I read a lot of this forum though I don't make many posts, but I thought I might have some information that would be useful to anyone considering a Semogue 620 brush. I recently purchased mine the other week, my only other brush being a Vulfix #374 super badger. To start, it is a very good quality brush, I love the handle and the brush overall is very durably constructed. I have used it twice so far. My face is very sensitive, so unfortunately I have experienced some irritation (I am a face latherer) but nothing that shouldn't be overcome once the brush is completely broken in. I don't know how else to describe this, but it seems to have more "personality" than the Vulfix badger I have, as in it doesn't look/feel/smell like it just came out of the box when it is finished drying after use. I think it is a very fun brush for a nice price, even though my face is very sensitive I feel like I can make the brush work for me with regular use.
I have been working towards breaking this brush in, using some of what I read on the forums here and doing a bit of my own thing, with very good success. I have actually used the brush only twice so far, but have made lather (palm lather) with the brush a total of five or six times. I let the brush dry at least a day between the lathers, like I read here. Also, twice I have lathered the brush and let it sit overnight with the soap in the brush, using D.R. Harris Arlington. I then rinse the soap out in the morning with warm and then cold water. Afterwards I gently paint the brush dry on a towel, and then lightly swirl the tips on the towel. The second time I did the lather treatment I first used the brush for shaving at about midday, and then made a second lather that night and let it sit until morning. All of this seems to have made great strides towards breaking the brush in, the tips have become much softer while still maintaining the backbone that is characteristic of this model of brush. The tips of the bristles are splitting quite a bit, I can see a few bristles that have even split into four sections. I noticed the test lathers are getting much better as well. I will try my third shave with it tomorrow, I know it's going to be good this time. Hopefully this helps someone with tips for breaking in a boar, or anyone who is on the fence about a 620. I'm glad I made the decision to pick this one up. A couple of (bad) pictures of the brush are below!
I have been working towards breaking this brush in, using some of what I read on the forums here and doing a bit of my own thing, with very good success. I have actually used the brush only twice so far, but have made lather (palm lather) with the brush a total of five or six times. I let the brush dry at least a day between the lathers, like I read here. Also, twice I have lathered the brush and let it sit overnight with the soap in the brush, using D.R. Harris Arlington. I then rinse the soap out in the morning with warm and then cold water. Afterwards I gently paint the brush dry on a towel, and then lightly swirl the tips on the towel. The second time I did the lather treatment I first used the brush for shaving at about midday, and then made a second lather that night and let it sit until morning. All of this seems to have made great strides towards breaking the brush in, the tips have become much softer while still maintaining the backbone that is characteristic of this model of brush. The tips of the bristles are splitting quite a bit, I can see a few bristles that have even split into four sections. I noticed the test lathers are getting much better as well. I will try my third shave with it tomorrow, I know it's going to be good this time. Hopefully this helps someone with tips for breaking in a boar, or anyone who is on the fence about a 620. I'm glad I made the decision to pick this one up. A couple of (bad) pictures of the brush are below!