Boar Bristle Brush

[myotislucifugus]

So, I haven't brushed my hair in 3 years. I switched to a wooden comb and got rid of my brush. Now that I'm living in a place with soft water, I've been thinking a BBB would be a good way to more evenly distribute sebum in my hair and try and cut down on washes, or at least spread the joy of sebum to my drier ends.

I've noticed there are a number of degrees of stiffness for the brushes, and I bought a "soft" one, thinking of it like a toothbrush, that it would be gentle.

Thing is, it won't penetrate the mantle to my scalp, and doesn't really neaten out my hair in any way, which was another goal. I was looking for a smooth appearance. (I brush after I've combed it out)

Is a stiffer brush better? Does a soft brush work for anyone? My hair type is in my profile, if that matters. I haven't brushed in quite a while, and never with a BBB. Is this normal?

[Shastrix]

This reminded me of when I was looking at the Mason Pearson (http://masonpearsonbrushes.com/faq/how-to-choose-a-mason-pearson-hairbrush/) brush website and there was a mini FAQ about chooseing a brush. It says that:

Boar Bristle tufts: used for fine to normal hair, except where specified.
Boar Bristle & Nylon tufts: used for normal to thick hair.
Nylon tufts: Used for thick hair or an detangler for newly shampooed hair.

I have quite a stiff board hair bristle brush with nylon tufts as I have thick hair. I bought it after buying a soft boar bristle brush that barely did anything when I used it. I suppose it depends on what you want to achieve when using the brush. Perhaps stiffer brushes can cause more damage? Any brushing is going to cause some damage, so all things in moderation I suppose.

As an aside, I swear my softer brush makes my hair feel oilier... 0_o

[Katze]

I like my BBB at the moment for 'cleaning' my scalp and distributing sebum (at least that feels like what it is doing) before washes. I wash every 4-5 days, and especially before WO washes (which I do for every other wash) the BBB feels really nice.

For a long time, I didn't brush, because the BBB destroyed my wave. But since I mostly am wearing my hair up now, I am also using it to get my hair 'smooth' (nothing gets my hair really smooth, but smoothER) for updos.

We have similar hair so I would guess it might work well for you too?

[Madame J]

I BBB with my head upside down to help spread my hair out. If I'm doing it seriously, I section my hair and brush each section, so I make sure I get my whole head. Then, I detangle again after I BBB. A BBB is not meant to be a detangler, so it might help if you comb, preen, then comb again if you want a neater look.

[myotislucifugus]

This reminded me of when I was looking at the Mason Pearson (http://masonpearsonbrushes.com/faq/how-to-choose-a-mason-pearson-hairbrush/) brush website and there was a mini FAQ about chooseing a brush. It says that:

Boar Bristle tufts: used for fine to normal hair, except where specified.
Boar Bristle & Nylon tufts: used for normal to thick hair.
Nylon tufts: Used for thick hair or an detangler for newly shampooed hair.

I have quite a stiff board hair bristle brush with nylon tufts as I have thick hair. I bought it after buying a soft boar bristle brush that barely did anything when I used it. I suppose it depends on what you want to achieve when using the brush. Perhaps stiffer brushes can cause more damage? Any brushing is going to cause some damage, so all things in moderation I suppose.

As an aside, I swear my softer brush makes my hair feel oilier... 0_o

That's what I was thinking about this soft one... I feel oilier and it doesn't distribute much. So do you find that the stiffer, the better for sebum distribution?

[Arctic]

I think the very soft ones are best for babies or people with very thin hair. Just a hunch...

[Shastrix]

I can't say that I actually consciously attempt the brush the oils from my scalp down the length of my hair, but I suppose that is what I am doing. For me, the stiffer bristled brush works better than the softer bristles but we have different hair types so I'd wait to see if a consensus develops.

I’ve just re-read your name; originally I thought it said something like “myolytic fungus” which I thought was odd as it made no sense. But it just clicked that it is Myotis lucifugus which of course are the ickle brown bats. :)