Hey Guys, I have the Omega Professional 48 large boar hair brush. It is one of my favorite brushes for lathering soaps. The other day while I was cleaning the brush after shaving, I noticed that there is some water trapped inside the plastic handle. I heard it while I was giving the brush a shake. I have some questions... Is it anything to worry about? Will the water inside rot the hair in the knot? Is there an easy way to get the water out? Can I take the brush apart? Is this a common occurrence? Should I buy a new one? Any information or advice would be much appreciated. Cheers, Lyndon
Lyndon, that would be more along the lines of removing the knot which usually does enough damage to the knot that you would have to replace it. It sounds as if it was not sealed correctly at the factory. How old is the brush?
I know that would drive me nuts. I was wondering the same as Gary, how old is the brush? If fairly new, I'd send it back for a new one.
The same thing happened to mine. On close inspection it turns out that the handle is two pieces snapped together. Water enters at this snap together seam. My solution was to pop it open, dry it out and reassemble with a little silicone glue. No more problem. I could have added mass while it was open but I like the way it floats handle up in the sink.
Lyndon All my Omega brushes have knots that are fairly loosely attached and twist out of the handles easily; the knots themselves are very solidly made and suffer no ill effects from being removed. See if the knot on your Pro detaches easily, and if it does your problem is solved - if the detachable knot bothers you, a little contact cement will work wonders. Best Regards Graham
Luckily I haven't had this problem with mine because like Steve, it would drive me nuts. Hope its a quick fix.
Here's what I did. I wanted the knot and didn't care about the handle. Drill a hole in the base of the handle and tap the knot out with a dowel. The knot is in perfect condition, now I need to make a handle. Tap on the black sleeve not the center of the knot. img upload image host
So what do you suppose would happen if the black collar came off? I'm not sure if that sounds like a good idea.
Hello Gents, sorry for the late reply. I got called out yesterday on standby to fly to Taipei and Fukuoka. Thanks for posting, you guys are all really great. I have only had the brush for about five months. I decided to get one on a recommendation from another TSD member. I am really glad I got this big brush. I love it! It is really great for soaps. I think the fact that it doesn't hold a lot of water makes it an easier brush to use. Especially for a new comer. When face lathering, water is added slowly and steadily and the lather doesn't go runny. Just before I left on my trip I jammed a finger nail in the seam and managed to get the knot to move. I slowly worked on the knot using just my finger nail until I was able to pull it out. Cool! Later on, I will take some photos and make a post of the repair.
Repair Complete - The Pro 48 Lathers On! The first photo shows the brush taken apart and cleaned up. As I mentioned before, all I had to do was force my finger nail into the seam to get the brush to start to come apart. I didn't want to use a screwdriver because I thought it would end up marring the finish. The second photo shows an interesting shot of the inside of the handle. You can see some plain white plastic as well as some copper color. (?!) The third photos is the brush all taped up and ready to be glued. I decided to use silicone sealant for couple of reasons: (1) it would give a nice watertight seal; and (2) it would still be possible to take apart the handle in future if required. Epoxy would have worked as well but I don't think the handle could ever be disassembled without damaging it. Finally the last photo shows the brush reassembled and ready to go. Well actually, I will wait until tomorrow morning when I plan on crackin' the Fat! Uhhh... I mean Mitchell's Wool Fat! LOL!! Finally, why would I bother fixing up a brush that sells for around 12 bucks? Well... for one, I like this darn brush! It is nicely broken in and has lots of split ends which make it soft and helps it generate a good lather. On a more philosophical note, I feel that we lost something as a society when we adopted the just-chuck-it-and-buy-another-one mentality. Nobody seems to know how to fix anything anymore. Some people would throw away a flat screen TV just because the remote is broken! Somehow, to me, that just goes against the grain. Traditional shavers... traditional in more that just one way. :2thumbs: Cheers, Lyndon - T -
My sentiments exactly, personally I would much rather try and repair something rather than getting a new one, if nothing else it gives me a sense of satisfaction knowing that I have given something a new lease of life!!!!
Great ideas. I have one that I wasn't happy with the weight. Even though it's not taking in water, I think I'll take it apart and add some weight. Thanks.
