Shaving Brush #10048 Boar Bristle Aka The PRO 48

This is my second shaving brush, with the first being a Tweezerman badger that I have had for a year or so. I wanted to have an alternative to my badger because, as much as I love my simple Tweezerman, I prefer a stiffer brush for lathering. This boar brush is definitely that. First off it is huge compared to the Tweezerman with a nice grip and a head full of bristles. The chrome(ish) handle looks sharp and the brush has a sturdy, substantial feel to it. I caution users to be patient with this brush because when you first get it, it smells awful. It will leave its musky boar smell on your shave soap, your face or anything else it touches. This will last a week or so; I even broke mine in by soaking/rinsing in a solution of Taylor of Old Bond Street Sandalwood but the eau-de-boar still lingered. After that one week period, the smell dissipates and you are rewarded with a pleasantly stiff brush with lots of broken-in bristles that whip up creams and soaps nicely and prepare your face well. This is a very good brush and it is priced appropriately.As for badger vs. boar, both are good but have differing strengths/weaknesses. Lots of personal opinion here, but I give the nod to badger for whipping up a lather and retaining water, but give the nod to boar for overall feeling and beard preparation. Enjoy.UPDATE 10/2021: This brush is still holding up fantastic. I have been using it constantly for seven years now and it still works great. The smell wore off after about a week and I lose a bristle only once in a while.

My wife bought me this brush. First, let me say the Omega Pro 48 is a Big brush. It has a 67 mm loft with a 27 mm knot. I am new to wet shaving and at first I thought this brush was a mistake for me personally. I might have gone with a brush that was in the 55 mm loft, 22 mm knot size. But, after a month of ownership, I really like this brush.It is indeed a boar brush. The first time you wet it, you will be reminded. What a wet dog odor. For the first week, I practice lathered the brush in a bowl, then let it dry each day. Now, after using it each day with my regular shaving soap (Sterling Clubman by Sterling Soap Company), it smells amazing.My brush lost a few hairs the first few weeks of use, maybe 5-6 total. Since then there are no more.It is not as soft as a badger, but that may not be a bad thing. The brush does have a break-in period. The hairs will split and will feel softer. But it will still have some backbone which is good for getting a nice lather if you use harder soaps It is suppose to be better at exfoliating your skin and working with courser beard hairs. That sound good, but I cannot prove it.The chrome colored plastic handle looked cheap to me at first, but I see now it is durable. It should stand up to drops on the counter-top. That probably should not be a an issue with the large size grip. It will not absorb water which could be a problem with wooden handles.Overall, Omega seems to make good products for a very good price.

A fantastic natural boar bristle brush, at a great price!As other reviewers have noted, this brush will take a week or so to be broken in. Once broken in, you've got yourself one fantastic shaving accessory.The ergonomics of the handle are comfortable in your hand, and the bristles are just the right length, and the shape of the crown of the brush lends to good distribution of your shaving soap, cream, etc.I generally don't like plastic handles, and I am not one for chrome, but the value and performance far outweigh my personal preferences. This is a brush that you should NOT overlook!A few things to note, and I am sure these points have been covered by other reviewers (but they may bear repeating): As a natural boar bristle product, this brush must be broken in. Why? Because 1) The bristles need to soften, or as some say "season". 2) You're probably not going to like the bristle's smell for the first week or so. 3) You need to work out any loose bristles. Once broken in, you've got yourself a reliable, high quality brush!If you're interested, I broke my brush in and deodorized it by soaking it handle up in warm water with a good quality shampoo (luckily my wife uses the good stuff), for a couple of hours. DO NOT soak the entire brush, handle and all. You don't want to compromise the binding in the handle, right? After the two hour soak, I worked in some conditioner, and let that sit for fifteen minutes, and rinsed it off. I allowed the brush to air dry, and when it was completely dry, I grabbed my favorite tub of Proraso, and worked up a heavy lather on the brush, being careful to work the lather into the bristles. I then let the brush sit overnight. Yes, the lather will dry out, but what you are doing here is helping to "season" the brush. The conditioners, and fragrance will set in the brush as it dries. What was accomplished was that the brush was conditioned, and the rather unpleasant (to me at least) odor of wet boar was replaced by the pleasant aroma of my shaving cream. The next morning, all I had to do was rinse my brush, and put it into service.Overall, I'm very pleased with this brush, and would recommend it to those new to the more civilized shaving techniques, as well as those that are just looking for a new or different brush for their shaving routine.