Badger brush care

[StratMan]

hey guys.. now i have a brush worthy of care i was wondering if there is anything you do to care for your badger brushes? When you soak do you soak in hot, warm or cold water and for how long? do you do anything special to clean the brush from time to time? cheers

 

[SpeedyPC]

hey guys.. now i have a brush worthy of care i was wondering if there is anything you do to care for your badger brushes? When you soak do you soak in hot, warm or cold water and for how long? do you do anything special to clean the brush from time to time? cheers

Warm water about 5mm below the knot from the handle, do NOT soak the whole knot. For about 5 or 10mins depending on the type of badger hair.

 

[alfredus]

Never use water, that is warmer than comfortable on your hands.
Try not to soak into the handle, as @SpeedyPC already pointed out.

After the shave, wash out all soap residue with warm water. Then wash with cold water to close the hair follicles, GENTLY shake dry and then GENTLY towel dry. Leave standing in a dry spot, until knot is completely dry, but avoid sun.

Every blue moon, I clean my brushes using this method - which I can't find now but will add a bit later...

 

[Razor Burn]

Never use water, that is warmer than comfortable on your hands.
Try not to soak into the handle, as @SpeedyPC already pointed out.

After the shave, wash out all soap residue with warm water. Then wash with cold water to close the hair follicles, GENTLY shake dry and then GENTLY towel dry. Leave standing in a dry spot, until knot is completely dry, but avoid sun.

Every blue moon, I clean my brushes using this method - which I can't find now but will add a bit later...

Great point as I recall @Tony Forsyth mentioned not to dry natural haired brushes on the window seal exposed to potential sun.

Allow an extra day or two for the Rhodium to dry completely as its a super dense knot.

Follow these simple steps to ensure your prized brush provides many Happy shaves!

 

[StratMan]

Thanks for all your replies and I’m glad I asked.. when I first got the brush I was using it everyday day so not sure if it was dry properly but it felt dry

I got the water out of the brush by flicking it as I would with a synthetic and not sure if I went over the handle with water, that’s something I never considered before

If I did go go over would I have done any damage? hope not

 

[alfredus]

Found it...depending on how often you use the brush - with my large rotation I might do it once a year, but if you use your brush every day, maybe once a month? But better get a couple more badgers in, so you can give them some rest

 

[SpeedyPC]

Found it...depending on how often you use the brush - with my large rotation I might do it once a year, but if you use your brush every day, maybe once a month? But better get a couple more badgers in, so you can give them some rest

My advice is to get at least a total of 4 or 5 badger brush into your den to allow 48hrs for each badger brush to properly dry out, @alfredus has a whole collection of Cheeky Bastard Badger showoff in his den.

 

[Gargravarr]

My advice is to get at least a total of 4 or 5 badger brush into your den to allow 48hrs for each badger brush to properly dry out, @alfredus has a whole collection of Cheeky Bastard Badger showoff in his den.

Hmmm, what you say seems more like a recommendation for synthetics...

 

[SpeedyPC]

Hmmm, what you say seems more like a recommendation for synthetics...

Nope! you can use one synthetics brush for a very long time, roughly about 10 years or more and it's dried out a lot faster about 8 or 10hrs (or overnight) than badger and boar.

 

[rhodes96]

I use one these after rinsing to dry the brush out before going back to the cabinet.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1...nd-faux-tortoiseshell-1_501x.jpg?v=1487199009

 

[Gargravarr]

Nope! you can use one synthetics brush for a very long time, roughly about 10 years or more and it's dried out a lot faster about 8 or 10hrs (or overnight) than badger and boar.

Exactly, my point

 

[SpeedyPC]

Exactly, my point

Natural badger and boar hairs hold water to keep the lather nice and moist much longer during face lathering, because, synthetics brush cannot hold water and sometimes the lather can dry out and you need to add a little bit of water during each passes. I don't have any issues with synthetics brush, because, I only bowl lather it's a lot quicker than face lathering and easier to control the amount of water when bowl lathering.

 

[Errol]

My poor brushes!
Select brush
No preparation
Straight under the hottest water I have available
Brush the hot water over my face a few times
Load the brush
Use
Rinse under running cold water tap
Flick the residual water out in the shower cubicle
Stand up under the window till I decide to use it next time
No trouble- All brush types mistreated the same way

 

[Razor Burn]

Hmmm, what you say seems more like a recommendation for synthetics...

Sadly I'm starting to notice significant wear and tear of my synthetics and agree it helps to have a few badgers/boars to allow for rotation.

 

[SpeedyPC]

Sadly I'm starting to notice significant wear and tear of my synthetics and agree it helps to have a few badgers/boars to allow for rotation.

Which brand and what type of synthetic knot is starting to wear and tear?

 

[Razor Burn]

Which brand and what type of synthetic knot is starting to wear and tear?

My original RazoRock plissoft 400 knot is starting to lose its shape in the middle (now used as a travel brush). It reminds me of my boar brushes.

Also noticing similar issues with my PAA Atomic Rocket which has a knot that resembles a plissoft...? I admit I'm more inclined to lather hard with the synth's but still dry them properly and keep them in rotation...

I prefer to bowl lather with my synthetics so this adds to the wear and tear.

 

[rhodes96]

Sadly I'm starting to notice significant wear and tear of my synthetics and agree it helps to have a few badgers/boars to allow for rotation.

Like anything man made, it will eventually wear out. Who knows what plastic polymers are used in production. In saying that my travel synthetic brush used extensively for over 16 years still looks and feels like when I bought it. I had another synthetic brush fall apart within a year.

 

[Wilkshire13]

My original RazoRock plissoft 400 knot is starting to lose its shape in the middle (now used as a travel brush). It reminds me of my boar brushes.

Also noticing similar issues with my PAA Atomic Rocket which has a knot that resembles a plissoft...? I admit I'm more inclined to lather hard with the synth's but still dry them properly and keep them in rotation...

I prefer to bowl lather with my synthetics so this adds to the wear and tear.

I've had no shaving brushed loose their shape before, a bit of hot water to make them malleable and then hang upside down usually returned then to shape before some cool water. It May not be the best idea for shave brush, but might be worth a shot if the brush isn't getting any love.

 

[Gargravarr]

My poor brushes!
..All brush types mistreated the same way

Me too. My last badger, a Simpson I bought in London in 1982 got retired last February, so it had 38 years of this abuse. I think it should have stood up to it: maybe I should complain...

I now use synthetics exclusively, and couldn't be happier.

 

[Razor Burn]

Sadly I'm starting to notice significant wear and tear of my synthetics and agree it helps to have a few badgers/boars to allow for rotation.

Very disappointed with the left as the fibres have gone super dry // right still soft but starting to show the same signs and they're both plissoft style knots...