Different Grades of Boar Hair?

I've been meaning to ask this question for a while. I see boar hair brushes selling for a variety of prices, especially from Omega. What is the difference in all those boar brushes? Are there different grades of boar, just as there are badger? Is it just different handles? Are the ones with longer bristles softer? Or, are all boar brushes pretty much the same?

-Clarke

I have never heard of boar hair being graded. I'm sure there are some natural variations from animal to animal but I think its all pretty much the same.

I know Wilkinson Sword has boar brushes in at least two grades over here. I have no idea what the difference between them is though.

I just got an Omega brush that has the same white urn-shaped handle as my other two Omega brushes. Two differences: the hairs on the new brush are more tan in color vs. white on my other Omegas. Also, the knot seems to have a little more glue at the base.

I used the new Omega for the first time this morning and it didn't do quite as good a job of lathering as my other Omegas.

Is this just a matter of breaking the brush in a bit, or does Omega make brushes with lower-grade boar hair for sale in drug stores (that's where my new Omega is from) vs. from on-line vendors (which is where I got my other two Omegas)?

Dave

I'm sure that, in addition to variations between animals, different breeds could give different types of hair.

I think the single biggest factor would be processing - its interesting to note that the Omega brushes have a much stronger wet dog smell when new than the Vulfix or Wilkinson brushes.

For Fine Arts oil painting the bests are from Chunking hogs in China. These hairs have split ends that hold the thick oil paint better

DavidB said:

I just got an Omega brush that has the same white urn-shaped handle as my other two Omega brushes. Two differences: the hairs on the new brush are more tan in color vs. white on my other Omegas. Also, the knot seems to have a little more glue at the base.

I used the new Omega for the first time this morning and it didn't do quite as good a job of lathering as my other Omegas.

Is this just a matter of breaking the brush in a bit, or does Omega make brushes with lower-grade boar hair for sale in drug stores (that's where my new Omega is from) vs. from on-line vendors (which is where I got my other two Omegas)?

Dave

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I find the larger Omega boars (Pro or Barber styles) are better at lathering than the smaller ones. While Boar brushes don't require a breaking in period (unless you count the smell ...) the hairs do get softer over time as the tips start splitting.

The holy grail of boar brushes comes from the High Mountain White family of boar...they are very hard to locate though....

DustBow said:

The holy grail of boar brushes comes from the High Mountain White family of boar...they are very hard to locate though....

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Like this one here? http://www.zoochat.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/3353

Dave

bjrn said:

I know Wilkinson Sword has boar brushes in at least two grades over here. I have no idea what the difference between them is though.

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one is pure boar, the other is a (more expensive) boar-badger mixture. Top of the WS line is the pure badger.

brooklynlou said:

I find the larger Omega boars (Pro or Barber styles) are better at lathering than the smaller ones. While Boar brushes don't require a breaking in period (unless you count the smell ...) the hairs do get softer over time as the tips start splitting.

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About how long does it take for an Omega boar brush to soften up a bit, tips to start splitting, etc.? I don't recall a softening-up period with my other Omega brush, but then again, I didn't have another Omega brush to compare it to.

Dave

I have a brush labeled pure boar hair which is terrible for me for making lather because I need probably 10x the lather you gents use. It's definitely soft but the small size and the just something about the brush doesn't make it good for holding enough lather for me (I have another brush with a bigger knot size and it's also boar hair but there is no grade stated and with that brush I usually need to make lather 4 times)

DavidB said:

About how long does it take for an Omega boar brush to soften up a bit, tips to start splitting, etc.? I don't recall a softening-up period with my other Omega brush, but then again, I didn't have another Omega brush to compare it to.

Dave

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I'd say at least a couple of weeks - it continues to get softer with time, but will never be as soft/luxurious as a good silvertip.

Some tips for speeding along the break in:

1) Shampoo and condition the brush several times;

2) Make a few trial lathers when you initially get the brush;

3) Build a lather with a product you think softens the whiskers (I use JM Fraser for this) and allow the lather to stand on the brush for several hours or overnight.

I've found that the combination of these methods did two things with my recently aquired Omega professional - got rid of the wet dog smell very quickly (matter of days) and really softened up the tips.

FWIW, I just used my Omega with my Tabac stick and got a great lather.

Couple observations about the performance of the boar brushes:

1) They tend to take a little longer to build lather;

2) They load up from a puck of soap amazingly well and this, to some extent, makes up for the longer lather-building time;

3) They make a slightly different lather - not as airy/fluffy as a good silvertip - largely because they don't do quite as good a job of whipping air into the lather (this in no way impacts the quality of the shave);

4) I find I get better results with slightly more product;

5) I need to add a little more water than with my silvertips, as the boar hair doesn't hold as much water.

My $0.02.