What's new

Muhle silvertip badger, Traditional

IMAGES AT THE BOTTOM.

And in advance, i am sorry for what could be crowned as the week's most messy post.

TOO LONG DIDNT READ:
water repellent properties at the base? Water getting caught?
Simvertip feels impossible to clean.

NO NOT TOO LONG I LOVE TO READ:
My first silvertip. Had the money and wanted to see how it would work compared to regular badger.

I lather in a bowl. First time was extremely astonishing, the way it created that lather sodamn quick and in such ammounts, by just resting on its own weight.
But i quickly realized some of the outer hairs acted strange. 10-15 hairs grouping up, pointing steaight sideways and not acting in unison with the rest of the knot.

After shave i noticed the whole knot, from the base/handle and 7mm towards thw dark section, did not get wet what so ever. A few soaks and it remained. Extremely hydrophobic. Covering itself in pockets of air.

I feared something would take damage in the long run and i guess its starting now?
Hairs are shedding, but not getting out of thebrush. So they stay in there tangling up other hairs untill they eventually get combed out and seriously being as limp as an overboiled glass noodle.
I kept inspecting the hairs every time i used it and afterwards, because the scewnt of prosuct was so extremely strong. Now it smells of very concentrated captain fawcett shaving cream while dry, and vinegar when wet.

And so it appeared, that damn residue.


Residue that is impossible to remove by running water.
I tried dish soap
I tried vinegar. Nothing.
While its wet, if i touch it with fingertips, my fingers get this sensation you get if you touched some atrong adhesive 5 hours ago and still feel that anti-slippery coating.

Now its taking longer to dry, more than a day to remove reach its original weight.
(25 degrees and below 30 RH in bathroom)

While just trying to seperate the lowest part of the knot to check for captured moisture, i felt something was a bit off with the whole area. So i took a chance and twisted the knot. There its confirmed,i have a replacable-knot-model, cool. But the knot was so loose i used no force whar so ever to untwist it. And i found water below. And even more water below there.

Should this design really let water/moisrure enter while not letting it escape?
Should i contact muhle? Or is this a classic consumer error?This brush gave me a headache just one month in.

Adding a picrure of below the epoxy, some strange wavey patterns on one side.

Also adding demonstration of maximum pressure im using if that would be of questioning.

Oh, and i dont rinse above 40 celcius. Got a neat little thermometer in the kit.
1000011243.jpg
1000011251.jpg
1000011253.jpg
1000011252.jpg
1000011254.jpg
1000011255.jpg
1000011256.jpg
 
You said a lot of different things there. I’ll give some opinion(s) but not 100% sure if it is what you are asking for!

1 - I wouldn’t want water to be retained in any handle I have. I don’t own that one and not sure of the design and if that is somehow normal or not.

2 - I am wondering if that weird tactile feeling you are having is some processed tips that stay weirdly soft and almost slimy - this is common when the tips are processed and bleached and some call gel tips.

3 - the brush should wet. Not sure what is making it hydrophobic other than oils or build up of soap perhaps? Don’t be afraid to turn the brush up when cleaning and make sure you are cleaning inside the knot. I don’t use vinegar ever so I can help with that part. But it should not be hydrophobic.
 
I have this brush but, I inherited it… so, I’m not sure about its history however, IMO it’s a superior brush. My guess is that it’s fairly new because of how densely packed the knot is. Yes, some hairs are lost but, it’s densely packed, and will probably continue to do so. I expect that in just about any new brush. I saw that I can take it apart but, why bother. I hang my brushes upside down to dry, and have no issues. I may consider getting the STF knot that is available from Mühle. I think you should just keep using it and see how it develops. My guess is that it will become your favorite brush, and stop taking it apart. 😛
 
It is not uncommon for a new badger brush to be very hydrophobic. I have had a few. It may help to shampoo it a few times with Dawn, but if you just use it and rinse it well each time, it will eventually be everything you expect it to be. It just takes time on some of them to completely rid itself of its natural water resistance.
 
Congratulations on your first Silvertip Badger. I have a couple of comments and recommendations regarding your problems.

It is normal for a silver tip badger to not be in unison as you have put it. That may happen if you exert too much pressure while bowl lathering, part of the knot just goes the other way. Reduce pressure and don't mash the knot in the bowl, there's also no need for splaying as that pressure may weaken fibers. It is also normal for silver tip badgers and badgers in general to sometimes have a few hairs standing to the side. If that persists you can try two things: when dry use the carton of a toilet paper roll and put the roll over the brush covering the knot. Leave it for a day or so. The second is to use a rubber band and carefully wrap it around the knot. Only leave it for a few hours and only do that when the knot is dry.

Silvertip badger is slightly water repellent at the beginning, there's definitely a resistance to take up water. Some of the badger oils may still be on the fibers and may cause that effect. It should diminish with use.

Shedding at the beginning is normal, however you shouldn't lose more than 1 or 2 bristles for the first 2-3 shaves. That is usually caused due to single bristles not being glued in when the knot is set. That is normal and isn't a cause for concern. However, if your brush is consistently losing large amounts of hair during every shave, the knot has a problem.

Badger hair has a distinctive smell and the brush may smell for about a week or so, that should dissipate with each use. It's not as bad as boar, but it'll smell like a wet dog for a while.

You have only slight residue on the base of the knot. It's very faint and not yet built up. When you rinse the knot, hold it knot down and let the water go from above (top-down rinsing). Use your fingers to gently distribute the water in the knot, removing the lather. When it is thoroughly rinsed give it a few short squeezes like milking a cow, don't wring the knot. You can shake excess water out a bit, but gently. Don't towel strop, as it might break the tips. Let it dry with the knot facing up or down or at 30 degrees, it really doesn't matter. Drying time may be 1-2 days. You'll feel some dampness inside the knot for maybe 1 day. Let the brush dry completely, use your synthetic brush in the meantime. You don't want mildew to develop inside the knot.

Do NOT use dish washer, vinegar or shampoo to clean your brush. It's not necessary. You're cleaning your knot every time you lather with shaving cream or soap. If you want to get rid of badger smell, lather up with a shaving soap, discard the lather and rinse the knot as described above. That's all you have to do.

Mühle knots aren't treated or processed at all, you shouldn't feel any stickiness. There brushes aren't gel-tipped. In gel-tipping your knot would feel very coarse, almost like Velcro, when dry. But it would feel very soft and mushy when wet. When wet the bristles would clump together in groups and single bristles would have a hook shape on the tips. When cleaning a gel-tipped brush it would feel like there's tons of soap or cream in the knot, when there really isn't - that's the gel feeling. Gel-tipping is achieved by dipping the tips of the knot in bleach for a few seconds. That dissolves the outer layer of the bristles making the tips very soft.

Most Mühle brushes nowadays have replaceable knots. Usually there isn't a need to screw out the knot, unless for handle maintenance or when replacing a knot. Unfortunately you disassembled the whole brush and it's unlikely that Mühle is going to replace your brush. However, you might be in luck with the knot. The epoxy in the knot housing (the black plastic ring with the thread) should be completely level. The fact that you have "waves" in there might explain the issues you've been having with bristles falling out and standing awkward to the sides and water getting into the handle. That should not happen. I would send Mühle an email with a photo of your knot and ask if they would send you a replacement knot.

I hope that helps a bit in your journey into Silvertip Badgers. I have also attached a picture of my own Mühle STB to illustrate how the knot should look like. As you can see the brush has a few sideway stragglers. There's a bit of soap residue on the threads, but it can be easily cleaned and the epoxy is completely level. This brush is about 2 years old now and is just starting to really work well. I only remove the knot when I polish the Ebonite handle, as I don't want any polish to get into the knot.

IMG_7310.jpeg
 
You said a lot of different things there. I’ll give some opinion(s) but not 100% sure if it is what you are asking for!

1 - I wouldn’t want water to be retained in any handle I have. I don’t own that one and not sure of the design and if that is somehow normal or not.

2 - I am wondering if that weird tactile feeling you are having is some processed tips that stay weirdly soft and almost slimy - this is common when the tips are processed and bleached and some call gel tips.

3 - the brush should wet. Not sure what is making it hydrophobic other than oils or build up of soap perhaps? Don’t be afraid to turn the brush up when cleaning and make sure you are cleaning inside the knot. I don’t use vinegar ever so I can help with that part. But it should not be hydrophobic.
1 - who knows. Cant say i like the way they build the design..

2-that could be it! Not only the tip though, its the entire strand. But glad to know its a known phenomenon. Google couldn't help me what so ever.

3 - since the base of the knot repelled the water from the start, im leaning more about the posibility of residue from the adhesive or epoxy.

Did another cleanup, this time i lathered the dishsoap in a bowl to get in deep, then did the unthinkable of brushing the towel the opposite of painter stroke. The bloom is almost competely horizontal. My son thought it was a mushroom haha. After 10-12 hours it still weight 9 grams over the original wright, and the area around the epoxy is still cool. We'll see later when im home from work.
 
even after 5 years, my Omega silvertip would FLOAT in the soaking bowl. Always took time to get wet, but when a silver tip gets wet, its stays wet.

most shaving brush cleaners you find are mainly vinegar.

when ever ive cleaned my brushes, its been soak for at least half hour in warm water thats no more then half vwhite vinegar. with a little dawn in it. and do some hand lathering with it. Smells funky, feels "oily" but it gets clean.

Best to use a little shampoo with a conditioner after words.
 
Top Bottom