(05-14-2018, 07:50 PM)Cino Wrote: Brad, your website has a helpful brush care guide that suggests pressing a brush no more than 1/4 it's loft while splaying. That seems a little light. When I try that, most brushes won't even splay. I generally press close to half the loft. I don't want to ruin my brushes. Do you think you could share a photo of the proper way to spay a brush?
Thanks for your kind words! We do try to be helpful.
I'm kinda heads-down in the shop right now and wish I had some quick illustrative pics; but in their absence, I'll share some thoughts. The thing is:
this is one of those seemingly simple questions that requires a long answer. Even so, there is more that could be said. (Let me also preface my remarks by saying that what I'm about to describe is
my preferred method. There are other ways. This is
not intended to disparage what you--or anyone else--prefer(s). I'm just trying to point out that every method entails some degree of compromise, as I'll discuss in a minute.
That said: first of all, I don't find it necessary to splay a brush. (Others differ--and that's perfectly fine with me.) Rather, I like to soften the soap first by covering it with warm water for 4-5 minutes (or so) while I'm in the shower or doing something else. At the same time, I'll also soak the brush in warm water. Before loading, I'll dump the water from the soap, remove the brush from whatever container it's been soaking in and gently wring some of the excess water out of it.
I load the brush in gentle circular motions
letting the tips do the work. If the brush doesn't load, I'll add a few drops of warm water until it does. This usually takes around 30-45 seconds. Once the brush is loaded, I'll add a little more water to work up the desired lather consistency either in a bowl/scuttle or on my face, depending on my mood.
When applying lather, I might start out with a few circular motions, being careful not to press down more than ~1/4 of the way, then finish off with back and forth "paintbrush" strokes. This method admittedly limits the amount of scrub I get from the brush. So when I want more scrub--and maybe a little scritch--I give my good M&F and BSSW brushes a break and reach for an inexpensive 20mm Simpson Berkeley 46 Pure. This brush might be a little tough on sensitive skin, but it makes a nice change every once in a while.
The thing to remember is that lather is only soap, water, and air. The brush simply combines these components--creating lather--and applies it. What I look for are the most efficient and aesthetically pleasing ways to accomplish these functions. How you do it is entirely up to you. Each method entails, as I mentioned before, some degree of compromise. (Again, I'm not advocating one method over another--just explaining my preferences.)
About compromises. To me, a shaving brush is a tool: a very nice tool to be sure, but a tool nonetheless--just like a saw is to a carpenter. And like the carpenter's saw, all use takes "life" out of a brush. Brushes eventually wear out just like a saw does. Some types of use wear brushes out faster than others, just as cutting harder woods wears a saw out faster than cutting softer woods.
The bottom line is that the more pressure we apply to a brush, the greater the stress--and therefore the greater the wear. At the same time, circular motions twist the fibers, creating forces that wear brushes down faster than back and forth motions. We see these effects more often with "pointier" (if that's a word) bulb knots--where the central hairs/fibers are shorter than those on the outside. What eventually happens is that the more we splay the brush, the more we wear down these central hairs--because they bear most of the pressure--eventually resulting in the infamous "donut hole." Circular motions also increase the stress on the fibers as a result of twisting force. Certainly, other factors come into play as well: how well the brush is rinsed and dried between uses, hardness/softness of water, the amount of soap scum buildup on the fibers, etc.
Back in the day, when men typically owned just one, brushes wore out faster, due to constant use, than most of ours do today simply because we tend to own more than one brush. (No kidding, right?)
Still in all, if I like to splay the heck out of my brushes and apply lather in vigorous circles, what can I do to maximize brush life? The first thing I must accept is that these actions will shorten brush life. There's no way around it. But I can do a few things get the most life out of my brushes.
- Take proper care of them. I hesitate to say this to a group of experienced wet shavers, but it does bear repeating. (True story: I gave an expensive brush to one of my sons-in-law about a year ago. A month or two later, I found that brush upside down in a soap bowl covered (soaked?) in dried-out lather. The brush was already starting to shed. Mild disappointment, anyone?)
- Rotate my brushes. Rotations of even two brushes give each time to dry, add variety to our daily routine, and, obviously, extend brush life by spreading out usage v. using one brush every day.
- All things being equal, I would buy Fans or Hybrids--or at least Bulbs with flatter crowns as these shapes tend to spread some of the forces exerted on the knot. (Quick aside: a flatter crown one of the specifications I give my Chinese knot makers.)
- I might look for denser brushes with lower lofts because they tend to be "scrubbier" than those with less dense knots set at higher lofts, possibly requiring less pressure on the knot. (I can make counter arguments here; but I throw this out for your consideration.)
- Finally, if a favorite brush wears out, the maker--or someone else--can often replace the knot. (I don't recommend that for just any brush, but for a nice expensive or vintage brush, I wouldn't hesitate.
We could easily go into an extended conversation on this topic--and if we do, I might ask the moderators to move it to the General Shaving category.
In any event, I hope at least some of this is helpful.
Best wishes for a good day!
.) 
