Thread: How to dry a badger brush properly?

God created this world so that water runs downhill,hang the sucker and forget about it

If you shake it out and towel dry it, you don't need to hang it upside down, it will dry faster with bristles up. If it is not dripping wet it does not need to be upside down.

Hi gents, just a quick update. I've opened the window in the room where the brush dries, rinsed the brush after use and shaken (not stirred) it dry, and given it an extra days rest between shaves with a second brush on the way and its drying really well now. As a consequence my lathering is also improving too, but that's another thread. So thanks so much for all your advice it's really paid off I'm glad I asked the question

As others are noting, it doesn't seem like you have a process problem, but an environment problem.

Shake and put him away whit the hairs to mother earth,leave the door open or window, for circulation. The next day he is fine dry and ready for use again.

Properly is a Dirty word. Ask 10 guys how to properly do something and you may get 10 proper answers just saying......
I rinse my brush thoroughly with hot water first and finish the rise with cold water. I then shake the brush vigorously until dry and blot the knot on a dry towel. Some people will say the only 'proper' way is to hang the brush in a stand with the knot upside down. Since i personally tend to spend all of my money on new razor acquisitions i have never invested the $20 it cost to buy a brush stand.... Brush stands look nice if you ask me but when it comes to drying brushes i don't find a difference. My brushes dry just fine with their ass on the ground, they don't need to be hung from the ceiling.

Lots of good advice here. I shake my brush like a mad man in the shower to avoid the water/and leftover soap from flying all over the sink/mirror

I'll tell you the best way to dry a badger. Very carefully.

The summer I graduated from high school I worked for a painter, painting houses. He was an old school guy that could he lay down some perfect paint. He made us buy our own brushes, so we would take care of them. I still have mine today. He was a stickler for neatness and a clean brush and we would clean our brushes repeatedly, after each use and at the end of the day.

I clean and dry my shaving brushes much the same way as I was taught, except I use a microfiber towel. The microfiber towel absorbs much more water and keeps your razor and edge clean and your hand and razor dry during shaving and for storage.

I rinse the brush well in warm water, dip the brush in water then with the bristles pointed up squeeze the water out of the brush. This will flush any soap out of the base where it accumulates, rinsing under a faucet will not get to it. Repeat this 4-5 times to get all the soap out.

Shake and squeeze as much of the water out without pulling on the boar or badger. Then with the micro fiber laying on the counter doubled up, blot the brush by taping the brush on the cloth, so that you are tapping the brush ends on the cloth about a quarter of an inch. The force will drive the water down into the cloth.

Then drape the cloth over your hand, as if you were about to shake hands, I use my left for this and flag the brush across your index finger in a sideways motion, hitting your fingers with a half to three quarters of an inch of the tip of the brush. This will drive the water down and on to the microfiber cloth. After about 10 swipes move the cloth so a dry part of the cloth covers the edge of your hand and repeat... This will remove most of the water quickly. Flagging the brush on your hand without the cloth will tell you when it is dry, usually after 3-4 times for me. Shape the brush with your hand and hang with tips down in a stand.

I find using a Lucite stand to hold the brush while shaving instead of plopping in a bowl or scuttle of shaving cream keeps the soap from the base and makes clean up a bit easier, Lucite washes up easily and rust free. I use a double boiler type scuttle, so warm cream is a non-issue.

If you use a microfiber, blot and flag your brush, it will be almost completely dry when you hang it for storage and be thoroughly dry, the next day.

^^^^^^^^ lot of work to dry a brush