blzrfn's brush restoration log

[Bman437]

Wow!! I am hooked every one of the brushes turned out great. Now I need to search the city tomorrow for a handle to start working on.

 

[Dr Dulcamara]

Here is the final resting place for the Frank Shaving 20mm silvertip knot. I have once again set the knot at 45mm loft, this time using two pennies as spacers. The handle cleaned up fairly well and polishing with Flitz really brought out the shine and color depth. I used a Sharpie oil based paint marker to fill in the letters and wiped away the excess with an old t-shirt. The lettering isn't as defined as I would like, but there is a little scuffing that I don't think I could easily remove without causing more damage than good. Overall I am pretty pleased with the outcome and this will look much better in my bathroom than the generic black plastic brush that it is replacing.

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I'm crying of envious. I would kill someone for this brush. Well, just joking. The brush is exceptional.

 

[Dr Dulcamara]

Well, the Omega boar knot never performed as I had hoped so I ditched it all together and installed instead a 26mm "High Mountain" 2-band knot I picked up off aliexpress. The test palm lather I did gives me really high hope that this brush will finally meet my standards for face lathering, but the real test will have to wait until tommorrow or Sunday. In the mean time here are some pics of how it turned out.
Knot installed (with silicone adhesive and 2 quarters serving as spacers, set at 55mm loft)
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Lathered up with Cella
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Post rinse and dry bloom shot
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Top density shot
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Better this way!

 

[Dr Dulcamara]

...and finally all bloomed out after test lather and drying.

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A cute thing!

 

[Dr Dulcamara]

Latest restoration is of a two-tone brush from Germany. The original knot was in usable condition, but I had better ideas for it. Using a short-loft "custom" (seems to be a trendy word in the restoration hobby) 2-band knot from China. The final specs are 23mm x 44mm loft which is a bit lower than planned, but I can always pull the knot and add another nickel if I need to. Everything about this brush just seems right now.

Before:

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After:
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Man, you are killing me softly with your restorations!

 

[Dr Dulcamara]

I washed out the new brush with some shampoo and proceeded to do a test lather with Arko (no more badger funk!). During the test lather I felt that the brush felt too stiff, even though the tips were as soft as feathers. Using the brush for this morning's shave, I face lathered some vintage Old Spice soap and all concerns about too much backbone were relieved as the brush felt great. It reminds me very much of the Simpson Emperor 2-band that I recently sold, but with softer tips. I need to take a measurement of the final loft as I set this totally by feel. I am very pleased with the way this brush turned out.

Post bloom (still wet from the trial run)

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I have many updates that I need to post to this thread, but none are more important (to me) than my AS2M that I scored and restored. I left work early today to avoid a snowy commute and decided to give this old and abused brush a breath of new life. I chose a 24mm Virginia Sheng Silvertip knot that I had laying around, which was a bit of an upgrade from the 20mm Pure Badger knot that was installed originally. I polished the handle with a flannel buff and blue compound. The knot is set with clear RTV silicone to allow for loft adjustments if necessary. Final measurements are 25mm at the base with a 49mm loft.

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Oh my God! I am...

 

[blzrfn]

I am humbled by your kind words Dr.

 

[mattdenicola]

Love that last brush, Dave. A great shape, to be sure.

 

[gunslinger1108]

I will add a couple of words of caution though, the hot glue is pretty permanent and will solidify very quickly when inserting the knot so make sure you get it in there straight and properly aligned. Also, I wouldn't recommend this method if you are unsure of the loft as there is not an easy way to adjust it, for that I would use silicone adhesive, which by the way is not compatible with a hot glue fill.

How permanent is the hot glue? I filled a ever ready c40 with hot glue to provide a shelf for the knot to sit against. Is there a epoxy or any adhesive that will bond to the hot glue base?

 

[blzrfn]

How permanent is the hot glue? I filled a ever ready c40 with hot glue to provide a shelf for the knot to sit against. Is there a epoxy or any adhesive that will bond to the hot glue base?

After your shelf is set and cooled use another dime sized application to adhere the knot to the shelf, if done properly the new glue will create a weld like bond with the filler and make a semi permanent bond

 

[gunslinger1108]

Thanks, any concerns with the glue softening up and letting go during normal use with hot tap water?

 

[blzrfn]

I have not had that issue, nor would I imagine that would even be possible in the course of regular shaving. You may be able to use boiling water to remove the knot if needed, but I'm not a proponent of the "steam method".

 

[blzrfn]

Here is an updated picture of my restorations that are still in my possession, unfortunately I think a few may have filtered through without getting photographed. I will make sure to make pictures a priority in future restorations.


Back row L to R:
Kent butterscotch w/ Frank's HMW, Simpson AS2M w/ VS Silvertip, Simpson MF5 w/ TGN XD Finest, Vie Long Beehive w/ VS Silvertip, Vie Long Beehive w/ Frank's Finest
Front row L to R:
Omega 49 w/ LioJuny Finest, Made Rite with TGN Silvertip A, Vulfix 2236 w/ VS Finest

I have several dozen brushes in the garage awaiting their turn, but I'm happy with what I have at the moment.

 

[Haggises]

If I wasn't on tapatalk id insert a jaw drop smiley here.
Nice work sir!

 

[JaxJim]

Here is an updated picture of my restorations that are still in my possession, unfortunately I think a few may have filtered through without getting photographed. I will make sure to make pictures a priority in future restorations.

View attachment 416955
Back row L to R:
Kent butterscotch w/ Frank's HMW, Simpson AS2M w/ VS Silvertip, Simpson MF5 w/ TGN XD Finest, Vie Long Beehive w/ VS Silvertip, Vie Long Beehive w/ Frank's Finest
Front row L to R:
Omega 49 w/ LioJuny Finest, Made Rite with TGN Silvertip A, Vulfix 2236 w/ VS Finest

I have several dozen brushes in the garage awaiting their turn, but I'm happy with what I have at the moment.

Excellent work (as usual), Dave-- you've got some real beauties there!

I know what you mean about letting some slip through without photographing them. I've got a few that are gone that I neglected to photograph and now regret it.

 

[Roderick]

Excellent work. Makes my tiny little Ever Ready 115 pale by comparison. And mine has a cream sold the circumference that might make it not wothwhile

 

[blzrfn]

My latest restoration was a bit of a bumpy road. For the complete story, check out this thread:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...m-bad-to-worse-and-back?p=6077557#post6077557

Mystery Butterscotch "Tulip"

Before:
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After:
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Post Bloom:
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[blzrfn]

My wife left me home alone for the day with a list of honey-dos. I managed to get the tasks done with time to spare so headed to the garage for a little fooling around. I have a box full of old brushes that need a new life so I grabbed a few that have been calling my name for some time.

First up was the barber brush, I have had an idea for this brush for awhile and involves a too tall lofted Omega.

It may or may not be obvious what I decided to do, but here are the results:

The Bartell #3 ended up measuring 28x57mm utilizing the Omega blonde knot. The Omega handle received a 28mm TGN Finest measuring 32x51mm. Both are set pretty low, but I used hot glue as filler for both handles and to set the knots so they can be removed and readjusted if necessary.

The first project went so quick and smooth I started in on the others. I didn't have any premeditated plans for these handles so just let the knots and handles match themselves up. Unfortunately the Simpson AS3M was picky and demanded a sacrifice.

I split the WSP Monarch handle using my vice to remove the HMW knot. I just bought this brush from Teiste and thoroughly enjoyed the knot. However, I felt the loft was too tall and the Kent style handle didn't jive with me. I had to drill the AS3M a bit deeper using a forstner bit in order to reach the desired loft. It ended up at 23x50mm.

The Kent KSL was in pretty sad shape with some cracks all around the top. After removing the original knot I cleaned up the interior of the bore and used a brush and some epoxy to reinforce the walls. I forced some epoxy into the cracks from the inside and then wiped any excess off the exterior with a rag and rubbing alcohol (before it cured). A quick trip to the buffing wheel brought some shine back and then I inserted a Frank Shaving silvertip knot with a final measurement of 24x48mm.

I got tired out before getting to the final handle so back in the box it went for the next time. Meanwhile, I think I will have some great shaves with my new, old brushes.

 

[BSAGuy]

Looks great, especially for the time invested. Hope it shaves as good as it looks.

 

[JaxJim]

Excellent work, Dave, as usual. Those buffed up really nice!