I soaked the brush overnight in a bowl of soapy water before using it. There was no smell or odor and I left it on a brush stand to completely dry. It is very easy to create lots of lather using this brush - however even though it has a 24mm knot, it is much smaller than similar badger hair brushes - the loft of 50mm makes this an ideal travel brush. The handle is on the smaller size as well - being made of resin, it is not very easy to hold when whisking up lather in a shaving bowl - perhaps the best way to use it is to apply some shaving cream to the brush and then face lather it. There was no shedding of any bristles and cleanup was very easy as the brush head is on the smaller size and rinses out fast. I wish I had bought the C7 as that is bigger and I tend to like bigger brushes. Have tossed it into my Dopp bag as that is where it belongs - essentially a travel brush.