Thinking about building...

[Brance]

Hi all. I've never built a brush before. I've got some very pretty, old, walnut burl I was thinking of turning into a few handles.

I guess I need to order a couple knots.

My questions are:

1. When setting the knot, do you set them past the past the band on the knot, or only that deep? Why or why not?

2. What finish is recommended for something like a burl walnut?

 

[ginsu]

there are no hard and fast rules for how deep to set the knot, as far as I've seen. I'm waiting on a handle and knot to assemble my firsst brush and all my questions have been answered in "experiment and see." You can set the knot as deep (reducing the loft, increasing relative density and perceived backbone) or as shallow (as long as the base plug is completely seated, increasing loft, and making a softer or potentially "floppier" brush).

It all comes down to how you want the brush to behave, and the characteristics of the knot you choose. Some say face lather=short loft, bowl lather=longer loft. Others will say any brush will serve your needs if you like it.

I'm sure others will weigh in with more experienced responses, so best of luck. Sorry, i have no idea about wood treatment, but I've seen a lot of references to oiling vs.polyurethane/varnish....

 

[Hex]

For the restores I have done, they have all been deeper than the plug. In some cases, quite a bit so.
My 1st few were done with a 50mm loft in mind. That meant setting the knots around 13mm deep. For the <50mm lofts, I set them even deeper.

I can't remember ever setting the knot with the top of the plug even with the top of the handle.

Good luck, and post your progress. The walnut burl sounds beautiful.

I can't help you with the wood because I don't know how to handle it. I am a newbie when dealing with wood, but I better learn since one of these days I plan on making my own handle.
All my efforts have been with restores, none of them wood.

 

[skipnord]

I vote for oil, or at least an oil/poly combo, like Watco. I have a walnut with oil finish waiting for a knot.

 

[Wetshavemike]

I can't help you with setting the knot. I have a TGN buttercotch and best badger in 22mm on its way. It will be my first as well. For the handle though, I would use Aero wax, or some wood wax. It gives a beautiful sheen, adds waterproofing, is easy to remove or touch up, it's cheap, easy to use and has been used for over a century for protecting airplane wood and wood furniture. Tung oil is also a good choice. Either way, use something that will enhance the wood, not cover it up.

 

[easy]

A good finish is what separates the good from the best turners.

The only finish i am perfectly comfortable with is boiled/raw linseed oil. It only leaves a thin coat and is therefore easy to sand down before the next/last coat. With linseed oil you want to put wet on wet a couple of times to build it up before final sanding. You can do this on the lathe.

I have learned from penturners that a wax finish is more suitable for furnitures and such, and not something that will have to stand what a pen/shaving brush has to go trought. I am currently using a thick laquer made for wooden flooring but, as mentioned, is not perfectly comfortable with it, yet. It takes a long time to dry and sand down after one coat. That`s probably a quality sign though.

In penturning a CA-finish is known as the most durable finish by far. For wood, some like to apply a coat of raw linseed oil before finishing with CA-glue. There are tons of videos on how they do it on a well-known video site. I have tried this once and it didn`t go down too well. I later found out I used the wrong type of CA-glue.

Again, I am no expert and i`m still learning. I can only recomend oil as I know it can`t go wrong. It brings out the grain in the wood, and doesn`t take much efford to sand down and re-do if you make a mistake. It is not the most durable finish though.

A very long post with very little advice. Well done, me.