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I've noticed this a lot recently with my brushes and was wondering if anyone else experiences this?
I use brush soap to clean my brushes and it seems to affect my brushes in that they are now very difficult to actually use. They are 'natural' bristle and not synthetic, but now they splay as soon as I try to use them. My favourite number 4 brush which I use for general basecoating now splays on contact as if the ferrule is caked in paint(It isn't).
The only explanation I can come up with is that the soap is making them too 'soft'? If that makes any sense.
Other weird things happening to my brushes are the points are disintegrating,leaving the tips flat edged.
The name of the soap is 'Pink Soap'.

I've also experienced the splaying issue when using Pink Soap. Natural brushes too- Winsor-Newtons. I haven't experienced the disintegrating tips, though.

What's your technique when washing? I've found the splaying gets easier to deal with if I put a bit of soap in the palm of my hand and then jam the brushes straight down into it- really make sure it cleans all the way into the ferrule. It straightens right out after and is usually good for a decent amount of painting after.

When I get back to my paints I think I'm going to switch up brush soaps, see if that helps the issue.

Basically the same as you. I thought at first that it might be some soap remaining on the brush when I'm painting but I make sure that all the soap is off. I might go back to using Revell Painta clean(horrible name!) which is pretty good at getting all the paint off!

I use The Master's Brush Cleaner and have had no problem at all. In fact, my brushes have lasted for years.

I use Inox cleaner/lubricator, stuff is lanolin (wool grease) based - not sure how it works with fur brushes, never splashed out for a fur brush but it's brilliant with synthetics, haven't grabbed a new one in three years.