I break mine in with the same method. Only I remove it from the soak several times a day, and build a palm lather. I dry it just as you do, and pop it back into the fridge.
I'm a synthetic user but revisited my Semogue 620 today. My gosh I forgot how much backbone it had so it loaded quickly. I bowl lather so I didn't have to worry about brush burn which is another plus
Coincidentally, I used my Semogue Excelsior 830 for a bowl lather. Quite nice and super soft while painting on the lather! At times, but not always, I just wish the handle was a bit longer.:)
I received my Proraso Pro Omega Brush on July 9'th and breaking it in. After I do my cleaning and 3-day in-the fridge initial break-in, I also do a palm lather and 5-10 minute rubout daily. I change out the water every day in the fridge. Even the hard thick black hairs have split ends now. I keep a towel on my computer chair and will occasionally do a rub-out also.
I had an Wilkinson sword boar brush from 2019, it was my first brush I ever bought, but it was very rough and scratchy! But if put it in cold water for three days right now, will break in? Or, it will not, it's too late?
Hi Mark- Thank you for this timely video! I just purchased a small Omega boar brush last week from Amazon. I haven’t had the chance to do any preliminary work on it, but I’ll now follow the break-in guidelines you have recommended. Thanks again and best regards, Mark!
Hej Mark, hv heard abt the fridge treatment, but nvr tried. Will do so... Semogue is Portuguese, factory near Lisboa, owner is described as an artisan himself. To me this shows thru the brushes appearance. Cheers fm the equator.
Great review. Thanks for reviewing it. I think you sold me on the 1520. I am trying my Vikings Blade White Knight which arrived today.... Thanks again Terry
mentaltmc excellent! Let me know how you like the White Knight. Even though I was impressed with the semogue brush, I still think synthetic brushes do a better job of lathering with shave sticks and soap pucks. IMHO.:)
You might want to add why you don't want to submerge the handle: the wood will soak up the moisture, expand and then the paint has a good chance of cracking & chipping off. There's a clip of a guy on this site somewhere who had that happen to him. He was pretty bummed out about ruining his new brush, to say the least.
Thank you for mentioning this. A very good point. I did point out that the handle should not be submerged. However, yes, I forgot to mention why. I'm very glad you posted.:) Also, it should be noted that the 1800's handle is a natural wood that needs to have just a bit of mineral oil applied every now and again to keep it in good shape.:) At least, this is what I do.:)
Same thing happened to mine. In my opinion it just gave the brush some character. Certainly doesn’t effect the brush’s performance in any way. One of my favorites. Use and enjoy!
And yet, here we see a Semogue Excelsior Boar Brush 1305 ruined by having been submerged for a couple of days. So it does happen. See for yourself: ruclips.net/video/RXmY32gMOyU/видео.html
I’m on the fence on whether I should just use it in normal or do that break-in method everyone talks about. (Referring to the Semouge 830 Brush I ordered)
I've recently gotten into lathering with brushes my first brush is a Parker pure badger. It's a good brush lathers up really good in a bowl but is horrible for face lathering it is a bit floppy and scratchy. I got an Omega synthetic boar for traveling, man that little brush feels great for face lathering it's scrubby yet soft and produces a decent amount of lather for multiple passes. So the Omega sparked an interest in boar brushes. So I recently got the Semogue 830 and on first use it felt great it has good backbone yet soft and scrubby. I'm a little worried that it might get floppy overtime I guess time will tell. The only thing I didn't like is the cheap sticker on the handle. I took it off with some acetone its like putting a bumper sticker on a brand new car. At least Semogue could put one of those meant to peel off stickers. Do they put those on the wooden handles as well?
I agree, synthetic shaving brushes are amazing for face lathering.:) They keep getting better and better in regards to softness, backbone, etc. Some have just a little bit of tooth that allows you to exfoliate the skin and lift the beard a bit.:) I'd have to check my other Semogue brushes, but pretty sure they all have decals. Again, I need to double check. The 830 won't get floppy. After repeated use the hairs will split and spread out. It will become softer and fuller with time.:)
Hi Mark, have been watching and enjoying your videos but this method turned out into negative experience for me as I bought a brand new Semogue 1305 and exactly followed the steps you’ve advised and in 3 days I found the brush handle paint in ugly cracks that are pealing off. From fairness perspective the bristles have nicely broken in but the brush completely lost its aesthetics. Preempting the question need to mention that the water level was much lower from the handle. To summarise I believe this method might be more effective for brushes with plastic/synthetic handles. Thanks
Karen, yes. Very sorry to hear of the unfortunate damage to your brush. In fairness, the water line is just below the handle and not much more. Please drop me an email @ georgetoon@gmail.com.
Mark, Just in case you interested in some new items to look into, I picked up a brush (silvertip) from Spiffo (company in Canada). And wow what gorgeous stuff and silvertip brushes for 60$. Might be worth a look for you.
I recently purchased a Yaqi 30mm Synthetic Hair Shaving Brush with a Tuxedo Knot. You can see it at: goo.gl/CbwnCM I also did a video review at: ruclips.net/video/H63yI20MV4o/видео.html It's a monster brush, but, yes, I pull it out whenever I shave my head. It builds heaps of lather and gives great coverage.:) It's very soft and overall a terrific brush for the money.:) Now, is it better? In some ways, yes. More coverage and faster application of the lather. But is it really necessary? Can you get the same job done with a 26MM or 24M brush. Yes. But, not all heads (and faces) are created equal. A 30mm brush would be ideal for really big guys. I'm 6' 1" and like using the larger brush.:) So, a person taller than me and with a larger frame would probably benefit even more from a larger brush. Just a guess. YMMV.:)
@@MarkSzorady I received the 830 in the mail and I also had a pretty good shave. I watched your "How to Lather video" for some insight. The biggest mistake I made was not blooming the soap. I had a time trying to get the lather just right. The next shave should be much better. I was surprised at how soft the bristles were on the 830. I'm looking forward to it getting softer, and softer.
@@ThaRedPitbull I think yo may be referring to a stray hair or two here falling out of the knot. You can expect to lose a shaving brush hair here and there during it's break-in period. Just about any new brush I've had will shed a hair. It's due to the manufacturing process, as I understand it. The glued hair knot doesn't catch all the hairs. So there may be a few that are still loose within the knot, just barely hanging on, so to speak. You lose a few on that first, second, etc. use. But the hairs that are securely glued in place remain so. Sometimes, you may come across a shaving brush that sheds a LOT of hairs. That' could be an indication of a faulty glue knot job. Also, remember to soak your brush in WARM water, not hot. Hot water may soften the glue over time and cause shedding. Still modern epoxies used to glue the hair knot are pretty robust and hearty and can stand up to a lot.:)
Here are the Two Best Shave Brushes on the market today? are Simpson King Charles III Coronation Chubby 3 Fiber brush with special handle it has Softer Hair a real bargain is a Brush Monster at 40mm reasonable Price for its size. The Trafalgar's T-3 has a little Harder hair, more affordable in the long run, it's a 29mm not 24mm. buy one and measure it for yourself?? ' it's a clone of a 30mm Chubby 3 Super Badger Shaving Brush without paying for the Super Badger Price. 1, No need to clean your Brush, 2, No need for Brush Stand, 3, NO SOAKING time ready to Go, 4, Fast drying time, 5, Badger or Boar Brushes can and will fall apart Sooner than Later'?, 6, No Break in time, 7, No need for a Brush Stand 8, Modest Price for its size. I have owned it for 5 Years with No Hair Loss with No problems. Rinse Brush in Cold Water. Your mileage may vary? Derby black it's better same price as greens wheelchair larry
Dudes like mark are the reason why there are so many myths in the shave industry. Because he has no idea what he is doing.. there are claimed probably 100s of ways to break in a badger brush.. and this is up there with the hilariously rediculous ones i hope people dont take him serious
Thank you very much for showing a new brush being prepared.Everything is much more clearly now
Hi, Dinar Isayev. My pleasure. Glad to hear it helped.:)
I break mine in with the same method. Only I remove it from the soak several times a day, and build a palm lather. I dry it just as you do, and pop it back into the fridge.
Wayne, thanks for the reminder on doing palm lathers.:)
I'm a synthetic user but revisited my Semogue 620 today. My gosh I forgot how much backbone it had so it loaded quickly. I bowl lather so I didn't have to worry about brush burn which is another plus
Coincidentally, I used my Semogue Excelsior 830 for a bowl lather. Quite nice and super soft while painting on the lather! At times, but not always, I just wish the handle was a bit longer.:)
I received my Proraso Pro Omega Brush on July 9'th and breaking it in. After I do my cleaning and 3-day in-the fridge initial break-in, I also do a palm lather and 5-10 minute rubout daily. I change out the water every day in the fridge. Even the hard thick black hairs have split ends now. I keep a towel on my computer chair and will occasionally do a rub-out also.
I had an Wilkinson sword boar brush from 2019, it was my first brush I ever bought, but it was very rough and scratchy! But if put it in cold water for three days right now, will break in? Or, it will not, it's too late?
I din;t thik it's too late. Or, you could simply continue to use it and it should beak in over a week or two, give or take a few days.
Hi Mark- Thank you for this timely video! I just purchased a small Omega boar brush last week from Amazon. I haven’t had the chance to do any preliminary work on it, but I’ll now follow the break-in guidelines you have recommended. Thanks again and best regards, Mark!
Wonderful!:) I'm so glad to hear this!:) Let me know how it works out for you and how the brush performs.:)
Hej Mark, hv heard abt the fridge treatment, but nvr tried. Will do so... Semogue is Portuguese, factory near Lisboa, owner is described as an artisan himself. To me this shows thru the brushes appearance. Cheers fm the equator.
Achim, nice to hear from you!:) Thanks for the background info on Semogue.:)
Great review. Thanks for reviewing it. I think you sold me on the 1520. I am trying my Vikings Blade White Knight which arrived today....
Thanks again Terry
mentaltmc excellent! Let me know how you like the White Knight. Even though I was impressed with the semogue brush, I still think synthetic brushes do a better job of lathering with shave sticks and soap pucks. IMHO.:)
It was excellent. alot stiffer than the Kent. I do agree that the Vikings Blade will work better with hard soap. kent will be saved for creams.
mentaltmc nice! The White Knight, for a synthetic, I find to be very close to a real badger.
You might want to add why you don't want to submerge the handle: the wood will soak up the moisture, expand and then the paint has a good chance of cracking & chipping off. There's a clip of a guy on this site somewhere who had that happen to him. He was pretty bummed out about ruining his new brush, to say the least.
Thank you for mentioning this. A very good point. I did point out that the handle should not be submerged. However, yes, I forgot to mention why. I'm very glad you posted.:)
Also, it should be noted that the 1800's handle is a natural wood that needs to have just a bit of mineral oil applied every now and again to keep it in good shape.:) At least, this is what I do.:)
Same thing happened to mine. In my opinion it just gave the brush some character. Certainly doesn’t effect the brush’s performance in any way. One of my favorites. Use and enjoy!
Charles Smith thanks! I appreciate the input and info. It's Quickly becoming a favorite brush for me, as well.:)
That is unusual. Semogue's vacuum painted, marine paint is sucked into woodgrain. No such thing as moisture soaking et cetera.
And yet, here we see a Semogue Excelsior Boar Brush 1305 ruined by having been submerged for a couple of days. So it does happen. See for yourself: ruclips.net/video/RXmY32gMOyU/видео.html
I’m on the fence on whether I should just use it in normal or do that break-in method everyone talks about.
(Referring to the Semouge 830 Brush I ordered)
I have the Semogue 1800 and it works so well that I can't think of an excuse to buy another one ... Give me time I'm sure I will ... lol
:):):)
I've recently gotten into lathering with brushes my first brush is a Parker pure badger. It's a good brush lathers up really good in a bowl but is horrible for face lathering it is a bit floppy and scratchy. I got an Omega synthetic boar for traveling, man that little brush feels great for face lathering it's scrubby yet soft and produces a decent amount of lather for multiple passes. So the Omega sparked an interest in boar brushes. So I recently got the Semogue 830 and on first use it felt great it has good backbone yet soft and scrubby. I'm a little worried that it might get floppy overtime I guess time will tell. The only thing I didn't like is the cheap sticker on the handle. I took it off with some acetone its like putting a bumper sticker on a brand new car. At least Semogue could put one of those meant to peel off stickers. Do they put those on the wooden handles as well?
I agree, synthetic shaving brushes are amazing for face lathering.:) They keep getting better and better in regards to softness, backbone, etc. Some have just a little bit of tooth that allows you to exfoliate the skin and lift the beard a bit.:)
I'd have to check my other Semogue brushes, but pretty sure they all have decals. Again, I need to double check.
The 830 won't get floppy. After repeated use the hairs will split and spread out. It will become softer and fuller with time.:)
Hi Mark, have been watching and enjoying your videos but this method turned out into negative experience for me as I bought a brand new Semogue 1305 and exactly followed the steps you’ve advised and in 3 days I found the brush handle paint in ugly cracks that are pealing off. From fairness perspective the bristles have nicely broken in but the brush completely lost its aesthetics. Preempting the question need to mention that the water level was much lower from the handle. To summarise I believe this method might be more effective for brushes with plastic/synthetic handles. Thanks
Karen, yes. Very sorry to hear of the unfortunate damage to your brush. In fairness, the water line is just below the handle and not much more. Please drop me an email @ georgetoon@gmail.com.
@@MarkSzorady thanks, have dropped you a mail with the photo attached.
Mark,
Just in case you interested in some new items to look into, I picked up a brush (silvertip) from Spiffo (company in Canada). And wow what gorgeous stuff and silvertip brushes for 60$. Might be worth a look for you.
Wow! Silvertip for that amount? I'll DEFINITELY give it a look.:) Thank you!:)
And look here, folks: spiffo.com/shop/erebus/
Silvertip $61.00!
NICE, I picked up the Pontos
when considering a brush to shave your head with, do you think getting a larger brush is better? simply because youre shaving a larger area?
I recently purchased a Yaqi 30mm Synthetic Hair Shaving Brush with a Tuxedo Knot. You can see it at: goo.gl/CbwnCM
I also did a video review at: ruclips.net/video/H63yI20MV4o/видео.html
It's a monster brush, but, yes, I pull it out whenever I shave my head. It builds heaps of lather and gives great coverage.:) It's very soft and overall a terrific brush for the money.:)
Now, is it better? In some ways, yes. More coverage and faster application of the lather. But is it really necessary? Can you get the same job done with a 26MM or 24M brush. Yes. But, not all heads (and faces) are created equal. A 30mm brush would be ideal for really big guys. I'm 6' 1" and like using the larger brush.:) So, a person taller than me and with a larger frame would probably benefit even more from a larger brush. Just a guess. YMMV.:)
Do u know what the numbers signify on the semogue brushes
Thank you sir
My pleasure.:)
Who is the jazz pianist?
It's called Bluebird by E's Jammy Jams.
Found the "break in" video, thanks for the tips.
My pleasure.:)
@@MarkSzorady I received the 830 in the mail and I also had a pretty good shave. I watched your "How to Lather video" for some insight. The biggest mistake I made was not blooming the soap. I had a time trying to get the lather just right. The next shave should be much better. I was surprised at how soft the bristles were on the 830. I'm looking forward to it getting softer, and softer.
@@ThaRedPitbull It will definitely get much, much softer.:) Give it a week or two.:) Thereafter, it'll be amazingly soft.:) Love mine!:)
@@MarkSzorady I have another question about the 830. Is it normal for little pieces of bristles to be in my shaving soap after swirling it around?
@@ThaRedPitbull I think yo may be referring to a stray hair or two here falling out of the knot. You can expect to lose a shaving brush hair here and there during it's break-in period. Just about any new brush I've had will shed a hair. It's due to the manufacturing process, as I understand it. The glued hair knot doesn't catch all the hairs. So there may be a few that are still loose within the knot, just barely hanging on, so to speak. You lose a few on that first, second, etc. use. But the hairs that are securely glued in place remain so. Sometimes, you may come across a shaving brush that sheds a LOT of hairs. That' could be an indication of a faulty glue knot job. Also, remember to soak your brush in WARM water, not hot. Hot water may soften the glue over time and cause shedding. Still modern epoxies used to glue the hair knot are pretty robust and hearty and can stand up to a lot.:)
Спасибо за видео! Привет из России!
Thanks very much, AlikKra!:) Glad you enjoyed the video. Hello to you and all in Russia!:)
Here are the Two Best Shave Brushes on the market today? are Simpson King Charles III Coronation Chubby 3 Fiber brush with special handle it has Softer Hair a real bargain is a Brush Monster at 40mm reasonable Price for its size. The Trafalgar's T-3 has a little Harder hair, more affordable in the long run, it's a 29mm not 24mm. buy one and measure it for yourself?? ' it's a clone of a 30mm Chubby 3 Super Badger Shaving Brush without paying for the Super Badger Price. 1, No need to clean your Brush, 2, No need for Brush Stand, 3, NO SOAKING time ready to Go, 4, Fast drying time, 5, Badger or Boar Brushes can and will fall apart Sooner than Later'?, 6, No Break in time, 7, No need for a Brush Stand
8, Modest Price for its size. I have owned it for 5 Years with No Hair Loss with No problems. Rinse Brush in Cold Water. Your mileage may vary? Derby black it's better same price as greens wheelchair larry
Dudes like mark are the reason why there are so many myths in the shave industry. Because he has no idea what he is doing.. there are claimed probably 100s of ways to break in a badger brush.. and this is up there with the hilariously rediculous ones i hope people dont take him serious