I've received a new Omega 81052 boar today and know that boar brushes take a while to break in. Does anyone know if they need to dry as part of the breaking in process or would it be viable to spend an hour or so giving it a work out to speed up the process?
Not quite sure I understand your query about the drying part. Anyway, I just used mine as normal - lather, shave, let it dry. Do it again the next day. What's the rush? Even before a boar gets fully broken in, it's not a bad brush, in my opinion.
Ok, not a sworn fact on my part, but from what I remember reading it takes a full wet/dry cycle to help with the breaking in process, as it is the drying out that helps to split the hairs. Again, I'm not sure where I read that or how valid it is, but for the sake of argument, lets just say said it.* * Even though he really didn't!
I bought a no-name rainbow wood handled boar the other day and found that it is super stiff. In addition to the stiffness, the bristles were oddly packed, leaving a pointy tip to one side. I trimmed the odd shaped points down and made the bristles flat all the way across and then using a painting motion, rubbed the bristles back and forth on the concrete for awhile. Next, I ran the brush through a few courses of shampoo and conditioner and then used what seemed like a half a puck of Williams making a whole bunch of lathers, using a hair dryer to dry the bristles in between lathers. Since going through the above process, I have used the rainbow boar several times in my scuttle with various soaps and creams and the brush is still generally stiff and scritchy. So anyway...there may be techniques available to accelerate the break in process, but you are going to be hard pressed to get that well broken in favorite pair of sneakers feeling from your brush without putting some mileage on it. IMHO.
I have three Omega boar brushes that I rotate, primarily because I live in a damp environment and I want them to dry out as much as possible. They're all pretty new, and the ends are splitting nicely. These things don't need near the break in that you sometimes hear. They feel great from the first shave on, and just keep getting better. They have backbone, the tips are very soft, and I love the large size (mine are pro 49 and 31064). And the prices are unbeatable. I just used my Tweezerman badger this evening, and, to me, it felt small and skritchy comapared to my Omega boar brushes. Ymmv, Jeff
I find break-in varies from brush to brush. Sometimes being very short and sometimes being very long (Vulfix boar).
+1! Good choice! Breaking it in only means they start out good and only gets better with use...no real need to accelerate things. The more you use it the faster it breaks in. If you simply must break it in in a big hurry I've heard of things like lathering on sandpaper, etc but I think that would just deteriorate the brush more than anything else.
My omega boar had soft bristles from the day I purchased it. but it did stink. All I did was lather it up at night for an hour on and off with shampoo, body, wash, Regular cheap shave creams let it soak with soap over night. I even went as far as dipping it in water with a little bit of rose body oil. I really don't like the way boar brushes smell. But love how it lathers
My Omega 50014 boar also had soft bristles right from the start, but did not have any wet pig smell. There was minor improvement after two shaves and no change after that. It did not really have much of a breaking in process. Quite good, especially for a $11 travel brush.
I've heard of running it over a rough surface as often as possible, wet or dry. When wet, lather in a grooved bowl or scuttle. When dry (and watching TV), run it over some lego pieces or a grooved bowl as before. Not taking liability or credit, but i've heard of it. I personally enjoy the breaking in period. It's the fun of getting a new brush.
The only break-in I've ever done to a new brush is to shampoo it, rinse, thoroughly saturate it with conditioner, leave it in for fifteen to twenty min. and rinse. Let it dry naturally and use it the next day.
Boars take time and whatever you do will not shorten that time. The best thing you can do is use that new brush as often as you can (I use a new boar every other day for a minimum of a month) and let it break in on it's own terms. You will be rewarded with a wonderful brush in good time that will continue to improve. Patience is a good thing.
