Debunk the Defunk

I have a handful of brushes, horse, boar, and badger. As with everything here, personal preference is 'king'; but I have a question. I like to defunk my brushes through use to eliminate that 'gamey' odor. No special cleaning. Does anyone else adhere to this approach?

I usually follow the same protocol, but for the inclusion of an initial shampoo lather.

I just use 'em. After one shave, they smell like shaving soap or cream.

Never had a horse hair or boar hair brush with any funk.

The Semogue, Omega and Vie-Long are great brushes.

I usually do one Lather without shaving, then it's placed in rotation.

I'll use strong scented soaps or creams for initial shaving.
It will be less smelly after 3~4 use.

That's how I do it Tony.

I've never washed a brush to "get the funk out". I've only cleaned my brushes once with dish soap and I think it was more because I was bored than it was to clean them.

I've bought two badgers and two boars and have never noticed any animal funk in any of them. In fact, I just received an Omega 49 this week and gave it a good sniff to see what this boar funk is that everybody talks about. Nothing. And yes, my sense of smell works just fine. Maybe I've just been lucky so far.

I just received a Vie-Long horse hair brush that has a little barnyard to it - but not much really.
In fact, I don't mind the smell at all (livestock barns in my youth) and plan on using it just as is.
My only other brush is an SOC - it had no funk at all.

Unless the hair has a strong odour which might require 3-5 cleaning stages, I just use them, except for the initial shampooing.

I've always just used them. Working on a new Rooney right now that is a little more funky than past brushes I've had. Still noticeable after 2 shaves, but dissipating...

I never had a problem with my brushes, just rinse & go. Then I came across a Simpson case, that did have a bit of funk. I finished the shave & washed it out - thick brown water is what washed out of the brush. It got my attention. Since then, I always throughly washout my brushes.

My first boar required additional cleanings, I believe it was harvested from the south end of a northbound badger. That one took a week before I would get it near my face- that I believe is an exception. Normally, I have found a "funky" smelling brush is good to go with 2-4 cleaning cycles.

Over the years I have owned lots of different brushes. Some have been pleasant from the first use and others have been, shall we say, less pleasant. If I were shaving my legs it would not be a concern, but seeing as my shaving brush is in close proximity to my nose and mouth, I go to the minimal trouble of shampooing a new brush before use.

mftoms59 said:

I usually do one Lather without shaving, then it's placed in rotation.

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Same here.

A good brush will last years, so a couple of days of funk is soon forgotten. No special protocol here....

I usually lather them up few time without using them, especially if they are boar. As i'm shaving in the morning, i receive my "goodies" during the day, so small chance to be able to effectively use them as soon as i receive them, but i want to get the feel of them asap, like a kid with a new toy.
Not biggest fan of how new, out of the box boar brushes feel. I like breaking those up by lathering up and letting them dry about 2 or 3 times before actually using them. I honestly don't follow up the smell too much, as it does not bother me. As soon as it's lathered up, i don't feel the odd smells, just how my cream or soap smells, so, not a problem.

I'm one of the odd men out on this topic. None of my brushes arrived with what I'd describe as an objectionable funk. But one caveat is I smoke cigarettes and I'm sure my nose is not that sensitive. I also have badger, boar and horse.

AnAv8r said:

My first boar required additional cleanings, I believe it was harvested from the south end of a northbound badger.

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Now that must have come from one rare animal. Did you mean it was a boar/badger mixed bristle?

Oh, i'm a smoker too, but i felt odd funks on all my brushes, except synthetics. Some might not smell out of the box, but once you wet them, the animal comes to life. But again, if you don't necessary search for the smell, it won't bother you.

SmurfK, I was expecting that the smell would 'come alive' when I got them wet but din't smell anything then either. nd since you mentioned it, I have never seached for the smell. I remove them from the tube or box, decide which cream or soap I'm using that day, wet the brush, and go at it.

I have a couple of new brushes that have never been used or wetted. I'll try to pay particular attention the first time I use one of those; there are boars and badgers. I have several uses on both horses and no new ones.