Since I have been on a brush acquisition spree, I decided to try Boar, and I picked up a Semogue SOC Boar Brush with a gorgeous butterscotch handle. Today's shave was straight from the box, no break-in, just soaked in hot water while I showered, load from the puck and face lathered. I've use an SOC Badger Brush for a long time, so the new brush felt very familiar. The backbone was great, and the brush loaded quickly. Unlike the badger brushes I have, this one feels like it will break in and soften up. Is that typically true with boar? Not to say I didn't enjoy it straight away, because I did! While it loaded and lathered great, when I went for more lather on a second pass, there wasn't much soap left in the brush. That wasn't a problem, and I am sure this will improve with time. All in all, I was very impressed with the boar brush, and I am happy to have one in rotation.
First Time with a Boar Brush
- Thread starter RRGGMM
- Start date
Great boar! I never want my boars to soften, I do want them to yield more lather. Over time, both things happen.
How you use it will affect what happens. I never do any break in, other than some throwaway bowl lathering if a knot just won't yield any lather at first. And I don't soak, but I am avoiding softness, not seeking it.
How you use it will affect what happens. I never do any break in, other than some throwaway bowl lathering if a knot just won't yield any lather at first. And I don't soak, but I am avoiding softness, not seeking it.
Great choice! The SOC boar will only get better with use.
I like to swirl brushes around in a cup of warm water with a few drops of mild shampoo or dishwashing liquid (and then rinse). Seems to remove dirt and grime that may not come out with just the shave soap.
I like to swirl brushes around in a cup of warm water with a few drops of mild shampoo or dishwashing liquid (and then rinse). Seems to remove dirt and grime that may not come out with just the shave soap.
The Semogue SOC is notoriously slow to break in. I know it feels comfortable on the first shave, but use it for six months and you'll be astonished. As @Frank Shaves says, wash it out weekly in shampoo and always store it bristles down.
I like boar brushes for bowl lathering but when I try to use them with a shave stick, boars are just not good. I can only get one pass out of it.
I'm a recent convert and loving my two boars. One, an unbleached Zenith, is still about halfway through the break in. I palm lathered half a dozen times before using it just to remove (most of) the funk. Other than that, they just require really heavy loading early.
Just make sure you put enough soap on your face first; sticks and boars work great!
Just make sure you put enough soap on your face first; sticks and boars work great!
I don’t have that problem with a broken in boar. Each pass gets a bit thinner, soap dependent, but I’ve just gotten used to face loading the stick. I tend to use an Omega 40033 and Hasslinger’s Aloe vera or Speick while traveling otherwise I load from pucks at home. And my 599 and 18mm silvertips work even better and I can get probably 4 passes loaded. Just put on more soap initially I guess. Or load the brush from the stick on subsequent passes if needed.
@RRGGMM, SOCs are great brushes but as said, they’re slow to break in and will be softer at a year than at 6 months, and maybe more after that. If the splay gets too much I think some guys pinch the base of the knot with fingers or O rings I never felt the need, but it’s a big 24 when it’s done breaking in.
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- Thread starter
- #8
I have a ten-year-old SOC Badger Brush, so I have an idea of the size once the boar is broken in. The brush was so good today; I am sure seeing it evolve towards being broken in will be fun. I also have a SOC Mistura, so boar will be making its way into my rotation in more ways than one!
It splays more than the two band, depending on your pressure.
My broke in years ago against a newly breaking in mistura in the pic. It honestly hasn’t seen a lot of work for awhile. Omega’s tend to have a touch more backbone and soft scrub than most Semogues, excluding the SOC. That Zenith 2000 is my favorite boar now. That and the Omega were both sub $10. I predominately use boars, but like badgers when it’s cool/cold
This is why I put my soaps into containers - so I can keep going back to the well for more.
I normally use a spoon and my index finger to press soft soaps into the container and a cheese grater for hard soaps. And I can stack the containers. Works for me.
Enjoy the brush! It is a classic IMO!! 
- Thread starter
- #12
The Mistura is another fine brush. Today was the first time I'd given
it a whirl.
I've got 27mm boars (Omega, Zenith), and even those don't hold enough for me for 3 passes. Load more and bowl lather, was my solution.
Note: it might improve with use, I never tried a boar out of the box. I do a 2-3 day cold water soaking treatment(towel strop daily), followed by a couple of palm lathers (fully dry it inbetween). Bleached boars are 90% ready after this.
All three of my SOC boars broke in incredibly slowly. The tips will become delightfully soft, but you will also lose some of that backbone. The SOC Mistura keeps the backbone, but the tips don't get delightfully soft. You have to pick your poison with boars.
I think the SOC boar is one of the finest bowl brushes available, and certainly one of the best in the bang for your buck category. I have a handful of other brushes I prefer for face lathering, but plenty of shavers happily face lather with the SOC.
I think the SOC boar is one of the finest bowl brushes available, and certainly one of the best in the bang for your buck category. I have a handful of other brushes I prefer for face lathering, but plenty of shavers happily face lather with the SOC.
to each their own, and there is certainly some variation between batches, but my current favorite is the Proraso Pro (by Omega) boar. A lovely combination of backbone, softness and scrub. Yeah, the handle is cheap chromed plastic, but at least it is comfortable, if you've got big paws like me.
Took about 5 shaves to break in really well. the best five and a half euros I have ever spent last summer in Italy (I recently got a TGF wild hog, that has exactly the same dimensions, except the handle is not chromed. and wow, is it scritchy, ohyeah. I'm trying to break it in by palm lathering every other day. fingers crossed, but I might just toss it if it doesn't come around)
Took about 5 shaves to break in really well. the best five and a half euros I have ever spent last summer in Italy
(I recently got a TGF wild hog, that has exactly the same dimensions, except the handle is not chromed. and wow, is it scritchy, ohyeah. I'm trying to break it in by palm lathering every other day. fingers crossed, but I might just toss it if it doesn't come around)- Thread starter
- #16
I picked up the boar and mixed knot brushes for variety. I am sure they will improve with use, but right out of the box I was happy with the performance. With the boar not holding enough soap for a second pass because it was more an observation than a complaint. I have enjoyed my badger Semogue SOC for over a decade, and the boar and mixed SOC brushes are very nice!
I really like the look of that SOC boar in butterscotch.
I discovered this thread late, but I think there is more to what you ask here than what has been addressed so far. It's not just that the brush gets softer with use. It will also get denser. This is because the bristle keep splitting still more. It takes a lot of use, but eventually your 5 € natural bristle boar will feel as dense as a 150€ two-band badger. Be patient, this won't happen overnight, but your boar brush will keep getting better, and still better. I don't know that this is true for any other kind of shaving brush but boars.
One pass is enough (for me).
I never subscribed to the concept that a single charge of the brush should last through all passes.
B.
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