The Italian boar appreciation thread (Omega, Zenith, Mondial, Koh-I-Noor, ABC, etc)

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

View attachment 887524 View attachment 887525

I got in touch with Thater, I tracked them down and called them directly and asked them. I did this because when i got the brush and used it about 5 times the boar hairs were really sharp on the ends, about 30% of the hairs felt like i was scrubbing my face with fishing line or plastic hairs. So you can imagine i just spent $90 bucks which is about 130 Australian dollars on a boar brush and I was not happy about it so I ended up contacting Bullgoose where i purchased it from and they were also surprised by what i had to say but could not give me any specific answers...so i went to the manufacturer and they explained why the hairs were prickly ( the hairs they choose is natural white from a specific part of the boar which is from the neck, top of the head and ears...apparently these are the areas where the boar hair is of the highest quality and consistent with the actual hair/fiber diameter. The hairs are not bleached they go through a 2 process washing and drying without any other processing so that the fibers/hairs are the most natural you can get. Apparently by doing this the brush will last a lifetime and the fibers will become so soft that you will not be able to tell the difference between a badger and boar when face lathering). They recommended 6 weeks of daily use and by then the brush will become silky smooth...they also offered a refund if i was not happy after 6 weeks. I will be keeping my brush because what they said has come true for me, the brush is silky smooth and it's an absolute joy to use.

Super helpful post for me.

You really went the extra mile. Thanks for sharing this detailed information. I will continue breaking in my Thater, although I will be not using it until it's soft, and hope it responds as yours did. I don't know how you used the brush if yours was as prickly as mine is, but congratulations on the break in, and thanks so much for the information.

I'm glad to hear Thater backed it up. Good business practice to offer a refund if you're not happy + the right thing to do.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[shave/brush]

View attachment 887524 View attachment 887525

I got in touch with Thater, I tracked them down and called them directly and asked them. I did this because when i got the brush and used it about 5 times the boar hairs were really sharp on the ends, about 30% of the hairs felt like i was scrubbing my face with fishing line or plastic hairs. So you can imagine i just spent $90 bucks which is about 130 Australian dollars on a boar brush and I was not happy about it so I ended up contacting Bullgoose where i purchased it from and they were also surprised by what i had to say but could not give me any specific answers...so i went to the manufacturer and they explained why the hairs were prickly ( the hairs they choose is natural white from a specific part of the boar which is from the neck, top of the head and ears...apparently these are the areas where the boar hair is of the highest quality and consistent with the actual hair/fiber diameter. The hairs are not bleached they go through a 2 process washing and drying without any other processing so that the fibers/hairs are the most natural you can get. Apparently by doing this the brush will last a lifetime and the fibers will become so soft that you will not be able to tell the difference between a badger and boar when face lathering). They recommended 6 weeks of daily use and by then the brush will become silky smooth...they also offered a refund if i was not happy after 6 weeks. I will be keeping my brush because what they said has come true for me, the brush is silky smooth and it's an absolute joy to use.

Thanks for sharing all that good info. Nice to know how it was made.

 

[Tony1961]

Super helpful post for me.

You really went the extra mile. Thanks for sharing this detailed information. I will continue breaking in my Thater, although I will be not using it until it's soft, and hope it responds as yours did. I don't know how you used the brush if yours was as prickly as mine is, but congratulations on the break in, and thanks so much for the information.

I'm glad to hear Thater backed it up. Good business practice to offer a refund if you're not happy + the right thing to do.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Im glad it helped you Whilst i was breaking it in I would hand lather every day as part of the break in process and then after each week i would do a face lather...and by the fourth week i could feel the prickly and sharp hairs have been broken in.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Im glad it helped you Whilst i was breaking it in I would hand lather every day as part of the break in process and then after each week i would do a face lather...and by the fourth week i could feel the prickly and sharp hairs have been broken in.

Ah, more really good information. Thanks. Good plan.

 

[GarageBoy]

How do you get them to not break bristles and shed? Am I lathering too hard?

 

[Cino]

How do you get them to not break bristles and shed? Am I lathering too hard?

Maybe. Could be a crappy brush. Soak it for ~5 minutes before use. Don't press too hard. I normally don't press the brush any more than half the loft, usually less. Be sure to rinse it thoroughly (until water it's clear) after use and let it dry overnight in the open.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

How do you get them to not break bristles and shed? Am I lathering too hard?

I'm assuming you mean Italian boar brushes. If so, I make sure I soak my brushes (while I'm in the shower).

Other than that and a complete rinse after I use the brush I don't do anything. I splay as much as I want, but mostly I paint with the brush. Not that I don't like the scrub because I do. My brushes are not remotely babied. I ride them hard and put them away wet.

My brushes are not exposed to water any hotter than I would expose my skin and scalp to.

What brushes are you having problems with? Mine don't shed or get broken bristles.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[GarageBoy]

It's with a cast resin Omega - I haven't been soaking - maybe the problem - I have hairs stuck in my cella...

 

[shave/brush]

It's with a cast resin Omega - I haven't been soaking - maybe the problem - I have hairs stuck in my cella...

Boar brushes have to be soaked for at least 2 minutes in warm water before each shave. That is probably your problem. Buy a new brush (there are cheap enough) and start again.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Boar brushes have to be soaked for at least 2 minutes in warm water before each shave. That is probably your problem. Buy a new brush (there are cheap enough) and start again.

Soaked, yes. Water, yes. Warm? Nah.

Cold water works just fine.

 

[Cino]

Cold water was made for boars

 

[rudyt]

Boar brushes have to be soaked for at least 2 minutes in warm water before each shave. That is probably your problem. Buy a new brush (there are cheap enough) and start again.

Boar brushes do NOT have to be soaked - that's yet another Internet shaving myth. To soak or not is a personal preference and nothing more.

I use boars 90%of the time and have yet to throw away a brush. I just give my brush a thorough wetting under running water for about 15-20 seconds, then start loading. I like to mash the brush and do circles, and have not seen any shedding or broken bristles after many years of use. My most used brush, Semogue 620, has over 500 shaves on it and has never lost a hair.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Boar brushes do NOT have to be soaked - that's yet another Internet shaving myth. To soak or not is a personal preference and nothing more.

I use boars 90%of the time and have yet to throw away a brush. I just give my brush a thorough wetting under running water for about 15-20 seconds, then start loading. I like to mash the brush and do circles, and have not seen any shedding or broken bristles after many years of use. My most used brush, Semogue 620, has over 500 shaves on it and has never lost a hair.

How do you get them to not break bristles and shed? Am I lathering too hard?

I soak all my brushes. They don't have to be soaked, even boars, but boars do have to be quite wet.

There was information published a while back where someone soaked boars for various amounts of time, and weighed them to see when in time the optimum or maximum amount of water had been absorbed. I believe it was in the one to two minute range. It doesn't hurt to soak longer.

As long as the bristles aren't breaking and the lather is good who cares? Not me. I soak all my brushes but that's just me and my way of doing it. If the bristles are breaking and/or too many hairs are being lost it could be a dud brush or it could be not enough bristle hydration.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[GarageBoy]

Thanks, there's been less than 10 shaves under this brush

 

[JimDandy]

This thread has inspired me to add more Boar to my rotation. I have been very, very happy with my Semogue 1800. It gets heavy use, and has held up well and is getting very soft after a year.

Granted, I lean unabashedly towards the economical end of the brush spectrum, hovering in the Yaqi, Vie-Long, Ferdinand, Omega camp. I’m a big bowl lather guy, and I have accumulated some harder soaps, so Boar brushes make a lot of sense to me. I find Badger (albeit only Pure grade in my collection) to be just as pleasing but sometimes just a tad too much work with some hard soaps. The synths I’ve tried have pretty handles, but leave me wanting more backbone, or at the opposite end - like 320 grit.

In considering my next brush, I was hovering between a Zenith Kotibe wood and a Mondial (faux) Tortoise.

The Mondial won - for now. I just ordered one. I suspect a Zenith will follow shortly, then maybe an Omega - just to sample all of ‘the big players’ in the Boar game.

Thank you all of the great suggestions and appreciations posted here. They have undoubtedly influenced me. This discussion is old by thread standards, but still informative.

 

[maclean3]

This thread has inspired me to add more Boar to my rotation. I have been very, very happy with my Semogue 1800. It gets heavy use, and has held up well and is getting very soft after a year.

Granted, I lean unabashedly towards the economical end of the brush spectrum, hovering in the Yaqi, Vie-Long, Ferdinand, Omega camp. I’m a big bowl lather guy, and I have accumulated some harder soaps, so Boar brushes make a lot of sense to me. I find Badger (albeit only Pure grade in my collection) to be just as pleasing but sometimes just a tad too much work with some hard soaps. The synths I’ve tried have pretty handles, but leave me wanting more backbone, or at the opposite end - like 320 grit.

In considering my next brush, I was hovering between a Zenith Kotibe wood and a Mondial (faux) Tortoise.

The Mondial won - for now. I just ordered one. I suspect a Zenith will follow shortly, then maybe an Omega - just to sample all of ‘the big players’ in the Boar game.

Thank you all of the great suggestions and appreciations posted here. They have undoubtedly influenced me. This discussion is old by thread standards, but still informative.

My only example of Semogue boar is the SOC Cherry handle, it was very nice out of the box but after a thorough break-in it lacked the backbone and scrub that I prefer. I recently added two, #18 O-rings at the base of the knot to improve the backbone, it helped some but it's still a bit weak for my preference.

My lone Omega is a 10098 that I broke in at the same time as my SOC boar (a full 90 lather process). It builds a nice lather and has better backbone than the SOC but at 27mm, it's a bit large for my taste. I'd originally intended to use it as a neck duster after my haircuts and it works very well in that capacity, it currently lives in my clipper kit. I had considered buying a '49 Pro, mostly as a travel brush, but again it's a 27mm knot.

My only Zenith is the 24/48 "Short and Scrubby." It's okay but I think the 24×52 might offer better splay and versatility. They're affordable enough to investigate further but I prefer my other brushes and haven't veered into that fork of the rabbit hole. Their Manchurians are also interesting, though more expensive but they're something I'm considering eventually.

Based largely on the reviews and advice of @Chan Eil Whiskers , I ordered an Antica Barberia Mondial "Pro" style boar (in satin/brushed aluminum) from ebay. It was very nice out if the box but something wonderful happened during shave #8 and it became my favorite of all my boars. At 25mm it's on the large side for me but it performs so well that I ordered the same brush in Faux Ivory (plastic) to stash away for the future. That's the first brush I've bought a backup for. If your tortie Mondial is anything like my Pro style, I think you'll be quite happy with it.

My Vie-Longs consist of a 12705 (brown, 65/35 blend) and 13066B (unbleached blonde, 50/50 blend). The brown has just a bit more spine but much more scritch than the blonde. I ordered the 13066B from Gifts & Care with a customized, 48mm loft (their usual loft is 50mm for that model), it's a very nice brush with soft tips and enough backbone to lather triple and quad milled soaps almost as easily as creams - the trick is to bloom the puck with a layer of warm water while soaking the brush. I've just started to experiment with using the extra blooming water as a brief preshave to soften my whiskers and face, so far it seems to work well but it's still too early to tell if it helps all that much.

I've only tried a couple of synthetic brushes/knots but I agree with you, they're pretty weak on backbone. Currently my only synth is a 24mm Timberwolf, I haven't used it since one or two test shaves after mounting it in the handle. I've got far too many naturals to choose from to bother shaving with a brush that's just sort of... meh.

My current infatuation is with the SOC Taj Caravela (50% badger/50% boar blend). Other than a couple shaves to try out the O-ring mod on my SOC boar, I've shaved exclusively with the Taj since receiving it - it's just that good. I had intended to buy a Thater 2 band following that but I've been so pleased with it that the Thater seems less important. Phil at Bullgoose has the best prices I've found by far on the SOC Taj models.

My first ever "quality" brush was a Shavemac #922 Pure Badger, it was the only brush I used for nearly 15 years. I still use it from time to time but I decided I wanted to try something with softer tips and scored a Shavemac #177 Finest on BST just after Christmas of 2017 (I think). Even secondhand, it's still a phenomenal brush and became my "Go To" when I decided I wanted to gain experience with a broader spectrum of the brush market. Blooming hard soaps definitely shortens the loading and lathering time required with softer badgers.

Let us know how your Mondial works out for you.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Omega Premium from Connaught.

Perhaps the best boar I've used (and I've used the best boars available, deliberately, all of the premium boars).

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[TBoner]

I'm a longtime boar brush fan, and this thread just makes me happy. Lots of pics of great big brushes. I love it. I've been an Omega Pro 49 guy for over a decade, but I just ordered an ABC Mondial last night to see what it's all about. I also ordered the jade-handled Pro from Connaught. I just think it's time to break in some new boar. May buy a Semogue 2000, a brush I had back in 2010 or so and then foolishly sold. Thanks for all the great pics, guys. I will try to post some pics of my broken in 49s and my new big boars when they arrive.

 

[JimDandy]

Wow @maclean3 thank you for that detailed review and recommendation. Glad to see new life coming into this older thread. Gotta say i agree with others that Boar is my go-to. By adding a few to my collection I hope to have a few faves to chose from based on soap, mood, weather, bacground music, etc. I hope to post my impression of my forthcoming Mondial, and perhaps others. @Chan Eil Whiskers i’ve read your praises of that Omega Premium before, and you make a compelling case for adding that to the list of acquisitions. Thanks All!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Wow @maclean3 thank you for that detailed review and recommendation. Glad to see new life coming into this older thread. Gotta say i agree with others that Boar is my go-to. By adding a few to my collection I hope to have a few faves to chose from based on soap, mood, weather, bacground music, etc. I hope to post my impression of my forthcoming Mondial, and perhaps others. @Chan Eil Whiskers i’ve read your praises of that Omega Premium before, and you make a compelling case for adding that to the list of acquisitions. Thanks All!