Aluminium brush handles

[les24preludes]

Post just arrived and here is my next project - an aluminium handle, or rather two. Aluminium tube measures 35mm OD and 28.5mm ID. Tube is 101mm and 86g so will be 2 of 50mm handles at 43g plus whatever. Looks like a 28mm knot, synthetic.

This is shaping up to be close to a Simpson Chubby 2 in dimensions, so I'm guessing about 54mm loft in this case. I don't know where to get a Tuxedo knot or similar Yaqi in 28mm or even 26mm. DS Cosmetics do a 26mm, which I have on order.

US $5.8 |DSCOSMETIC 24mm 26mm soft Synthetic hair shaving brush knots-in Shaving Brush from Beauty & Health on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

I don't have a lathe, which is a challenge, but I do have a drill press. Wondering how to fill in the handle, then round off and finish the bottom. Looks very plain ATM. Ideas?

 

[GAW9576]

You could fill it with casting resin dyed whatever color you want or make a wooden plug the right size and length and glue it in. Either way would look great. Look forward to seeing the end product.

 

[les24preludes]

Good suggestions. What's the best way to narrow down a 28.5mm opening to 26mm if it's a case of fitting a smaller knot?

 

[GAW9576]

Good suggestions. What's the best way to narrow down a 28.5mm opening to 26mm if it's a case of fitting a smaller knot?

If that's the case I would fill the entire thing with resin then drill the knot hole after, you would have to be careful to center it perfectly and you will have just a very thin sleeve on the inside.

 

[GAW9576]

There's some good information in this thread about how much room you want around a knot that you set and how deep to set it

bore hole/knot diameter

 

[CigarSmoka]

28.5mm is ok for a 26mm knot but that’s pushing it, I definitely wouldn’t go any smaller. You might want to set the knot a little deeper than you normally would to keep it from splaying too much.

I’d do exactly what @GAW9576 said. I turn a wooden disk to fit my pvc pipe mold into because I got tired of always taping them up, you could do the same for the aluminum pipe. To keep it centered I would leave a pointy nib on the top of the disc roughly the same angle as the forstner bit I’d use to drill the new hole so it stays centered. ie, the bottom would become the top when it’s time to drill. I light coating with nonstick cooking spray keeps the resin from adhering to the wood and is a lot cheaper than mold release spray. There are YT videos on turning with a drill press or even a mini lathe made with a hand drill. It works but there are safety issues involved since you’re using a power tool in a way that it was never intended for, something I don’t recommend.

 

[les24preludes]

Thanks for that. I've ordered some 28mm dowel. Not having a lathe I have to buy in stuff others would simply turn. I want to round off the bottom in my drill press to give a comfortable grip, so I envisage gluing the dowel into the tube and then making a hole in the centre where I can insert a threaded rod and a couple of nuts and I can hold that in the drill press chuck for finishing.

28.5 is quite betwixt and between - could work with either 28mm or 26mm knot. I intend to use a synthetic so there will probably be a glue bump, so 26mm could work set lower. Thinking of Uomo knots off AE - any experience of those?