Boar Brush Recommendation

[DrakeMegrim]

Reporting back. Broken in and it's lovely. I really like the scritch and the later it produces. I do wish it had more backbone. It's not floppy by any means but not as firm as my SOC mistura.

Absolutely loved the break-in process of this boar and kind of wish it retained a bit more scritch and backbone after being broken in.

 

[Goblin]

Reporting back. Broken in and it's lovely. I really like the scritch and the later it produces. I do wish it had more backbone. It's not floppy by any means but not as firm as my SOC mistura.

Well done for reporting back - it's always good to see where someone ended up after asking for recommendations.

Absolutely loved the break-in process of this boar and kind of wish it retained a bit more scritch and backbone after being broken in.

The search for perfection almost never ends. There's always the next boar...

 

[DrakeMegrim]

The search for perfection almost never ends. There's always the next boar...

Hah, true. I think for now I'm happy and at least I know that boar is my preferred knot. I think I'll look into a 610/620 in the future just to make it a travel brush. I've been using a T3 for travel and it's okay but I prefer boars.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Hah, true. I think for now I'm happy and at least I know that boar is my preferred knot. I think I'll look into a 610/620 in the future just to make it a travel brush. I've been using a T3 for travel and it's okay but I prefer boars.

I think you would enjoy the 610 more than the 620 though both are good in their own way. The 620 becomes much less firm over time, while the 610 seems to stay more scrubby.

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

Reporting back. Broken in and it's lovely. I really like the scritch and the later it produces. I do wish it had more backbone. It's not floppy by any means but not as firm as my SOC mistura.

Absolutely loved the break-in process of this boar and kind of wish it retained a bit more scritch and backbone after being broken in.

Omega Jade not as solid as SOC mistura?!

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

I enjoy SOC and other Semogue boars for sure, but they are pretty soft and pillowy in comparison to others. That's not a knock, but an observation as someone who likes a healthy amount of scritch in his life. I'd say the SOC Mistura might have a tad more scritch than the SOC boars.

My path to the right amount of scritch took me away from Semogue and I eventually zeroed in on two boar knots I really like. The first is the "kinda, maybe?" bleached Omega knot in the Connaught Jade (far right):

View attachment 1904066

I can't recommend this brush highly enough. It's short, wide knot dimensions give it a firm but bouncy backbone that seems perfectly tuned for face lathering. The tips get luxurious over time but never "do I even feel it?" soft like synthetics or, frankly, some Semogue boars like the SOC. Not that there's anything wrong with a pillowy brush!

Be warned though, the Jade requires an extensive break-in period to show it's true colors. 60ish shaves for me.

The other knot I found that had great scritch was the Zenith Unbleached boars (the white and butterscotch brushes above) that you can get at Your Shaving. They come in a variety of handle styles, I really like the shape of that butterscotch one, it's very comfortable. The knots are a little less firm than the Jade - you can that tell just by looking at the relative lofts - but not much less and the tips have a healthy amount of scritch. We're not talking boot brush stiff here, it's still soft, but you feel like you are using a brush brush not a makeup brush.

The two brushes on the left are Zenith bleached boar knots. They have more backbone than most Semogue but I felt their tips got too soft quickly and eventually lost most of their scritch. Like they are supposed to do, these are Italian boars we're talking about .

Here's a shot with the SOC boar and the Jade from last Decemboar:

View attachment 1904067

Of this group my favorites were the Omega Jade on the far left and the Omega Model 40033 on the far right, which I swear uses the same type of semi-coarse hair the Jade does. Not a fan of the handle though, that knot has been rehomed since that photo:

View attachment 1904068

Do the yellow Zenith and the white one have the same loft? what model is the yellow one?

 

[flask28]

Do the yellow Zenith and the white one have the same loft? what model is the yellow one?

Hey there!

The yellow (butterscotch) Zenith is a 502 handle and it says it's 26/56. Looks like it's out of stock at YourShaving where I purchased it however.

The white one says it's 27/58. So they are almost the same, the white one is a tad larger. They feel the same to me

 

[DrakeMegrim]

Omega Jade not as solid as SOC mistura?!

Omega Jade doesn't have as much backbone as the mistura but the Omega Jade has more scritch.

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

Omega Jade doesn't have as much backbone as the mistura but the Omega Jade has more scritch.

how many shaves have you done with Soc Mistura?
I find the SOC Mistura very soft, it has become almost like a Silvertip Badger

 

[DrakeMegrim]

I think I'm closing in on 200 doing some napkin math. The Mistura has got a little scritch. It's nothing excessive but I do feel it but the backbone is what makes me prefer it to the Omega Jade. I much prefer the scritch from the Omega Jade.

 

[Mammutlesto]

That little scritch from the Mistura will soon disappear. As far as boar goes, I've put a stop to Semogue after several tries. Either too small or too floppy for my tastes. Omegas are doomed by their poor handles (except the Jade). I love my Zeniths over every other boar brushes.