Thread: Cleaning the brush

I thought I would pop back in here.

I still don't wash my brush, I actually haven't rinsed it clean, period. My wife still hates that I don't wash it. I still think washing the brush is a waste of time if you're a daily shaver.

What I realized since my last post and after seeing a few other people, is that I face lather and the lather itself only gets within about a half inch of the handle of the brush. I've seen videos where people say to load the brush all the way down to the handle, and I have to wonder why - what are you going to do with the lather that's in that part of the brush? There's no reason for it to be down there intentionally.

The brush I use is a "best" badger brush from star shaving (it was in the neighborhood of $25-$30, and it may release a single hair about once a month. Great brush for the price, still a stink free brush and it still makes great lather every day (I go back and forth between cella and MWF).

Maybe less natural soaps would present some threat, I don't know. I love cella so much I will probably never buy another soap other than cella (once the MWF runs out).

Still shave every single day, perhaps one day since this message I didn't shave because I was traveling and I wasn't happy with the shape my travel straight was in at the time.

Yes. You really should wash it out well after each use if not for the brushes health than for your own. Open soap like that does grow bacteria and you don't need that.

Originally Posted by Geezer

My take on the subject is that if the brush starts feeling a bit hard or stiff to bend or use on the face, I will then set it fully into a solution of half cider vinegar and water for a couple three hours and slosh it around every time that I think of it during that time.
rinse well and dry for the next use. the first lather may be a bit puny but it will get better over a couple days.

I would only need to do this maybe a couple times a year at most. Once in six months on my boar so far.

This also makes a good solution for the cleaning of old brushes, especially in an ultrasonic cleaner.
respectfully
~Richard
PS. I have heard of folks using hair revitalizer shampoo when their brush gets a bit dried out.

Thanks Richard! I was wondering what was the best way to occasionally clean a nicer brush. My current crummy ones aren't worth the effort, and still too new to worry about it.

I saw the classic brand brush cleaner on CS. Not sure what the equivalent is, but this sounds like it's easy and less expensive.



I do rinse mine out thoroughly and hang to dry.

Rob

If you are not cleaning the brush just to save the cost of some soap you should stop using soap and razor and burn the hair off. Fire is cheap and it will do a good job if you give it time to work. Dont,t be so cheap and clean your brush!

Back in the '70s, when I was an ironworker, I'd wear out a pair of Red Wing work boots fairly quickly. I started buying two pair and rotating. Gave the one pair a day to dry out well on the inside. I started getting much more time out of a pair of work boots. I do the same thing with footwear now and certainly with my shaving brushes. I always throughly rinse the brush, shake it out, and hang it in a stand for 24 hours or so. I only have two stands, one for large and the other for small.

After the 24 hours the brush is moved out of the bathroom and into the hallway countertop where it stands on end. Rotating brushes will give them longer life and they feel better on your face. BTW, I bought my first shaving brush at Hoffritz for Cutlery in about 1973. Cost me $80.00 back then so it must have been a good one. Used it every day I shaved for 35 years before I bought another one. Usually lathered in my hand on a bar of Dove soap.

Then I found the shaving forums in 2006 and 20+ brushes later ..... and high end soap instead of the bar of Dove ....I still use that Hoffritz once in awhile but that daily grind for 35 years took a toll. Anyway, a rotation of at least two is a good way to go IMHO. Gives the brush a chance to rest and dry out thoroughly, plus you can get into SBAD and stimulate the economy.

Small world,my first brush was a Hoffritz (on the rgt) bought in the early 70s at williams cutlery,palo alto calif.< 20 bux I think,was used every day for 20+ yrs,is still in perfect condition,take care of them,they should last a lifetime+.

I have 3 brushes I rotate with and I rinse them thoroughly after every shave. When I need to clean them sometimes I just use shampoo but when I was buying gifts for my lady I came across MAC brush cleaner. I got 2 bottles. I soaked one of brushes in that MAC brush cleaner and was amazed at how well it works. Now I generally rinse the brush and once it's dry I'll spray the brush with the cleaner to maintain it and soaking in the MAC cleaner is only needed for deep cleaning. However, the MAC brush cleaner is pretty expensive so that is why only one deep clean is needed then just a little spray across the brush after each use to maintain. I haven't noticed any problems thus far with the badger hairs.

This is just something I tried and thought I would pass on to everyone.

Your brush has to dry properly....Cleaning the brush, washing all the soap out with warm water, allows your brush to do this. Just a matter of the "right thing" to do. My opinion of course..............................

I use generic or drug store brand baby shampoo to clean my brushes that are in shaving rotation about once a month.

It keeps them in tip top condition and they lather my shaving soaps/creams better when I do.

No way whatsoever. You have to clen the brush every single time you use it. And rub the brush against a towel before pt it in a stand. Theirs no other way.
K