Thread: Boar question

I am looking at an Omega with a 22mm knot. My savile row silvertip is a 3122 so it also has a 22mm knot. I'm looking for a smaller brush. However, given the nature of the boar bristles, does this mean that it is actually a "smaller" brush? The badger hair is quite lofty if you catch my drift. Thanks.

The knot refers to the diameter of the base plug for bristles.

What Omega are you looking into?

The only 22 mm I have is #323 from Gary at shoeboxshaveshop

Are you looking for one that's lofty with shorter handle?

In my experience having variety of brushes with different as well as same knots-the latter does not necessarily mean the performance is same. The loft, handle, and grip vary from brush to brush.

its actually this one Omega #13564

I see the only one I have close to that is an Omega #10275 and it's actually one of my favourite boar as we speak!

That brush is similar to #80257. I know it's hard to see but I'll try and get pics later.

4th row next to green brush from left:

My question is, even tho the knot sizes are the same, is a boar a smaller brush because the hairs stick straight up and arent as dense as the badger brush? The SR3122 is like a light bulb.

Originally Posted by MasterMind

My question is, even tho the knot sizes are the same, is a boar a smaller brush because the hairs stick straight up and arent as dense as the badger brush? The SR3122 is like a light bulb.

I don't have that brush. But I will say that majority of my boars aren't light bulb shape. They're typically bleached or sketched and perhaps have one or maybe two that's clipped ( clipped and formed into bulb shape instead of natural form )

A beginner's guide to boar brushes / the science of the boar

Boar brushes do tend to be less dense than similarly sized badger brushes in my experience, but I don't think that I'd necessarily say they are "smaller" because of that. Boar brushes quite often have a very high loft which contributes to the way the brush performs in loading, lathering, and applying lather. The fact that quality boar brushes provide good backbone, lathering, and "flow through" make them a very capable brush.

Now, if you are looking for a smaller brush, you could well like that boar brush because it will likely not flare out as much, and the loft is not that high (around 49mm). However, if you aren't familiar with boar brushes, there is a bit of a learning curve as well as a break in process that you'll need to be patient with until it gets good... However, boar brushes are great values and perform quite well when broken in, and Omegas are well known to be good brushes. If you want to stay with a badger, you may consider a Rooney 1/1. They are great little brushes, but the handle is too small for some guys.

Hope this helps.

Indeed. While they require break-in period once they split, they are great with soaps and creams.

I fancy small to mid-size brushes. The largest I have is Boreal Pro 977.

With use of 22mm knot badger I found that it's rather moppy and lather is dispersed everywhere which isn't good because in spite of few soap/creams I have it's wasteful lather down drain.

With boar, I can control the amount of lather in either soap or cream. However I still use the few badgers I have but not as much. I'll tell you one thing though if you want a little softer and best of both worlds you can opt for a mixed loft.

I have Omega 21047 ( classifed as boar ), Vulfix 2006 and Vulfix 404. The latter two still need break-in. 2006 is extremely soft upon initial use.

I know it probably varies from brush to brush, soap to soap, person to person, etc., but approximately how many shaves does it take to usually brake in a good boar brush (if it makes a difference I would be referring the the Excelsior brushes from VS).

Originally Posted by bknesal

I know it probably varies from brush to brush, soap to soap, person to person, etc., but approximately how many shaves does it take to usually brake in a good boar brush (if it makes a difference I would be referring the the Excelsior brushes from VS).

To be perfectly honest, I don't have the patients to track it, but seems to get better every shave for the first couple of months... I have a brush rotation though with no set order though, so I can't say anything specific. If I were guessing, I'd count on 15-20 shaves