Anybody else shampooing and conditioning their natural shave brushes? I am a synthetic brush convert nowadays; however, I still have a couple older brushes that need maintained. I use ivory shampoo to remove the scent from previous shave soaps and the knot build up from tallow based soaps. What are you using and frequency?
Natural Shave Brush Cleaning
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How much buildup are you seeing?
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In my case, once you look inspect closely down from the upper loft (down from the dark bands).
For cleaning out buildup, the Wiki section offers this. How to clean a shaving brush
I've used the vinegar soak a few times in the past, but only on brushes that were densely packed and difficult to rinse well. Usually, all I need is a drop of dish soap which I palm lather then rinse off.
During the dry months, I will deep clean only as needed. When the rains come, I will deep clean monthly just as a precaution. It doesn't matter if the brush is synthetic or natural hair. I'm more worried about humidity breeding mold/fungus rather than soap/cream depositing residue within the knot's core.
I've used the vinegar soak a few times in the past, but only on brushes that were densely packed and difficult to rinse well. Usually, all I need is a drop of dish soap which I palm lather then rinse off.
During the dry months, I will deep clean only as needed. When the rains come, I will deep clean monthly just as a precaution. It doesn't matter if the brush is synthetic or natural hair. I'm more worried about humidity breeding mold/fungus rather than soap/cream depositing residue within the knot's core.
Thank you for posting this! It's just come up for me after using a particularly strong soap (darkfall anyone?) with my boar brush. I'm going to try a bit of dish soap and see what happens.
Maybe I’m odd. I never wash any of my 20+ shave brushes. I figure the shave soap does it for me.
What I do is simply rinse the brush, squeeze out all the unused Lather, than rub the brush in circles under the water with the palm of my hand.
Than I take the brush and kind of shake it out a couple times (in the shower, so I don’t make a mess), than give it a few swirls on a clean towel.
I have some brushes that are 10 years old and have no buildup issues. Never noticed a smell from the previous shave. Unless you’re using Arko or Derby shave sticks (I hate that stuff).
As always, YMMV.
What I do is simply rinse the brush, squeeze out all the unused Lather, than rub the brush in circles under the water with the palm of my hand.
Than I take the brush and kind of shake it out a couple times (in the shower, so I don’t make a mess), than give it a few swirls on a clean towel.
I have some brushes that are 10 years old and have no buildup issues. Never noticed a smell from the previous shave. Unless you’re using Arko or Derby shave sticks (I hate that stuff).
As always, YMMV.
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I've used Johnson's in the past and it will work.
I do the same but my water hardness and product choices can catch up with me. I limit "deep cleaning" to an as needed thing. Very thorough rinsing after use goes a long way towards making it less necessary to deep clean.
I usually will use a few drops of clarifying shampoo every few months. I have used dish soap like Joy or Dawn. There is also a special disinfectant cleaner called Ship-Shape usually sold to barbers you can use.
Has anyone tried PAA's brush cleaning soap?
A Chubby 2 Super is the only brush I’ve had that’s needed it. The knot is too big and dense to dry effectively on its own. After a while it started to develop a smell reminiscent of an old dishcloth. Just at the base of the knot.
A couple of cleans got it smelling good again. I now give my Chubby’s a quick post-shave blast with a hairdryer to help them along with drying.
1. Diluted vinegar soak
2. Rinse
3. Diluted baking soda soak
4. Rinse
5. Lather with Eucalyptus Wool Wash
6. Rinse, shake, dry
A couple of cleans got it smelling good again. I now give my Chubby’s a quick post-shave blast with a hairdryer to help them along with drying.
1. Diluted vinegar soak
2. Rinse
3. Diluted baking soda soak
4. Rinse
5. Lather with Eucalyptus Wool Wash
6. Rinse, shake, dry
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I expect I'm lucky, as I've never felt any need to clean my brushes, which are mostly badger...and one boar.
As I rinse them out thoroughly after use, shake out all the loose water and fan out the loft, they've never attracted any mould, developed any odour, or shown any build-up.
One should never squeeze the brush or dry it with a towel because such rough treatment eventually results in loss of bristles on the outside. Similarly, leaving a natural brush wet or soapy results in loss of bristles throughout from rot at the base. I always use a brush holder where the loft is hung down or stored laterally, in a well-ventilated room.
One of my badger brushes is over 20 years old and despite almost daily usage it still looks and performs virtually like new, with no discernable loss of body or bristles.
My brushes will retain faintly the scent of the current soap I am using, but there's no avoiding that, short of washing.
My sense is that a mild shampoo should perform well and do no harm...but washing up liquid?
These bristles are animal hair.
Would you wash your hair with dish soap?
What about a £250 Plisson silvertip?
As I rinse them out thoroughly after use, shake out all the loose water and fan out the loft, they've never attracted any mould, developed any odour, or shown any build-up.
One should never squeeze the brush or dry it with a towel because such rough treatment eventually results in loss of bristles on the outside. Similarly, leaving a natural brush wet or soapy results in loss of bristles throughout from rot at the base. I always use a brush holder where the loft is hung down or stored laterally, in a well-ventilated room.
One of my badger brushes is over 20 years old and despite almost daily usage it still looks and performs virtually like new, with no discernable loss of body or bristles.
My brushes will retain faintly the scent of the current soap I am using, but there's no avoiding that, short of washing.
My sense is that a mild shampoo should perform well and do no harm...but washing up liquid?
These bristles are animal hair.
Would you wash your hair with dish soap?
What about a £250 Plisson silvertip?
I'm so new to this game I'm just a sponge soaking up information. Add to that..... I only have 3 synthetic brushes... one of which is so much better than the other two, both in the handle design and the feel on my face. It has G4 fibers, which I absolutely love.
The fear for me is.... will it wear out eventually? I have no idea what the lifespan of a synthetic brush is. With badger or boar brushes, you can pretty much guarantee you'll be able to replace a knot if you need to. Or buy another brush of the same design, etc. I take good care of all of my brushes after use. I flick them on a soft towel before I store them for the next use. They are always dry when I start since I only shave every other day and I rotate them sequentially.
With synthetics..... do the knots come and go or will I be able to buy a G4 brush into the future? I'm already considering buying an addition ECS Ultimate G4 brush as a back-up because of my own ignorance. They aren't cheap.. hence my hesitation.
The fear for me is.... will it wear out eventually? I have no idea what the lifespan of a synthetic brush is. With badger or boar brushes, you can pretty much guarantee you'll be able to replace a knot if you need to. Or buy another brush of the same design, etc. I take good care of all of my brushes after use. I flick them on a soft towel before I store them for the next use. They are always dry when I start since I only shave every other day and I rotate them sequentially.
With synthetics..... do the knots come and go or will I be able to buy a G4 brush into the future? I'm already considering buying an addition ECS Ultimate G4 brush as a back-up because of my own ignorance. They aren't cheap.. hence my hesitation.
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I don’t have a G4 but from what I’ve seen, synthetics are getting better (and more affordable) as the years progress. The G4 might be able eclipsed by an improved product in a few years or it might still be offered. Hard to tell.
I will say that synthetics can last a while. I recently retired one that was used and abused for 7 plus years as my only brush. It still works but the current generation of the same material is significantly better.
I don’t have a G4 but from what I’ve seen, synthetics are getting better (and more affordable) as the years progress. The G4 might be able eclipsed by an improved product in a few years or it might still be offered. Hard to tell.
I will say that synthetics can last a while. I recently retired one that was used and abused for 7 plus years as my only brush. It still works but the current generation of the same material is significantly better.
Thank you for your response.
I never clean my brushes, natural or synthetic. Our shaving soap cleans the brush every time I shave. It is soap after all. Rinse well and let dry is all you really need. I should note the only brush I ever cleaned was a vintage Victoria badger brush I purchased at an antique store -- a drop of shampoo, palm lathered and a good rinse and it was ready.
The way I see it is unless a brush is really funky there is no need to do a deep clean.
On a friend's suggestion, I bought one of these to try. Used it once and it rinsed out easily and left the hairs feeling clean. This is one of the soaps that DaVinci makes and recommends in their brush care instructions.
Hello Possum, good to see you! To answer your question, for new brushes, I shampoo them to get the stench out of the badger hair. This is what I will be doing for my new brush thats on its way to me BTW. As far as further cleaning, I don't think its necessary, shave soap keeps them clean, just got to rinse them out really good after in the water, to get the soap out of them. Don't want to leave soap in the knotts!
This got me thinking. What if one were to use a hair dryer to insure that the brush gets dry? Keep in mind, hair dryers were invented to dry real hair, well, badger hair is real hair too, not synthetic. So I'd assume, that a hair dryer would work great. Also, I have one of those Panasonic hair dryers, the fancy ones with the ion emitters, supposed to prevent split ends I think. Either way, to insure completely dry, to prevent mold and mildew, I'd assume a hair dryer would work indeed.
Hairdryers definitely do work. I use them on brushes when travelling if I need to pack up to leave a hotel room. I also use them to dry my large diameter Simpson Chubby’s that take too long to dry naturally. I use a medium heat. I’ve been doing this for a while and haven’t noticed any issues.
Hmmmm I'm not telling you how to look after your brushes, but for the ones who say the shaving soap cleans the brush are soooo wrong. Once you have shaved do you clean the sink out or not, if not the ring around the sink is the soap scum and you have the same in your brush.
That is the cause of brushes shedding hairs, when the brush is bone dry run your hand over the bristles and watch. As you will see a dust cloud that is the dry soap in the knot, once that builds up it starts to rot the hair at the glue bump because it turns into an acid. For this reason, I wash my brushes after every use with a makeup brush cleaner as it removes all the greasy fats in the base of the knot.
So think when you say you never wash your brush after using it, what is around your sink after a shave is also in your brush when it drys.
Then they say they have a defective brush when in fact it's your neglect for not cleaning it and taking care of it. and do you wash your razor because they suffer from the same scum on them over time? that cannot be rinsed off under the faucet.
It could also add to a poor lather as well just a thought.
That is the cause of brushes shedding hairs, when the brush is bone dry run your hand over the bristles and watch. As you will see a dust cloud that is the dry soap in the knot, once that builds up it starts to rot the hair at the glue bump because it turns into an acid. For this reason, I wash my brushes after every use with a makeup brush cleaner as it removes all the greasy fats in the base of the knot.
So think when you say you never wash your brush after using it, what is around your sink after a shave is also in your brush when it drys.
Then they say they have a defective brush when in fact it's your neglect for not cleaning it and taking care of it. and do you wash your razor because they suffer from the same scum on them over time? that cannot be rinsed off under the faucet.
It could also add to a poor lather as well just a thought.
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