I received the brush yesterday and immediately performed 4 hand latherings. The brush was quite soft out of the box, not what I expected from my first boar. This morning I used it after superlathering with a Mama Bear's Lime Ice shaving stick and Musgo Real, making sure to take time to load the brush. The LE 2011 lathered up a storm, enough for at least three passes. I took time with the razor, R41 2011 with a Bluebird, going nice and slow to get bloodless shave. The brush was definitely a success, and am very curious how much better it could possibly get since boar users say one has to wait at least a month of uses in order to see it break in. For a first boar it was a very good choice and I would heartily recommend it to those curious about boar brushes.