Thread: Boar Brush Question

My Black Badgers absorb more water than my Boars and are more scratchy than them.

Thanks for all the info guys. I think I'll try out a Semogue brush. Just one more possibly dumb question: what do the numbers mean in the brush info. Ex) 610, 1520,1800

The way it was explained to me is badger doesn't absorb water it holds the water within the knot of bristles while boar actually absorbs the water within each hair. Old barbers tales or not? I don't know.

Owen,
The Semogue numbers are just model #s, but the 830 is the softest bristles, the 610 is he middle, and the 620 the firmest. All are great brushes, as are their wood handled ones ( 1305 being the softest, 1250/1470 being the middle and 1438 being the stiffest). The owners club is a whole other beast than any other boar brush, and takes a long time to break in, but is a heck of a brush once you do.

I like all the Semogue boar brushes, but I tend to like the medium stiffness bristle the best, I think.

I'm a fan of Boar. I find a nicely different performance than badger and its great to have/use both. I prefer boar for hard soaps and badger for creams. I'll echo soaking your brush in warm water for a few minutes before shaving. I've yet to find a soap that is a problem with a boar brush and when I haven't shaved for a day or two the extra bristle strength comes in handy.
Let us know how you like one when buy/shave with them.
Boar for face, ham and eggs for breakfast, pork chops for supper...what's not to like?

My first brush was a boar's hair, the cheap one you can get at pharmacies and Walmart with the green handle. I opened at least 10 boxes before I found one that was kind of soft. I think I used it for about a year before getting a nice badger from whippeddog. I can't complain about it, I turned down a custom cedar handle for it and it was nice to start with. I think I paid about $5.00 for it.

Its hard to explain. boar brushes are pretty inexpensive. Better off buying one

I'm LOVIN my Semogue 1520

Mike

A boar brush is akin to walking into McDonalds and ordering a basic hamburger. It's cheap and filling and does the trick and folks expect it to be cheap. It's probably a loss leader but that's what it is.

Owen-Keep us posted. Enjoy!