I'm new to all of this

I just bought a "badger" brush, or so I though, from a local knife store. I opened it up (it was a Col. Conk) and pulled it out. I read on the side of it that it said "bristle and badger", and it made me wonder what that meant.... Does that mean that I do not have an actual pure badger brush??? Also, when I went to lather up (fo the first time, with Col. Conk Bayrum). First of all, I failed lathering, but I think that I have some ideas about how to fix that....

Anyway, when I applied the badger brush I found that it felt like I was being "poked" by the brush.... I have pretty sensitive skin, so that may be a problem, but I am hoping that there is a way for me to really enjoy shaving, without any razor burn, and hopefully less irritation (which causes my face to breakout :mad:

Anyway, I am looking for advice....a lot of it...... I know that I need to get a straight razor, but I just have not made the plunge. I am still stuck in the world of modern shaving, with one of those vibrating four blade piece of junks ( I know, please have mercy on a poor college student)

One last thing, I had a straight razor shave done by a guy in Georgia. Cost me $25.00, I thought it would be worth it. He used a razor with the replaceable blades ( which was an immediate turn off for me) and he continued shaving after the lather was gone (just touching up, but still, it caused some serious irritation) I am hoping that my skin is not to sensitive for a straight razor, cause I really want to use one.

Ok, take care and TIA.

Morrison,

First off, welcome to SRP. If you're looking for advice about str8 razor shaving, you've come to right place.

As for your badger brush problem...There are primarily three different types of badger brushes--pure, best and super. It sounds to me that your brush is a combination of boar or synthetic brush and badger. The manufacturer probably did this to reduce costs. Badger hair can be expensive.

Don't give up on your brush just yet, though. Being brand new, it needs to get "broken in." Give it a good shampooing, along with some conditioner that you use for your hair. Then use your brush for the next couple of weeks/months. The new bristles should begin to get broken in and feel somewhat better against your face.

Second, when using the brush use it to apply the lather gently to your face in a painting motion. There is no need to press the brush into your face. This may help address your sensitive skin issue.

If the above remedy fails, consider upgrading to a better brush--Tweezerman is a good, cheap badger brush. The Vulfix brand is also a very good, reasonably priced badger brush.

Take care...

Thanks for the advice, Jhenry, I won't give up on the brush, though I am a little disappointed that it is not 100% badger, I will look into some other ones in the future, but for now it should do me.

Another thing that I am having a problem with is the Lathering, I watched some youtube videos, and all the guys on their seemed to get a really rich lather that was not see through when applied to the face. That is what I would really like to get, is there something that I may be doing wrong?

Hey bud. When you lather up, get the brush good and wet down to the handle and then shake most of it out. Then, aggressively load the brush by swirling it on top of your soap puck, I'd say 15-20 seconds. It should have accumulated a good bit of soap now, but may not look like it because you are short on water.

So, before you take the brush to your face, run a trickle of hot water on the base of the brush where it meets the handle to re-wet it a little bit. Then lather on your face. The action of swirling the brush plus the new hot water should get it to explode for you. If it doesn't add a tiny bit more water until it does.

Let us know how that works and we can troubleshoot from there if you still have trouble.

Also, if you plan on using a bowl/scuttle you can add water a little bit at a time as you go until you get the lather you like.

Good luck.

You've gotten the goods already so I'll just say "welcome, Morrison". :)

X

Well Morrison, it sounds like your brush is a bit on the cheaper side. I have been using a badger brush for about 3 years (I too only recently made the transition to straight razor shaving, before I was using a double edge razor). I will agree that it does sound like it is a combination between badger and possible boar bristle. Some people like the combo, some people like only boar, it's all up to preference. Try watching some videos on YouTube by a guy who goes by Mantic59, or search for "Shaving Lather". He uses a DE, but has great videos on shaving brushes. If you decide to get a new brush, check out Vulfix. They have many low, mid, and high end brushes, and mine works SUPER well for me even though it's a cheaper one. Hope this helped!:)

Something that you should keep in mind is the type of water that you have in your area. If you have soft water, it should lather up nicely, but if you have hard water, it'll take more work. I also have lathering problems, and I've found these two things help:

1. Take more time to whip. I've seen a few videos where the person seems to create huge amounts of fluffy lather in just a few seconds. This definitely wasn't the case with me. Consider spending more time than you do now and see what happens. Maybe even take a timer into the bathroom with you to see how much time has passed. Sometimes I feel like I've been spending forever trying to whip up lather but really only 30 seconds have gone by. Also think about your whipping technique. My girlfriend tried pretending that she was beating eggs, and she made a whole lot more lather than I ever did.

2. Use less water. When you're sitting there whipping and nothing is happening, your instinct will be to add more water. It's tempting, but be careful. You might ruin your chances of making usable lather even before you start whipping. When you do need to add water, just add one drop at a time. Even a tiny amount of water can throw off your entire ratio.

I'm very, very impatient, so those two things really helped me out.

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Originally Posted by Victor

Something that you should keep in mind is the type of water that you have in your area. If you have soft water, it should lather up nicely, but if you have hard water, it'll take more work. I also have lathering problems, and I've found these two things help:

1. Take more time to whip. I've seen a few videos where the person seems to create huge amounts of fluffy lather in just a few seconds. This definitely wasn't the case with me. Consider spending more time than you do now and see what happens. Maybe even take a timer into the bathroom with you to see how much time has passed. Sometimes I feel like I've been spending forever trying to whip up lather but really only 30 seconds have gone by. Also think about your whipping technique. My girlfriend tried pretending that she was beating eggs, and she made a whole lot more lather than I ever did.

2. Use less water. When you're sitting there whipping and nothing is happening, your instinct will be to add more water. It's tempting, but be careful. You might ruin your chances of making usable lather even before you start whipping. When you do need to add water, just add one drop at a time. Even a tiny amount of water can throw off your entire ratio.

I'm very, very impatient, so those two things really helped me out.

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victor,

++1 for that advice. I have the same hard water problem where I live and I have to take extra time to get a rich lather with my brush and soap/cream.

Hey guys thanks for all of the help!!!:rock: It sounds to me like I am having whatever the opposite of beginner's luck is.... I am going to give it another go, and consider a new brush, too...but I haven't completely given up.

I do know that the water in the area is really hard, so that doesn't help, but from what you guys have said, it sounds like that is able to be overcome. Great advice keep it coming.... next issue is what about sensitive skin??? I would love for my skin to not feel like it is burned or prickly the day after I shave....Thanks again!!!!!

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Originally Posted by Morrison

I do know that the water in the area is really hard, so that doesn't help, but from what you guys have said, it sounds like that is able to be overcome.

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That's a tough one for lather. Spring water sounds easiest, but any water softener should help, otherwise, LOTS of soap and elbow grease.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Morrison

.... next issue is what about sensitive skin??? I would love for my skin to not feel like it is burned or prickly the day after I shave....Thanks again!!!!!

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Good beard prep, good shaving and cutting angles and little pressure with the blade should be your friend. You should be getting the closest, most comfortable shaves of your life in almost no time flat.

Good Beard prep? That is something that I know extra-very little about..... But that does sound like something that may help. I get all red and just plain ole irritated......

I think that I will peruse the "Beard Prep" Forum, but any advice that you guys have, oils, creams,etc.... will be greatly appreciated.

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Originally Posted by Morrison

I think that I will peruse the "Beard Prep" Forum, but any advice that you guys have, oils, creams,etc.... will be greatly appreciated.

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The most important part is t wash your beard with some kind of soap to remove the skin oils so that the whiskers can absorb water well, then actually let them absorb the water with hot towels etc. This is why shaving right out of the shower is common, because the bulk of the beard prep is done with no extra effort.

Oh, I almost forgot! Jhenry had mentioned just painting my lather on, rather than pressing the brush into my face to help further the lather. But, when I did this, the lather seemed to be even thinner.... I put some conditioner on my brush, and that did help (after shampooing it), but it still feels like the brush is coarse when applying the lather....but the lather does build better.

Seems like I am between a rock and a hard place.....any suggestions?

Xman, thanks for the prep advice, I will definitely remember to do that~

Oglethorpe, I am going to try the method that you mention, I will update on it later

Thanks again!!!

I wish I got to this sooner since I have a Col. Conk Badger Brush. It cost about $55 and it was adverstised as their best badger brush. I have been very impressed with it. No hairs fell out of it, the hairs hold water well and has the right balance of being soft to the face, but stiff enough to swirl up a lather. It still looks just a great as they day I got it.

The kicker on this brush is that it was made in England and I suspect some reputable people assembling this for the Col. Conk label. There are likely a few groups making the brushes for the Col. Conk line and it could change based on a number of conditions.

I think I lucked out with mine - Kudos to whomever made this one.

If you don't feel satisfied with yours, then return it. Shavemac seems to be a lot of bang for the buck and I hear a lot of positive comments from SRP members who have them.

Good Luck,

Pabster

Lots of good advice here already, so welcome to SRP :)

You've found a great group of people!

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Originally Posted by jhenry

Morrison,

First off, welcome to SRP. If you're looking for advice about str8 razor shaving, you've come to right place.
.....
Second, when using the brush use it to apply the lather gently to your face in a painting motion. There is no need to press the brush into your face. This may help address your sensitive skin issue.
.....

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+1 on the Welcome

+1 on the use the brush gently.
Use only the first 1/4 inch of the brush on your face.

Any brush does a couple of things...

• picks up soap from the puck
• works that soap or a cream into a lather in a mug, on your hand, on you face.
• lightly scrubs the face cleaner than it was and gets lather/ bubbles/ water under and around your whiskers. The lather keeps whiskers wet.

If your face does not like the scratch then building a lather on your face may be off the table. The other two methods work well. I am a mug/ tin cup man.

One solution is to build that lather on you hand then use you
hands to massage it on your face. If you have a two or three day
beard your whiskers will help build a good lather if you scrub a bit.

Brushes get better with use. It may just need to settle in.

Using only the first 1/4 inch on your face is a good thing with any brush.

I admit some days I like to scratch and scrub and on those days I grab my $7.95 drugstore special and scrub my face just short of pink.

Yes, about the brush and returning it, though many places won't allow it 'for health reasons'. I'm a little startled that a Col. Conk product was unsatisfactory, although personally, I wouldn't be put off by the boar bristles. They're a little coarser but add body and longevity (at that price point) and give a bit more bang for the buck.

If you have sensitive skin and find it unsatisfactory you should certainly return it, (given you can) and move up to a nice fat pure badger that pleases you.

If it ain't fun, there ain't much point to it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mitchshrader

Yes, about the brush and returning it, though many places won't allow it 'for health reasons'. I'm a little startled that a Col. Conk product was unsatisfactory, although personally, I wouldn't be put off by the boar bristles. They're a little coarser but add body and longevity (at that price point) and give a bit more bang for the buck.

If you have sensitive skin and find it unsatisfactory you should certainly return it, (given you can) and move up to a nice fat pure badger that pleases you.

If it ain't fun, there ain't much point to it.

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+1 If it ain't fun, there ain't much point to it.