My friend. The brush is here. It would be not possible without your help. THANKS.
2nd Resto - Rubberset 400-3
- Thread starter theretroshave
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- #142
Gorgeous result Juan! That knot looks perfect with your colors! I predict that you'll enjoy this brush for many years to come. Thanks for sharing your "new" brush and your story. I look forward to seeing your post-bloom shot! Enjoy, my friend!
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My friends. Please realise that these colors are also the colors of "Los Angeles LAKERS" basketball team! Oh yeah! Matt made me realise it.
Friends, yesterday I cleaned the brush with TarniShield for silver. It was brighter than in the pictures, shone like a star. This morning I used it for the first time.
I'm madly in love with "her". Her curves are perfect. To the touch, it feels soft and warm like the skin of a woman in her splendor. (Aluminum is thermal conductor). I think the romance will be durable and beautiful, mystical. Ah, I am a poet.
I'm madly in love with "her". Her curves are perfect. To the touch, it feels soft and warm like the skin of a woman in her splendor. (Aluminum is thermal conductor). I think the romance will be durable and beautiful, mystical. Ah, I am a poet.
Juan - fantastic! The brush turned out beautifully - I know it will be a favorite of yours for years and years. The story you tell is so cool, as it really encapsulates everything that is great about this forum in one restoration tale. Collaboration, brain storming, and helping each other out toward the goal of happier shaves and happier lives. And yes, I will always see it as a Laker brush!
If you get a post-bloom shot, I'd be intrigued to see it!
If you get a post-bloom shot, I'd be intrigued to see it!
That new high mountain white is driving me nuts waiting for someone to get it and review it. That said, that new Super-2-band Finest is calling my name. If I had another one of these handles (and I may very well just go find another), that's the way I would go, if only to give it a whirl.
Matt, my friend, I have used a good soap, Czech&Speake Oxford&Cambridge for the first use. The Golden Nib Finest Badger 24 mm knot is very good. Very soft on the tips, but firmly. The FAN shape is wonderful. The loft you suggested, 49.5 mm is perfect.
Give some days for the pics. This week-end
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- Thread starter
- #148
I'm glad to hear that you are so very pleased with the brush Juan. I have to agree with Matt's sentiment- your story highlights what makes B&B such a wonderful community. In my humble opinion, these are the best handles ever designed. Add to that the fact that we can each customize them to suit our preference, and the Rubberset 400 becomes an even greater product. Enjoy your new "lady."
Hey guys,
Are any of you using a brush stand to display your fine work? I've been trying to find a suitable stand for my Mergress & Rubberset 400, but haven' had much luck. I feel guilty leaving my 400 in a cabinet...it's hard to admire her when she's put away. Maybe one of you owners can suggest a stand that would be worthy.....
Are any of you using a brush stand to display your fine work? I've been trying to find a suitable stand for my Mergress & Rubberset 400, but haven' had much luck. I feel guilty leaving my 400 in a cabinet...it's hard to admire her when she's put away. Maybe one of you owners can suggest a stand that would be worthy.....
Hello mates. Here I introduce a brush that I just restored.
Specs:
Brand: RUBBERSET
Model: 400-3 Made in USA.
Material: Aluminum.
Year: I would like to know exactly of what year is, but I have not managed to find out. It appears that barbers bought these brushes along with a spare set of knots. Thus changing the knot unscrewing the handle, I do not know if for each customer they had one knot, or not.
Original Hair: Bristle
After restoration:
Knot: The Golden Nib Finest Badger FAN type (Two band)
Diameter: 24 mm
Loft: 49.5 mm
Total height: 130.5 mm
Handle height: 81 mm (25 mm cap and rubber seal, plus 56 mm from the rest of the handle)
Cap diameter: 31 mm
Rim diameter: 34.5 mm
Smaller diameter: 21 mm
Major Diameter: 30.5 mm
Base diameter: 21.5 mm
Distance between fluted ridges: 15 mm approx.
Weight: 62 gr.
Beauty: Significant. I'm falling in love with "her".
Value: Very High. This would not have been possible without the collaboration of many great people. Several friends. The world is full of wonderful people and I have the good fortune to run into them.
I tell its story.
In February I started to see some pictures of a brush like this in the SOTD thread at Badger & Blade. The pictures were of Brian. Some wonderful pics. Made with great taste. Brian had opened a thread about the restoration of his brush in referring to another member who had inspired him, Gigster. I fell madly in love with the brush. I started looking. On ebay find them expensive, but I looked on ebay Spain. One day I asked Brian by PM if he could help me to find one brush at a good price. I thought he frequented the flea markets. He said he did not frequent the flea markets for lack of time, but now there was a direct purchase on ebay USA, at a reasonable price. I did not see it from ebay Spain because it was only for shipping to USA. He did buy it for me and managed to send it to Spain afterwards. Thanks Brian. I was not the only one who was in love with this brush. In the thread of Brian began to appear a legion of fans, and of course, the prices of the brushes on ebay skyrocketed. We were all competing like wolves. I wanted to get two more for my friends Proyet and UFO, but has not yet been possible at a good price.
When I had the brush, I removed the old hair and gave it a cleaning and disinfection. My friend Proyet undertook to restore the handle. He sanded and polished it with care. Thanks Proyet.
Well, slowly but surely, I started looking for colorful rubber gaskets. The rubber seal is not essential, but it gives a touch of color. Since I'm capricious, I wanted to have the brush with colors of Solanum Dulcamara flower, which are purple and yellow. For number, yellow enamel. But the rubber seal has been very difficult. I could not find anything. I asked in the thread of Brian, and Matt DeNicola said there was an O-ring on ebay, purple, one inch, that would be fine.
Days passed and I was ordering the knot while Proyet was restoring the handle. I decided the knot would be The Golden Nib Finest Badger 24mm FAN, I think it's a great knot. When I went to buy the O-ring, damn it, the seller only sent to USA, and ebay not even let me send a message to ask. So I got in touch with Matt and he has been kind enough to buy me a pair of O-rings and send them to me by mail. Also sent me some of his O-rings in other colors. Thanks Matt. This O-ring was so thick I could not screw the cap of the brush. So I decided to cut it in half, guided by the lines that had the O-ring itself. Fortunately Matt sent two units, because the first attempt was disastrous and I damaged the O-ring. In the second I got it right, with a cutter. I had to put the O-ring over a PVC tube with two rubber bands attached to the sides and make the surgery.
Meanwhile, with Proyet we met again for lunch and he returned the handle to me. Note that his work is excellent. It is impossible that craters disappear because the brush is old, and not only that, but it is likely to be casting bubbles, as he said some have appeared in sanding the material with sandpaper.
And with all the parts at home, the doubt was the loft. I was testing several measures. Initially I thought of 53 mm. So dry, the brush was very nice, but probably when wet it will be too opening. Then I went to 51 mm. Let thought so, but after a consultation with Luis, and Matt, I did try to 49.5 mm. And in the end decided to leave it to that loft. I think it's great for face lathering. So yesterday the glue. With standard Araldit to not be overwhelmed by setting time. This brush is glued from behind, and you have to be careful not to clog the thread with the epoxy. And leave enough height to screw the cap even without the rubber seal. Helping epoxy with a wire and gravity does the rest. I used masking tape to prevent staining of the knot, but the knot is tight. I put the tape protected knot inside a PVC pipe, leaving out the cap to hold it upright and able to work. This glue hardens completely in three days, and I will wait before using.
Well, here are some pictures. I have many more but I made a choice to not overwhelm you. Enjoy them.
I add the promised pics, after bloom.
And the today's SOTD pic
Enjoy!
Fantastic!!! The knot will keep blooming nicely, and it is nice and densely packed, so it won't ever just completely flop out of control.
Jealous of the Jabonman-Myrsol combo!
Jealous of the Jabonman-Myrsol combo!
My friend, here a nice stainless steel stand for brush and razor. It is made by an spanish artisan metalworker.
The Rubberset 400-3 brush and The Cobra Classic Razor pose beautifully in it for the picture.
Take a look. Hope it helps.
Thanks for the picture. The 400 looks great with your Cobra on that stand.
good lord we drove the price up on these... 75 bucks for the most recent one on ebay. I want one but not that bad.
Yowza. That's pretty crazy. Glad I got in early!
Son of a gun...how did I miss this thread? I've had a 400-4 for a year or so that I restored with a 24mm TGN Silvertip. It's an awesome brush, but I'd love to dress it up with a colored O-ring. Some of the brushes pictured here are fantastic.
So if I read it correctly, the collar screws off (I didn't unscrew mine when I did the original restore) and it takes a 1" O-ring?
So if I read it correctly, the collar screws off (I didn't unscrew mine when I did the original restore) and it takes a 1" O-ring?
Yep, it just unscrews. Sometimes it takes a bit of "persuasion" to loosen it up. When I did mine, I used a bit of WD40 to loosen it up. Some guys have had luck with hot water. Regarding the O-Ring, it is a 1" diameter. You can pick up the black ones at nearly any hardware store, but be sure it's not to thick. Otherwise you won't be able to screw the knot back on to the handle. I think mine was 1/16th thick. Good Luck!
He everyone - yes persuasion is exactly what is needed - I was a bit shy of torqueing off the top as its only aluminium so I did some WD40 too to penetrate through and then when I was steaming to see if the Boar Knot would loosen it unscrewed so easily it was as though someone had just done it for me! Throughout the restoration I took maybe 40 photos - did an O ring in black with a 2mm xsection and 25mm internal diameter and it fitted really well. Here's the first and last photos of the restoration but I used 12 different grades of wet/dry sandpaper to get the aluminium bright. Massive thanks to Dr Dulcamara for his help and advice and for tips he sent through from Gigster too. The knot is a 26mm 2 band badger - my loft is higher than most in this group at 54mm but still seems to have a lot of spine for digging into hard soaps. Its my go to brush now and I love it! Ratty
Oh my God! Shine like a star! Very well done! Have you needed to widen the collar to fit this knot?
That shine is amazing Ratty! How about some post-bloom pictures?
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