I don't have anything to offer for sale here yet. We're still working some things out (which will probably never end). In any case, this might seem to be a premature debut. But we (that is, my son and I) have shot past the bounds of fail-safe with this venture. I'm all in, and no longer comfortable posting on the progress of my handle-making trials in the Shaving Brush Forum. So I've pinned on a Vendor Badge, and now here's a report and preview.
The M&F Group Buy was a terrific experience for me. However, it ended up feeling a little like playing air guitar. Drawing something isn't the same as making it.
In early January, my son and I made a road trip from KC to La Crosse, Wisconsin, to buy a 25ish year-old CNC lathe. As it turned out, we hauled back three. Since then, another road trip (to Grand Rapids, Michigan) added a CNC mill along with some other stuff, and I talked a friend who runs a biotech company into selling me a spare fume hood that was gathering dust in storage.
The lathes sat in the foyer of our house from January to mid-May. Shortly after returning from La Crosse, I was offered a consulting job I couldn't refuse, in consequence of which I didn't have time to make room for the lathes, let alone figure out how to run them. But I started working at that in earnest (many long days) toward the beginning of June (see this thread).
There's a whole lot more involved in turning and finishing brush handles than I had any concept of. We still have a great deal to learn. Nevertheless, it's time to put something out there.
I like turning acrylic. And I intend to offer affordable brushes made with acrylic handles. But I recently landed some ebonite, and it's on an entirely different plane. It's also much more challenging to work with. All the better.
Some photos follow below. They speak for themselves. Not perfection, but a lot of character, IMO.
Watch this thread for updates.
The M&F Group Buy was a terrific experience for me. However, it ended up feeling a little like playing air guitar. Drawing something isn't the same as making it.
In early January, my son and I made a road trip from KC to La Crosse, Wisconsin, to buy a 25ish year-old CNC lathe. As it turned out, we hauled back three. Since then, another road trip (to Grand Rapids, Michigan) added a CNC mill along with some other stuff, and I talked a friend who runs a biotech company into selling me a spare fume hood that was gathering dust in storage.
The lathes sat in the foyer of our house from January to mid-May. Shortly after returning from La Crosse, I was offered a consulting job I couldn't refuse, in consequence of which I didn't have time to make room for the lathes, let alone figure out how to run them. But I started working at that in earnest (many long days) toward the beginning of June (see this thread).
There's a whole lot more involved in turning and finishing brush handles than I had any concept of. We still have a great deal to learn. Nevertheless, it's time to put something out there.
I like turning acrylic. And I intend to offer affordable brushes made with acrylic handles. But I recently landed some ebonite, and it's on an entirely different plane. It's also much more challenging to work with. All the better.
Some photos follow below. They speak for themselves. Not perfection, but a lot of character, IMO.
Watch this thread for updates.
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