Adjusting Loft

[Steve_in_CT]

I am doing my first attempt at restoring a brush and I'm a bit puzzled by the loft. The knot I ordered has a loft of 65 mm. I believe that measure is from the base to the tip, so the effective loft will depend upon how I set it in the handle. My Duke 2 handle has a depth of 29 mm. So if I don't fill the hole somewhat, will I have a loft of 36 mm? That seems awfully short. Since I like a brush with lots of backbone, perhaps I need to add about 9 mm to the handle to get it to 45 mm. What should I use? I've heard of folks using nickels, but a nickel is only about 2 mm, so I would need 4 of them, making the handle very heavy. Can I just fill the handle with epoxy to the desired height?

 

[Foyle]

You could fill the handle to the desired depth with epoxy. That would work fine. Just make sure that you do the fill first and let it fully cure before setting the knot.

 

[StuMcB]

I do know some guys here have use that expanding foam and est the knot on top of that. Whats the Knot thickness? 19 or 26mm for instance. Also what hair is it? Two bands for face lathering do well at around 55mm IMHO. Where as I've found Silver tip a tad taller.

 

[Steve_in_CT]

It is a Silvertip 22/65, and I face lather. Suggestions?

 

[mblakele]

I would try it at 48-mm. The knot will swell a bit when it gets damp, so if it is snug enough you may not need any glue just to try it out. Or a dab of silicone adhesive should hold well enough for a test lather or two.

Oh, and I see this was posted to the main brush forum. For future reference, there is a subforum for this topic: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/54-Brush-Making-and-Restorations

 

[Jarick]

Temporarily, you could stack some coins and set the knot on top to see how you like it.

 

[StuMcB]

Defo set it a little shorter.

 

[NSmalls]

A master craftsman I am friends with uses pieces of cork from a wine bottle.