Bought C&E $35 brush....

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 12:59 PM

So I went down to the mall and bought this brush and was really excited about it to replace my $5 Burma shave brush I've been using from walmart. On the first use, I found that the C&E created pretty much no lather at all so I figure I must be doing something wrong. So I tried not flicking the water out of the brush and then tried to lather the cream again. A bit better but still not nearly as much as the cheap ass burma brush.. What is wrong? I also noticed that when I do put the brush to my face that it just kind of changes shape and doesn't spread the lather onto my face... I'm guessing it's not the brush because it came so highly recommended when I asked..?

**greenerock** · 07-19-2006, 01:06 PM

What cream/soap are you using? I use this brush all the time.

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 01:08 PM

using the Palmolive cream that was highly recommended in the forum.. I also picked up this caswell massey sandlewood stuff but that doesn't lather up AT ALL compared to the Palmolive which lathered up great with the cheapo burma brush.

**Jonnybc** · 07-19-2006, 01:08 PM

When I get a new brush I give the brush a good shampooing followed by a thorough rinse. I then use a cheap cream (I use palmolive) to really clean the brush by massaging it into the hair, rinse again and use. I'd use a bowl if you're not...

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 01:09 PM

I'm using a big coffee mug, smooth inside surface

**Jonnybc** · 07-19-2006, 01:15 PM

Just one thing. The Palmolive you bought, it is the "use with a brush" formula? They do one that's brushless in thr US I believe.

Follow Joel's instructions and you should get a good lather.

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 01:19 PM

yeah the one with the red stripes,, I'll look at your link now..

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 01:30 PM

I read the guide you linked me to.. I do basically the same thing with leaving the brush in hot water while i prep my face. What I found was the opposite though - I had to leave the brush soaking wet in order to get any kind of lather. If I shook the water out of the brush, and tried to swirl up a lather, I got nothing at all. Then when I added about a teaspoon or so of water, I got a tiny bit of lather after like a bazillion swirls and THAT lather was nowhere near as good as the cheap burma shave brush. So now I'm trying to figure out the Badger is considered better than the Boar bristle. So far "out of the box" it seems the opposite. What can I be doing wrong? The only thing different is that i'm not using BOILING water but we keep the temperature on the water heater pretty hot, so the hot side of the faucet is indeed HOT.

**mrob** · 07-19-2006, 01:49 PM

Where do you live? What's the water quality like?

How about some bottled water?

**Jonnybc** · 07-19-2006, 01:52 PM

Originally Posted by mrob

Where do you live? What's the water quality like?

How about some bottled water?

The water quality should be ok the results were good with the boar brush. I'm baffled!

**mrob** · 07-19-2006, 01:58 PM

Hmm. . .I do get good lather from my boar brush, but can also get good lather from my badgers. Not bragging, just sharing.

**boboakalfb** · 07-19-2006, 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by Jonnybc

When I get a new brush I give the brush a good shampooing followed by a thorough rinse. I then use a cheap cream (I use palmolive) to really clean the brush by massaging it into the hair, rinse again and use. I'd use a bowl if you're not...

Hey Dax,

As John stated he shampoos the new brush. You will hear from people that new brushes might not hold as much water at first. After a couple of uses it gets better. I think shampooing the brush just accelerates this. Maybe there is something on the bristles which keeps it from retaining water at first?

**Jonnybc** · 07-19-2006, 02:04 PM

The water is pretty hard here so if I'm feeling energetic I boil filtered water in a kettle and shave with that, the lather is considerably better but I usually can't be bothered.

Do you have a water filter DAX?

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 02:10 PM

I live in Las Vegas, Nevada
What should I shampoo the brush with? hair shampoo? dish shampoo? The problem isn't that it doesn't hold a lot of water, as it does hold a lot of water. It just seems like I need to keep all that water in the brush to get even a hint of a lather. If i shake out the brush, then I can get nothing no matter how many swirls or how much cream is in the mug...

**boboakalfb** · 07-19-2006, 02:18 PM

You can shampoo the brush using shampoo for your hair...quoting Ron "It is Badger HAIR isn't it?"

I mentioned giving the brush a flick to let out a bit of water...not shaking it. If you start with less water in your brush you can always add it in a couple drops at a time to get the perfect consistency. It is much easier to add in water then add in more cream if you have too much water.

**Jonnybc** · 07-19-2006, 02:19 PM

Use your regular hair shampoo.

**g8orshavr** · 07-19-2006, 03:23 PM

If the brush is holding water than it must be the cream. I know you said the boar brush created a good lather with the palmolive cream, but with water and a good cream you should be able to create a lather even with a synthetic bristled kitchen basting brush. I figured before I posted this I should actually try it. So I took some Art of Shaving Lemon cream (a cream that lathers very well for me) and grabbed a basting brush from the kitchen and whipped up some nice lather in my bowl (I can post pictures if you'd like).

The point is that as long as you have water and cream and something to agitate it with, you should be able to create a lather suitable for shaving. I really don't think that the problem is the brush or needing to clean it. My guess is that either the cream and your water are not reacting well together or your technique may need some work. Keep experimenting with different amounts of cream and water. Once you figure out the proper ratio (varies depending on the cream and your local water) you should be able to create lather with any brush. Obviously, some brushes will do a much better job than others, but you should be able to get an acceptable shave from almost any brush.

Don't give up, it's like riding a bike, once it clicks for you you'll wonder how it was ever so difficult.

**dax702** · 07-19-2006, 03:35 PM

Thanks - any thoughts on this caswell massey stuff, will it lather once I "get it" or is it no good? Should I be swirling the brush fast or slow? To me, it seems like if you're able to count 20 swirls and u have that much lather it had to be pretty slow. I was going around as fast as I could trying to work it up haha

**Austin** · 07-19-2006, 03:36 PM

Originally Posted by dax702

Thanks - any thoughts on this caswell massey stuff, will it lather once I "get it" or is it no good? Should I be swirling the brush fast or slow? To me, it seems like if you're able to count 20 swirls and u have that much lather it had to be pretty slow. I was going around as fast as I could trying to work it up haha

If it's the shave cream, no it will not lather very well. You are better off buying some of the C&E shave creams. They lather really well and smell wonderful.

**g8orshavr** · 07-19-2006, 03:43 PM

I've always found Proraso to lather well and it's under $10 at target. As Austin said, C&E lather's well and I think they are having a sale at the moment.