how do you break in new brushes?

just curious to see what people do to get their new brushes broken in. do you just simply use it as often as possible or do you make a bunch of lather at one time?

Well Andrew, I can only speak about what I do with my boar brushes. I treat a new brush the same as I do one of my seasoned brushes. I soak 75% of the hair in hot tap water for about 15-20 minutes and then build a lather in my scuttle with either soap or cream. I usually do a 3-pass shave so I lather my face three times. When through, I rinse well in hot tap water, give the brush a good shaking out and hang bristle side down. By the next morning it's completely dry and if I choose to use it again the next day, it's ready.

Usually takes me a week, maybe two to break in a boar brush.

When I used badger brushes, I soaked in hot water for maybe 10-minutes, built lather and shaved. A good badger should be pretty much broken in within three or four days.

I do the same as Johnny.

With my new boar, I'm soaking it and making a lather with it even on days when I don't use it during this break-in period.

I might add, I received a new Semogue 2011 LE Finest Bristle 2 in the mail today and I will start its break in process Saturday morning. I will shave with it everyday for 10-days, then let it rest for a few days.

I do this :

Several cycles (at least 10) of lathering with a hand soap.

I just use them! Badger, boar, horse, I treat them all the same.

Gentlemen,
I treat all the brushes the same way by soaking them for a few minutes, making lather and shaving away with a smile on my Hollywood face.

I do pretty much the same as Johnny with the exception that I do not use a new brush day after day for that amount of time. I put them in the rotation after the first use. Sometimes the new badger and horse brushes have a pretty strong funk. In those instances, I will let the brush soak and then I will shampoo or build a test lather two to three times. Often, I use RL Safari for the test lathers as it produces a good scent to combat the funk. I hang the brush upside down and use it the next morning and then put it in the rotation.

I rinse them in hot water, then lather them and rinse again. With a new boar I just use them as I would a broken in brush. The more you use a new boar the better the bristles become.

I do not do anything special. If the brush has a bit of a funk, I will shampoo it and do a test lather with Proraso cream prior to using it. If there is not much of a funk, I simply use it.

Just use it like any other brush.

Andrew,
i clean it with a soap lather five or six times, put it on the heating duct for half an hour to dry, let it completely dry for one day, then begin using it.
Cheers

Nothing special here.

I really have never had a problem with the smell of a new brush (Badger or Boar). Understand, I grew up with horses and that animal smell my friends, is one of the best smells in the world.

Boars, obviously take more time to get the soft tips... but then, that's a different topic.