I had my first shave with my brand spankin' new Badger and Blade Omega boar brush. Yesterday when it arrived, I gave it a de-funk lathering, and I noticed that most of the tips of this had already split. I thought it felt really soft on my hand, and I thought it felt softer than my Semogues. Well, todays shave proved otherwise. It's still a bit scratchy on the face, and the knot doesn't splay much yet. This isn't a magic "broken in out of the box" brush; it's a boar brush, and like any other boar brush, it's going to need a good breaking in to open the knot and soften the tips a bit more.
While this brush is noticeably less dense than my Semogues, it doesn't suffer at all in the back bone department. Right now it's too stiff. The knot really needs to open up, and I expect that it will once it's broken in. I don't expect that this brush will turn into a floppy mop once that happens; hopefully it will be just right.
What I am really impressed by is that it lathered really well in spite of the fact that most boars are a bit lacking in this department when they are new. I had plenty of lather for three passes face lathering. Most new boars struggle to produce a good quantity of lather for at least the first few uses. Not this one. Both the de-funk lathering and today's shave proved this brush makes great lather.
I'm glad that this year's B&B Limited Edition brush is an Omega. At $20.00, it's something I can actually afford. The handle is nice, the color is nice, and I'm hoping that the knot will be just as nice once it's broken in. I haven't had an Omega in the den for a couple of years, so I don't remember how they are once broken in any more. My understanding is that Omegas break in much faster than Semogues. I've broken in two Semogues in my time wet shaving, and I'm working on a third. If Omegas do in indeed break in faster than Semogues, then I shouldn't be long before this brush reaches its potential. I'll try to post an update when that happens. In the mean time, I think this is a good brush and well worth owning. I'm glad I have one in my den.
While this brush is noticeably less dense than my Semogues, it doesn't suffer at all in the back bone department. Right now it's too stiff. The knot really needs to open up, and I expect that it will once it's broken in. I don't expect that this brush will turn into a floppy mop once that happens; hopefully it will be just right.
What I am really impressed by is that it lathered really well in spite of the fact that most boars are a bit lacking in this department when they are new. I had plenty of lather for three passes face lathering. Most new boars struggle to produce a good quantity of lather for at least the first few uses. Not this one. Both the de-funk lathering and today's shave proved this brush makes great lather.
I'm glad that this year's B&B Limited Edition brush is an Omega. At $20.00, it's something I can actually afford. The handle is nice, the color is nice, and I'm hoping that the knot will be just as nice once it's broken in. I haven't had an Omega in the den for a couple of years, so I don't remember how they are once broken in any more. My understanding is that Omegas break in much faster than Semogues. I've broken in two Semogues in my time wet shaving, and I'm working on a third. If Omegas do in indeed break in faster than Semogues, then I shouldn't be long before this brush reaches its potential. I'll try to post an update when that happens. In the mean time, I think this is a good brush and well worth owning. I'm glad I have one in my den.
Last edited:
