Chunking Bristle

[Painter]

Hey, it's not true that boar hog bristles split. They naturally have a "flag" at their tips.

Read this: http://www.silverbrush.com/art/art_pdfs/art_brush_tips.pdf

With painters; I'll use Lucian Frued (yes grandpa was Sigmond), supposedly he started out using smoother bristles (maybe synthetic) and couldn't make it work. The he switched to hog and now he's a top artist. One of his painting sold out of his studio for like 30 million(US equivalent) a record for a living artist. Look it up, it's bizarre.

Badger bristle is used, but is frowned upon. As it is called a blender, used to fuse edges and smooth brush marks, this being considered "unpainterly".

Silver Brush Limited are a highest quality brush maker.

 

[Prince]

huh. guess you learn something new everyday.

 

[mblakele]

Thank you, Painter. That was interesting. I had heard of sable brushes, but didn't realize that there were so many choices. In passing, I suspect most boar brushes are made from pretty low-grade bristles: both of my Omegas are yellowish.

Omega used to make horse-hair brushes, and I have been shaved by a barber who used one. It was very soft, possibly softer than either boar or badger. It was also somewhat old so it may not have been soft when it was new. But now I wonder if it wasn't "pony" per Silver Brush's description?

Next to the description of badger, the picture looks more like a trim-painting brush than something one might use for oils.

They recommend drying brushes upside-down, but cite a danger of paint and cleaner damaging the knot as the reason. That doesn't apply to our shaving brushes, I think. There's also an interesting tidbit about insects eating away at brushes. I wonder if that's part of the damage we see in the "before" pictures from our brush-restoring colleagues?

I am not sure what to make of the section that starts "hog bristles do not like water". The gist seems to be that hog bristles will not retain their shape, but we generally applaud that effect when it applies to our shaving brushes.

 

[Painter]

Yes, that's a badger blender. Look up the painter Bouguereau he is highly underappreciated, and criticized for his "finish". He's not Van Rijn, but his work is beautiful and sublime, also he is a technical master.

If you like Bouguereau check out the Art Renewal Center.

 

[mblakele]

http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artObjectDetails?artobj=584 was one of the first paintings that stuck in my memory, as a child. I also enjoy seeing http://search3.famsf.org:8080/view....period=&sort=&start=1&position=3&record=64660 at a the Legion of Honor Museum.

Bouguereau had the misfortune to make his career at a time when the impressionists were on the ascendant. Certain romantic authors suffered similarly when the realists arrived on America's literary scene.

 

[Sueto]

Is this going to affect my lather?

 

[mblakele]

Sueto, I don't see any boar brushes in your signature - so perhaps not.

Still, it sounds like you could take advantage of your badgers to strive for a Bouguereau-like "licked finish" for your lather. That might not improve your shave directly, but think of the groupies it would attract.

 

[Painter]

Well, I've had artist hog bristle brushes for 10 years that are the same from hell and back, little flags. Brushes from Isabey, Escoda, Silver, Utrecht, etc. Some have been real war horses and are my pet brushes.

Mblakele it's true that brushes used in acrylics seem to get brittle and not really they just dry out. I think it's because of the acrylic binder itself, not that it's water based, but maybe, I don't know. Human hair is the same as hog hair. I guess badger is fur. I actually use soap(linseed/tallow) and water to clean all my brushes (most do) the secret is to LET THEM DRY OUT between use. Time to get more BRUSHES!

Boar are the toughest at surviving the heavy metals, lead, chrome, cadmium, nickel, and through water, solvents, and oil and hold up. All other bristles loose their shape easier, and you have to take better care of them.

I put lanolin on my acrylic brushes and not so much my oil brushes, it works.

It's always a trade off.