.


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Not knowing the difference, I used mine. Going from canned goo and carts to boar, good soap, & a Gillette DE was such a change I LIKED the breakin!

 

Never done that. But, I have swirled a dry brush on sandpaper, and it thinned out the tips, making the brush soften up immediately. I've used it regularly for several months after and its been soft and doing fine.

 

When I break in a new boar, I just lather it every other day or so whether I am using it or not, until the ends are well split.


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I did the same thing on a Boar knot to find out if it would get better, and it did.

 

Yup, seen this described on another forum as the "dry friction method." I've used it myself and it shortens up the break-in period of a Semogue boar from a couple months to a couple weeks.

Here's how I've done it: I lather up the brush, rinse it, let it dry overnight, then the next day I swirl the dry brush on my palm for five or ten minutes several times a day, while watching TV or whatever. So each day it gets a wet/dry cycle and a bunch of dry friction.

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I have to add, it works very well on boar, but doesn't work on badger. It seems the the badger hair is just plain tough.

 

I did that for many many months, but one semogue brush just wasn't breaking in like I wanted it to. I just sped it along.

 

yep................

 

I'm not sure if I want to make the experiment myself or not, but I think there might be a good way to see how the different schemes for accelerating break-in work. If you bought several identical brushes (say Omega 10066) and kept one untouched, while using different techniques on the others.

The brush I use the most is an Omega 11047 mixed bristle brush, but lately I've enjoyed using synthetics a lot more than I thought I would.

 

I've been working on a boar knot from three that I got for $4.25 shipped for two days now. Rubbing on sandpaper and then hot water lathering, rinse and repeat. Then drying and rubbing on palm and doing it again for a couple of more times. And I gotta say, it is pretty soft right now and ready to install in a handle

 

My opinion on how to break in a boar brush - just use it.

 

I agree, other than when I put a brush into rotation with a couple of dozen others, it comes up once a month or so. It could conceivably take three years to break one in, hence the off day lathers.

The sandpaper and sheet rubbing some of these guys do? That's just pure dedication to the art, baby!

 

I've taken new brushes into the shower with a puck of unscented VDH. Then, scrubbed lather in my palm or on an arm. My Omega 10066 bloomed up pretty nice after about 3 or 4 showers.


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Same here - once it's been stenched out that is. I gag from the boar stench... all my boars have had it, some more than other - my Semogues the least, Omegas and Bestshaves the most.

Going through defunking my new Omega as we speak.. it's horrendous to smell when wet.. yuk!

 

Nice. I got the split ends in about 20 seconds with some swirls on fine grain sandpaper. I can understand people not wanting to try but it worked for me. I wouldn't do it on an expensive brush though.


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With boar brushes I just use them. Ernest and Julio Gallo said " No wine before it's time". Same philosophy for me with brushes, when they're broke in they're broke in. Nothing wrong with trying to speed up the process if you want to play around with them though.

 

Same here. I just use the brush as is and it'll break in quickly. It's actually nice to see how it breaks in over the course of a dozen or so shaves.

 

I usually shave every 2-3 days so I get a little impatient. I let a little length get on my facial hair before I shave, maybe I should try every other day. My Semogue 620 seems to clump together and no hairs in the middle at all. Maybe I can post a pic later but as of right now my $12 dollar Amazon badger brush out performs the 620 as of right now in terms on face lathering.


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