SMF

Hello friends,

at the moment I have 2 brushes, which are badger - Shea moisture black badger and Simpson Special pure badger. Nothing fancy, but they do the job quite well (I`m face latherer).

I am curious about those boar bristle brushes - are they good as badgers, and do I need one of them? Which one you prefer?
I see lately there are also brushes from horse and synthetics, but they seem too exotic for me

Is a boar better? No. Is it worse? No. They're different and they are quite inexpensive so I'd go for it. I don't know what you have available in Bulgaria, but here in the USA Omega brand has the most bang for the money spent and the last few I bought were pre broken in. Otherwise it can take quite a few shaves to break one in (or a bunch of effort on a rubber sheet).

You don’t need one, but you should try one. A boar is different to a badger, but I’ve found boar to be surprisingly nice. Be aware, however, that unlike a badger boar does have a break-in period before performing at its best. My 3 boars comprise a Thater, a Semogue Owners Club and an Omega B&B Essential. I think the Semogue Owners Club boar would be a good one to start with; it’s not expensive, has a quality wooden handle and the knot is Premium boar. I too am a face latherer and find the Semogue suits me very well. As for horse and synthetic, I have yet to find one of either that matches my badgers and boars in terms of face feel and overall performance. I do have a Muhle synthetic, but I use it only when I travel because it dries very quickly.

You should try two types - synthetic and boar. The synthetic brushes are different. Not an animal product, just manmade fiber. As I say, different and as cheap or cheaper than boar, if that is possible. Any elevated costs involved in acquiring a synthetic brush can be traced to a Big Name or a fancy handle. Me? I have all kinds, and like all kinds. I just like synthetic better.

Of course, my default answer to the "Do I need" questions is almost always a knee-jerk reactive and emphatic "YES".

I have 7 brushes, 2 of which are boar. My Semogue 1305, while incredibly tired and very battle-scarred, it's a great latherer with soaps.

Like Wendell, I really like the Semogue 1305 and its particular grade of boar. I have quite a few badger brushes (my favorite badgers are also Semogues) and a handful of synthetics. All work well for me, and all are unique unto themselves. I tried a horsehair brush, but I didn't like it. Mine pulled all the lather into the knot and made it very difficult to produce lather. Horsehair doesn't have the soft tips of synthetics, broken-in boar, or higher grades of badger, either.

Though I use badger, boar, and synthetic brushes, the brush that works best for me and my lathering technique is the Semogue 1305 boar. The Semogue 830 has the same grade of boar in a denser knot, which might be better suited to face-lathering. The Semogue Owners' Club boar, larger than the 1305 and the 830 and referenced by Bryan, should also be an excellent brush.

I might note that I build lather on top of the cake of soap, then apply it to my beard. Also, Semogue is a small family business in Portugal and I don't know how widely distributed these wonderful brushes are. If they aren't readily available in Bulgaria, perhaps you could order them online from other European vendors.

- Murray

Actually we haven`t local drugstores here, which sell brushes, except DM with cheap models of Omega.
I will look in internet, Semogue seems good choice

I readily agree with the notion to check out Semogue. They make good brushes. Also, please don't judge synthetic brushes by either the boar or the badger. As stated earlier synthetics are different. In my own personal opinion - YMMV of course - synthetics are the only one of the 3 that are designed and made solely for shaving. Badgers and boars are animal hair that have been adapted for shaving over time. Our human nature - mine for sure - is to actively defend our super expensive badgers and our sentimental ( ? ) favorite (largely inexpensive) boar brushes against any threats from the newly arrived plastic brushes. Hurrrrummmph!!! How pedestrian! What's this world coming to!. But that's my personal cross to bear. Now I'm in love with my synthetic. But I'm keeping my badger/boar hair brushes safely tucked in their little boxes, and whenever I get the chance, I publicly state how much I love them. (wink, wink) Parting is such sweet sorrow, and all that jazz.

The only boar brush I have used is a vintage Rooney Broad Arrow Black Boar. I am not tempted at all to collect other boar brushes, but I'm glad that I've had the experience of using one. I think everyone should have the chance to try one at least once.

Need is relative. My two Omega 10049 brushes - one white-handled, one black - are tremendous latherers and cost less combined than even some inexpensive synthetics and much less than badgers. I like them as a change of pace with true face feel and some nostalgic connection to the old school. If you want to experience shavegeekery to the fullest, try a boar (and a synthetic as Gary said). If you're in it for vintage style, try a boar. If you're just in it for luxury, try a barber-style boar and be amazed at the volume of lather.

Boars are incredible. All you need is a brush. Period. But you can skip a meal out to eat and get a boar. So, yeah, you need one.

Yes, you need a Zenith.

I have all sorts of Somerset Simpsons and other brushes I once found delightful. These days, though, an Omega boar is just what I look forward to with each shave. Silly, really, but there you are.

drmoss_ca wrote: ↑Thu Sep 13, 2018 1:32 pm I have all sorts of Somerset Simpsons and other brushes I once found delightful. These days, though, an Omega boar is just what I look forward to with each shave. Silly, really, but there you are.

Similarly, I spent a kings ransom on badger brushes and ended up settling on a couple of semogue and omega boars and a synthetic brush, design inspired by an espresso maker, lovelessly put together in the people's republic of China.

On a very sad-for-me day a few months ago, my "well-loved" Semogue 1305 literally fell apart. The knot fell into several pieces and became fodder for the trash bin. This is the second boar that died after about a decade of devoted service. I have yet to replace it as it's a bit like loosing the family dog (which happened 3 times to me during my growing up years). You just never know if you can be as loyal to the replacement as you were to the original.

But the great advantage of boar brushes is that they are cheap to replace. I bought a six-pack of Omega beech-handled brushes from emsplace.com, and ended up giving four away, and using two (home and travel kit). All for less than the price of a good badger brush. A mistake I made when I was young was to assume any badger was better than any boar. But the truth is that prickly black best badgers, and most super badgers are beaten by an ordinary boar brush. I can see some having preferences when comparing boars to silvertips, but at that level you can buy a dozen boars for the price of one silvertip.

Chris, do I recall correctly that one of those boars went to Gordon, with the stipulation that if he used it exclusively for a month you would send him a really nice (Plisson?) badger brush? (It seems to me I remember a lot of grumbling from Gordon during that month.)

- Murray

CMur12 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2019 11:08 am Chris, do I recall correctly that one of those boars went to Gordon, with the stipulation that if he used it exclusively for a month you would send him a really nice (Plisson?) badger brush? (It seems to me I remember a lot of grumbling from Gordon during that month.)

- Murray

I sent him the Plisson, but I don't recall if he actually used the boar brush. I shall plead 'no contest' to charges of Gordon Abuse.

drmoss_ca wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2019 12:42 pm

CMur12 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2019 11:08 am Chris, do I recall correctly that one of those boars went to Gordon, with the stipulation that if he used it exclusively for a month you would send him a really nice (Plisson?) badger brush? (It seems to me I remember a lot of grumbling from Gordon during that month.)

- Murray

I sent him the Plisson, but I don't recall if he actually used the boar brush. I shall plead 'no contest' to charges of Gordon Abuse.

I recently read some of those posts; he used it faithfully and was suitably unimpressed

There are a couple of boars I've kept that seem to perform pretty well, even though I haven't remembered to used them in a while. One is the Semogue 2000 and the other is an old Dubl Duck with the aluminum handle.

Boar works best with soaps. Make sure it has good tips, if possible, as the ones that are cheap and cut won't develope proper split ends and never get soft.