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Question on boar brushes and face-lathering.

The best tip I read somewhere about soaking boar brushes was: put it on hot water, count till 4 and use it. I can guarantee that my boar brushes now are being used more.
 
The best tip I read somewhere about soaking boar brushes was: put it on hot water, count till 4 and use it. I can guarantee that my boar brushes now are being used more.

So you think hot water makes a difference? I would be afraid to damage the bristles.
 
No. I am saying this is the quickest way to prepare your boar brushes for soap loading. It might help in your case.

In this thread I'm talking about using a boar brush with a shave stick only. The brush doesn't seem to hold enough soap for 2 passes.
 
I am breaking in a new bleached 18mm boar knot (from The Golden Nib) in a vintage Ever-Ready handle, second use today. Lofted short to emphasize scrub. I used an Arko stick and applied heavily.

View attachment 1301016

Normally, after a heavy application of Arko I would be washing away lots of unused lather at the end of the shave. Today, pass 2 was skimpy and I had to apply more Arko, lightly, to get lather for my trouble spot pass 3 work. The knot felt soapy as I gave it a final rinse, but there were no bubbles to be seen.

I noticed that the knot ate more lather as the passes went along. My personal opinion is that boars have some anti-lather substance (an oil?) that releases slowly and just takes time to wash away.

Hair splitting will no doubt change lather making and retention qualities, but I think that the direct disappearance of lather that has been built is a bio-chemical thing. The shed lather in my brush scuttle disappears too.

I have lots of boars. Even a 50 year old NOS boar knot will eat lather. Surprisingly, bleached versus unbleached knots need similar amounts of break-in.

I do not treat my boars to break them in, other than building lathers that I simply wash down the drain. I expect 20 or more full shave latherings before a boar completely stops eating lather. I can't get that by simply lathering 20 times in a row, so I suppose the substance in the knot breaks down/releases only over time, not just from soap exposure.

Once fully broken in you can splay, scrub, paint, whatever your knot configuration will support. The lather eating will be entirely gone. Until then, keep the shave stick handy and apply as needed.

That boar of yours is a beauty!
I've found that the cycles of absorbing water followed by thoroughly drying to be what progressed the break in process. People think it's all about split tips when that's only one variable among multiple factors. I'd use my girlfriend's hair dryer to help the process along.
 
I've found that the cycles of absorbing water followed by thoroughly drying to be what progressed the break in process. People think it's all about split tips when that's only one variable among multiple factors. I'd use my girlfriend's hair dryer to help the process along.

I think that seems to be the best way the natural wetting and drying process. As you said in your other post, a boar will never make lather as easy as a synthetic brush but I see a lot of guys here say they have no problem getting 2 or even 3 passes using a boar brush with a shave stick. I just can't seem to get a good second pass right now using a stick.
 
I haven't read this post in any great detail, but I'm one of those few who get 3 (even 4) passes with a boar brush. I own many boar brushes, but I have the Omega Proraso Pro Boar brush in mind as I'm typing this, since that's the brush I used today.

1. Use much more soap than you think you need. Like really cake it on your face initially, till you dial in how much soap is actually needed. This might require dipping the tip of the shave stick in the hot water in the sink a few times as you rub it on your face, so that the heat actually softens the soap enough to allow enough of it to be rubbed on to your face
2. Soak the brush in hot water for a few minutes - 5 minutes or so. I can get by with a quick 15 second swirl in my sink, but initially a decent soak will go a long way.
3. Use much more water for the lather than you think you need. Now, this can be done by leaving a lot of water in the knot as you begin to face lather, but that's more of an "expert" approach and I don't recommend it for you given your post above. The way to do it is by dipping the tips of the bristles into water frequently as you build the face later. Note that if you have really used as much soap as I'm recommending you do in step 1, then this step can result in pasty dry goop on your face if you haven't used enough water. If dry goop develops, just dribble water into your knot using your fingers and keep going.

Note that the brush you use will affect how much soap and water is needed, but I can get at least 3 passes even from my small Omega 10051. That said, it's not a big deal to just quickly rub the stick on your face between passes too.
Note that with a small brush, you should use less soap in step 1 than you would for a giant of a brush like a 10049, say.

I'd suggest you pick your favorite brush, your favorite shave stick (mine is Tabac) and stay with the combination till you can confidently say - I got this :)
 
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Plenty of soap will get on your face even if you shave everyday. It's all in the bristles. I have no problem with my synthetics. Maybe when it breaks in more.

View attachment 1300951
Ahhh okay. Small knot, not broken in bristles and small shave stick. Also transitioning from synthetic brushes to boar

I think my reply above this one was on point.

WAY more soap than you think you need initially.
 
I haven't read this post in any great detail, but I'm one of those few who get 3 (even 4) passes with a boar brush. I own many boar brushes, but I have the Omega Proraso Pro Boar brush in mind as I'm typing this, since that's the brush I used today.

I'd suggest you pick your favorite brush, your favorite shave stick (mine is Tabac) and stay with the combination till you can confidently say - I got this :)

I have mastered using a stick, as long as I use a synthetic brush with it. I will try as you said, loading my face really heavy and lots of water also. I do that now even with my synthetics, I go back and add water to my pasty mix. Works great.
Thanks for the tip I'll give it a shot.
 
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So you think hot water makes a difference? I would be afraid to damage the bristles.
No damage done to boar bristles by water that's hot enough for you to put on your face. Just the same temperature as you'd comfortably wash your face with (maybe a little hotter than that) will be fine
 
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