First Attempt

[LeisureLarry]

Now that I've received some help getting a photo up, here's one I thought I'd share. Thanks once more to all of you who replied to my plea for help on the photo upload.



This is my first attempt at making a brush. Overall, I'm pleased with the result, but of course it's not perfect. I had a piece of red oak around that seemed just about the right size, so I began experimenting with handles. This one is the 4th one I made, and the first I thought to be good enough to try to attach a knot.

I got the knot at TGN, and was really happy with it when it came. (Good service from those folks, by the way.)

One of my assumed problems was how to make the top and the bottom surfaces parallel, and here's how I solved that one: I cut a deep 90-degree notch at the base so that I could saw it off of the piece of oak that I was turning on the lathe. Then after sawing and sanding that smooth, I rough cut the top at approximately the length I wanted. Then I got out a very large Forstner bit (about 1-1/2 inches, I think), and mounted it in my drill press. Holding the work snugly down on it's base on the work table, I then very gently used the press and the Forstner bit to smooth the top to exactly where I wanted it. This seemed to work great. Then, switching to a 3/4 inch Forstner, which was very close to the size of the knot, I made a hole of the right depth in the top. I had to do a little sanding on the base of the knot to get it to fit (because it wasn't quite round), but not much. After attaching the knot, I then simply opened a can of high gloss Verithane (polyurethane), and dipped the whole thing up to the top of the handle.

I've been using the brush daily for about 2 months now, and am learning to like it. It is very, very luxurious. I'm coming from a Tweezerman, which has quite a lot of scritch, and the new brush is like applying soap with a cloud. I think I like just a bit more scritch, even if not so much as the Tweezerman has. Nevertheless, I'm pleased with a first start. Now I can make a new(er) one, since I have a little experience under my belt.

 

[Angry__Panda]

Which TGN knot is it? And next up is deciding what you do and don't like about this brush and then making another one to better fit your needs . Great first attempt, looks like a find brush and it sounds like you are enjoying using it (certainly more than your Tweezeman ). I look forward to seeing your next brush!

 

[LeisureLarry]

Which TGN knot is it?

It's a 20mm x 64mm Super Badger Hair Fan. A fairly dense knot, it has a high loft, which I believe is what makes it so soft. Next time, I think I'll order a slightly lesser loft.

 

[LeisureLarry]

I look forward to seeing your next brush!

...and I am following your bamboo handle project with great interest. That looks like a real labor of love. Let's have lots of photos of the finished result, please.

(Duh, just figured out that there are multiple pages to your thread on that, and you have photos of the finished brush up there. Very nice indeed.)

 

[Angry__Panda]

It's a 20mm x 64mm Super Badger Hair Fan. A fairly dense knot, it has a high loft, which I believe is what makes it so soft. Next time, I think I'll order a slightly lesser loft.

Most of the TGN knots are around the same loft, just set them in your handle deeper and that will work to some extent. I haven't set any deeper than about 15-20mm but that brought the loft to 50mm on my 26mm silvertip and then it brought the most recent knot I set down to around 46-48mm which is about as short as I personally would go.

 

[KM-instructor]

Great job, it is so satisfying to create something that can be use daily.

 

[LeisureLarry]

Hmmm....I had a similar thought. But presumably (or at least it seems to me) there must be a limit to the depth, since if you put the knot down into a hole, the sides of that hole will constrict the movement of the hair. To some extent, that's what you want, but too much of a good thing might not work out. I probably would not have imagined you could go as deep as 20mm, which is about 3/4 inch, but you say you've already tried that. Did that work well? Any downside to that? Does it affect the beauty or the "fan" of the knot?

 

[LeisureLarry]

How right you are, KM. There is something very satisfying indeed to look at a tool you have made yourself and use every day and think, "Gee, I actually made that myself...it's the only one like that in the world!"

 

[Greyfox]

Nice work.

 

[Snargle]

I like that barrel shape...good job!

 

[LeisureLarry]

Thanks for your appreciation, guys. It's always nice to share something to people who understand it and appreciate it. I think the most important aspect of this kind of work is what KM-Instructor said above. There is an element of self sustainability about making a tool for yourself that you use frequently and enjoy using. Like becoming a skilled shaver itself, it serves as a kind of self validation. Most of us don't live on farms where we have to develop self sufficient skills or else fail completely. Shaving well, and making brushes, feels good.