Thread: Is it a badger?

Soak it a few minutes and lather up with it. If it feels even a little bit scritchy or prickly, it is dyed boar bristle, or "pork" LOL. I have visions of a bacon brush. Maybe a puck of Tenderloin, and a pork chop strop. Sorry to make fun LOL your English is quite good enough for this forum. If it is badger it will feel rather smooth and silky, without excessive "backbone" or stiffness. In fact it might be fairly floppy if it is badger. The exception is Black badger, the lowest grade, and it is very scratchy because the hair is trimmed at the tip end rather than the root end. It still holds lots of lather, just not as silky on the face. Some guys like that feeling and feel that the exfoliation of a scratchy brush is good for the skin. Anyway my best guess is that yes, it is a pork brush, but we usually say boar bristle. Anyway, it is almost a free brush. I would give it a go and see how you like it, and not be too concerned about what animal had to sacrifice its hairs for the greater good.

There is little difference with omega red boar bristle the color and the trend of the black band but from the photo is hard to distingue.
I have used the brush and work very well is very smoth best versus omega.
badger or bristle not is important that my is only curiosity

Looks like Boar bristle to me also. Funny that we call it "boar" when it is actually from a pig which is similar but not the same thing. Although those terms are used rather fast and loose and the correct usage depends on whether you are talking to a biologist or a farmer. To a biologist "boar" means the Eurasian Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) but to a farmer or a hunter a boar means an uncastrated male pig. It would probably be better to use the term "swine bristle" since that could mean any of the members of the family Suidae male or female.

Also, the lines start to blur because the domestic pig was bred from the wild boar and the Warty Pig (Sus cebifrons) and there has been a lot of interbreeding between boars and feral pigs. Add to that that once a domestic pig has gone feral it is very hard to tell the difference. They escape easily since they are large, heavy and excellent diggers and can live as feral very easily just about anywhere. Lets just say that the true wild boar is not raised commercially and the bristles are very coarse and would probably not make a good brush. Also the wild boar is brown, gray or black but not white.

In Florida feral pigs are an invasive species of the upmost concern. So much so that the regulations and limits on hunting are almost nonexistent. On private property there is no age limit, size limit, sex provision, bag limit, or even a season limit. They can be trapped or "Hunters may use dogs and any legal rifle, shotgun, crossbow, bow, pistol or air gun (including airbow)." IN FACT, on private property with land owner permission you can hunt feral pigs in Florida year-round without so much as a hunting license even if you are from out of state. The only limit there was until recently is a dawn to dusk rule which has been repealed. Now you can hunt them at night with lights without a permit. There are even crazy people here that hunt them with dogs and a big knife. Seeing as feral pigs can be 700 lbs or more and have tusks several inches long......that's too rich for my blood but......to each his own I guess. I bagged a black one years ago and have since thought it would be cool to have a black bristle brush. The only thing is that thing stunk so bad the wife made me change out of my hunting clothes in the garage.

Originally Posted by PaulFLUS

Looks like Boar bristle to me also. Funny that we call it "boar" when it is actually from a pig which is similar but not the same thing. Although those terms are used rather fast and loose and the correct usage depends on whether you are talking to a biologist or a farmer. To a biologist "boar" means the Eurasian Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) but to a farmer or a hunter a boar means an uncastrated male pig. It would probably be better to use the term "swine bristle" since that could mean any of the members of the family Suidae male or female.

Also, the lines start to blur because the domestic pig was bred from the wild boar and the Warty Pig (Sus cebifrons) and there has been a lot of interbreeding between boars and feral pigs. Add to that that once a domestic pig has gone feral it is very hard to tell the difference. They escape easily since they are large, heavy and excellent diggers and can live as feral very easily just about anywhere. Lets just say that the true wild boar is not raised commercially and the bristles are very coarse and would probably not make a good brush. Also the wild boar is brown, gray or black but not white.

In Florida feral pigs are an invasive species of the upmost concern. So much so that the regulations and limits on hunting are almost nonexistent. On private property there is no age limit, size limit, sex provision, bag limit, or even a season limit. They can be trapped or "Hunters may use dogs and any legal rifle, shotgun, crossbow, bow, pistol or air gun (including airbow)." IN FACT, on private property with land owner permission you can hunt feral pigs in Florida year-round without so much as a hunting license even if you are from out of state. The only limit there was until recently is a dawn to dusk rule which has been repealed. Now you can hunt them at night with lights without a permit. There are even crazy people here that hunt them with dogs and a big knife. Seeing as feral pigs can be 700 lbs or more and have tusks several inches long......that's too rich for my blood but......to each his own I guess. I bagged a black one years ago and have since thought it would be cool to have a black bristle brush. The only thing is that thing stunk so bad the wife made me change out of my hunting clothes in the garage.

I have it good authority that there is a man that works for Omega that goes into the woods with a pair of scissors, a brush handle and a tube of glue.

Apparently he finds the boar by following the trail of truffles they dig up and leave around.

Originally Posted by Dankan73

Hi I found this on a bric-à-brac for 5 euro nickel-plated brass handle.
But is it a badger or pork bristle?
I'm italian sorry for my eng
Stefano

Buongiorno Stefano,

the brush looks like a boar brush to me. If you got the brush from Italy, there is a high chance that it is boar, as boar is more popular in Southern Europe than in northern countries.

You could also look (e.g. with a loupe) at the hair ends. A characteristic of boar brushes is that the individual hair end tends to split after some use into a small ‘Y’ or elongated ‘V’, giving the boar brush a softer quality.
If a large number of hair ends should look like this, you can take that as a confirmation that it is a boar brush.


Hope this helps.


Ciao,


B.

Originally Posted by STF

I have it good authority that there is a man that works for Omega that goes into the woods with a pair of scissors, a brush handle and a tube of glue.

Apparently he finds the boar by following the trail of truffles they dig up and leave around.

I should have known.

Boar bristle can be very soft. I have this large Omega with a very tall loft that is nearly as soft at the ends as my son's badger brush


Conversely I have this cheap no name brush that is almost too stiff.

Well, the one sure way of knowing is first get a Badger and make nice to him and get a Boar and be nice to him and then rub your face against them and then you'll know for sure.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Well, the one sure way of knowing is first get a Badger and make nice to him and get a Boar and be nice to him and then rub your face against them and then you'll know for sure.

...

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Well, the one sure way of knowing is first get a Badger and make nice to him and get a Boar and be nice to him and then rub your face against them and then you'll know for sure.

I'd pay to watch that.