Prefer Boar to Badger?

[Chadtheguru]

Does anybody here prefer boar over badger? I have a Simpson Colonel X2L in best that I loved before I got my Omega boar. I've lately been experimenting with face-lathering and have lately preferred the boar and largely neglected the X2L. Is it possible that my shaving style is more suited to a boar brush than a badger?

I know that badger brushes are technically better (softer, etc.) than boar. Are there any of you who have used badgers and found that you prefer boar? I haven't by any means found my perfect shave without further experimentation. What about you guys? Do any of you only use boars?

 

[Del Cooper]

I'm finding myself in the same boat. I used cheap boars for a long time. Then, I bought a Simpson Berkeley in best badger. It is a really nice brush, but after I used it for a couple weeks I started going back to the old boars. After a week or two of doing that, I got a Semogue 1305. Now, I'm using that and the Simpson is sitting on the shelf. I don't know if it is shaving style or something else, but I really do prefer the boar brushes right now.

 

[Gone Gray]

I love my Omega 10049 and if I could only choose one brush, that would probably be it. But, I have 12 brushes and rotate everyday. Each brush is "married" to a soap or cream. I appreciate what each brush has to offer and look forward to using each one.

 

[Kevan]

I have both in my den but boar overtook badger a long time ago for me. I probably use boar 4 or 5 out of every 6 shaves.

 

[Drizzt76]

My Omega boar is my only brush since I started DE shaving about 5-6 months ago....but I just ordered a Duke 3 today. I'm sure I will use my new brush everyday for a couple weeks but the boar will slowly work into a rotation.

 

[bobfarvour]

I use both and enjoy both. I wouldn't rank the boar over the badger in general. But I'd rank my semogue boars over some of my badgers. I wouldn't want to go with out either. I like a boar with my tabac and mwf especially.

 

[RayH]

I used cheap boars for year before finding B&B. I've since aquired 4 badgers. The latest being the new Rudy Vey LE 2011. But for all that, I still use 2 Omegas quite a bit.

 

[BrianK]

I use both and love using both. Boar and badger are different and yet both work. To muddy the water a little there are differences in badger grades and the way the brush is built. That goes for Boar as well, but maybe to a lesser degree. I use my brushes interchangeably for whatever soap/cream I happen to decide on that day. No brush in my rack is exclusively for any product. I want to be able to use, and know how to use, any brush with any soap/cream I decide to use on any particular day. I don't care if it's more difficult or time consuming, I want to know how to use them together.

BTW, who says Badger is "superior" ? Who had the hubris to dictate "this quality" was better than "that quality" ? They both work, they're both different. Each individual may be able to state that "this is better for me", or "I think this is better for soap", "I like this for face lathering", whatever , but for anyone to state that something is better for everyone, that tells me they have a dog in the fight. There are many ways to get the job done and all of them work to one degree or other.

 

[talibeard]

I went from boar to badger and back, though I still use badger from time to time. It is just that I prefer the firm hugging of a well broken in boar while face-lathering. Both work well and all you have to do is pick what you like best!

 

[Foyle]

I've got a C&E Pure Badger and two boars, an Omega 31025 and an SOC. I tend to prefer the boars and that's all I've used since about November. The C&E is a decent brush but it's not very dense and a little scritchy. I don't think badgers are better than boars nor boars better than badger. They are just different.

I'm a face latherer and I can have a densely packed, soft tipped brush with great backbone for about $30.00 or less in a boar. The same qualities in a badger will cost at least three times as much. I'd like to try a high end badger some day but it's not in the budget so for now I'm a boar fan.

 

[jsj_297]

boar.

 

[Greyfox]

Not me. I just don't like boar.

 

[Chadtheguru]

I like a boar with my tabac and mwf especially.

Hmm.. Tabac, MWF and sticks are all I've been using lately, nearly all I have left in my den. I'm not much of a cream guy except to add in a little Bigelow for menthol-ly coolness now and then. Also, I've been into face lathering lately. My bowl has found a comfortable place under the sink with the stored away stuff. Perhaps my hoggish leanings have been because of my recent habits.

 

[john shea]

I can use any brush. I use a VDH Boar, a Merkur Vision Silvertip, and am awaiting delivery of a Simpson Chubby 1 in Best Badger. So far, I like the Vision Silvertip better than the VDH boar for its softness and its ability to lather quickly, but keep the boar in my rotation. I find that the brush selected is more a matter of aesthetics (enjoyment) than a matter critical to the comfort and closeness of the shave.

 

[Chadtheguru]

I use a VDH Boar.

Dude, get a good boar. Get an Omega or a Semogue and try it. The VDH is a great brush to start out with, but the quality is so that it doesn't make a good brush to judge boars-in-general with. The hairs don't really split at all which would make the tips soft. It takes FOREVER to soften if it ever does.

Correct me if I'm wrong, guys.

 

[vegaskid74]

I started with badgers myself, but as I look at my counter this morning, there are four boars and only one badger. I don't think I ever made a conscious decision that I like boars better, but apparently I do. I face lather soaps exclusively, and it's tough for any badger to beat a quality, broken-in boar for this purpose in my opinion.

 

[Balj86]

Actually I've always been a boar guide b/c I initially got a badger that was bad. Once I got a SOC, 1305 and two other Omegas I loved them in my rotation. But then I landed on the brush chronicle threads and ordered a wee scot that I just love and followed up purchasing a DUKE 3 which showed me I was missing out on quality badgers aside from boars. I wouldn't I say i'm convert from boar to badger, but i now have quality badgers in my rotation of shaving brushes. You get what you pay for and that saying runs really well with Badger Shaving Brushes especially.

 

[Mike Schutz]

Boars outnumber badgers in my den 4:1. But what it comes down to is what works best for you. Each brush has it's own personality. Find the ones that are best for you and enjoy.

 

[JPDyson]

I tend to prefer a nice, high-quality boar (Semogue!) though I still appreciate badger. I think the combination of backbone and tip softness is magical on a broken in boar.

 

[PaulL]

I have been shaving with this Omega brush for over twenty years. It's really really soft and has good backbone.
Last year I bought a few badgers, but still use my Omega about half the time. It doesn't really hold a ton of soap, but it feels just right, the first pass is wonderful. My badgers give me a better second pass.

I think my next brush will be another Omega, or perhaps a Semogue.