Shedding Problem With Saville Row Brush

[tiohn]

So have I have a Saville Row silvertip brush that I purchased from QED back in January of 2010. Since then, I've used the brush no more than 50 times because I kept a beard for most of that time for various reasons (the main one being laziness). A month or two ago, I decided that I was done with the beard for a while and started shaving regularly again. Unfortunately, my brush has started shedding anywhere from 3 to 6 hairs every time I use it. It had never shed outside of the first couple of times I used it until this most recent bout of shaving. It did stop for a few days after I took some time to shampoo and condition it, but then started shedding again.

Is there something I've been/am doing incorrectly? Even when I wasn't using it regularly, it lived atop the bathroom counter near the sink, handle down, just like I've always stored every other brush I've owned, none of which I've had similar problems with.

Halp!

 

[Foyle]

Are they full length hairs coming loose from the knot or are they shorter than full length indicating broken hairs?

 

[tiohn]

Some of both, in about equal measure.

 

[Foyle]

Hmmm... well there's a lot of factors that come into play. Of soap is left in the brush it will break down the hairs and damage them causing them the break off. Broken hairs can also be an indication that too much pressure is applied to the brush during lathering.

The usual advice when a brush sheds is to shampoo the brush and then let it dry thoroughly, maybe a couple of days. Then, use a wide comb and comb out all the loose hairs. It could be that you just have some loose hairs in the knot that are just starting to work their way loose now. If the comb-out procedure doesn't work you could be facing a brush with a damaged or defective knot. Call the vendor, I assume Charles at QED, and see if there is any warranty recourse.

According to what you've said about how it was stored I don't see any fault there. It was stored out in the open air. If you had put it away in an enclosed space wet for a prolonged period I could see that brush having wet-rotted, but I don't think you've mis-stored the brush.

Some brushes shed what seems like a lot of hairs at first, sometimes it takes a bit for the loose hairs to start coming out. I'd be more worried if you were losing dozens of hairs at a time, or if they were coming out in big clumps. This article may be helpful to you.

http://www.shaving101.com/index.php...sh-basics/80-the-facts-on-brush-shedding.html

 

[tiohn]

Thanks! I'll try to comb it and see how that goes. I've contacted QED about the issue a few times in last several weeks, not about warranty coverage, but simply with the same questions I asked here. Alas, I received no response, so I assume I'm SOOL if it is a defective knot.

 

[Foyle]

That's disappointing. You'd think he's at least respond.

 

[craig87c]

I had a shedding SR3226. Charles had me do exactly what Foyle suggested then replaced the brush at his cost. No muss, no fuss.

 

[tiohn]

I gave it a good combing earlier and didn't remove anything. We'll see how the next few shaves go.

 

[tiohn]

The last three shaves have shed 5, 6, and 12 (!) bristles each, all full length. Still no response from Q.E.D. Is it unreasonable of me to expect someone from there to respond to my questions?

 

[Greg1911]

Still no response from Q.E.D. Is it unreasonable of me to expect someone from there to respond to my questions?

Not unreasonable at all.

 

[tiohn]

For anyone paying attention, Charles did finally get back to me and has been very helpful. It sounded like there were some extenuating circumstances that caused the delay.