Results 1 to 9 of 9
Like Tree19Likes
  • 8 Post By Laurens
  • 2 Post By HARRYWALLY
  • 2 Post By Laurens
  • 1 Post By Laurens
  • 2 Post By walleyeman
  • 2 Post By BobH
  • 2 Post By walleyeman

Thread: My first home-made brush

  1. #1
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default My first home-made brush

    This is my first attempt at making a brush and I'm very happy with the result! I received the knot from China yesterday and already had a handle turned and ready. The hole in the handle is rather sloppy, which shows in the lopsided knot, but then again, my drill is broken and I'm waiting for a replacement part. As a result, the loft is set (too) high, which I will fix when I get a drill press next week.

    The wood is walnut (I think) and the knot is a 24/68 silver tip badger from Aliexpress. It is a huge step up from my pure badger Mühle that cost me 1.5 times as much. My, do I love buying Chinese goods! It lost maybe 8 hairs, but the diameter is really closer to 21 mm than 24, so that was a bit of a disappointment. Still, can't beat the price and the superbly soft feeling.

    Now, enough rambling, get me some pics!

    Name:  IMG_4808.jpg
Views: 200
Size:  30.2 KB
    Name:  IMG_4812.jpg
Views: 201
Size:  34.8 KB
    Name:  IMG_4820.jpg
Views: 200
Size:  29.9 KB

    Is mineral oil enough to protect the wood?
    I want a lather whip

  2. The Following User Says Thank You to Laurens For This Useful Post:

    walleyeman (11-02-2013)

  3. #2
    I love Burls....... and Acrylic HARRYWALLY's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Baden, Ontario
    Posts
    5,475
    Thanked: 2284

    Default

    Wow that thing looks like it's already in full bloom!!! IMO that sucker is way to floppy. I'm not sure how you like your brushes, but if that was mine I'd set it down in the handle so the loft is somewhere around 48-50mm. Draw those hairs closer together to create some backbone on that knot. Play around with the depth when you get your drill back up and running until you find something you like.

    As for the handle, it looks great! I love the shape of it. It looks super comfortable to hang onto. But I don't think it's walnut, at least no walnut I've ever seen. Looks closer to maple, but it's hard to tell from the pics.

    IME, I've only ever used mineral oil on cutting boards and salad bowls, because it's food safe. I would think mineral oil would not last as a finish on a shaving brush. The constant wetting and drying would eventually out do mineral oil, unless you constantly apply it over time. If you want something that would stand up better, and easy to apply and acquire, I'd use a good quality oil finish like Deft marine teakwood finish. You can order it from leevalley at a very reasonable price.
    Last edited by HARRYWALLY; 11-02-2013 at 07:09 PM.
    walleyeman and kwlfca like this.
    Burls, Girls, and all things that Swirl....

  4. The Following User Says Thank You to HARRYWALLY For This Useful Post:

    Laurens (11-03-2013)

  5. #3
    Senior Member blabbermouth
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    17,299
    Thanked: 3225

    Default

    Looks good, have you tried face lathering with it yet? It just might be soft enough for you do that.

    Bob
    Life is a terminal illness in the end

  6. The Following User Says Thank You to BobH For This Useful Post:

    Laurens (11-03-2013)

  7. #4
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default

    I feared the floppiness, but was pleasantly surprised, it lathered Mitchell's Wool Fat with considerable ease! The only problem is, most of the lather decided to stay in the brush. I'll set it down to reduce it a bit, see what's what, but I'm certainly not disappointed with how it works

    You could be right about the wood, it doens't look like walnut when I search for it. I can't remember what the guy told me it was, but I really like how it catches the light under different angles. Also made some scales from it. Come to think of it, I probably have made myself a matching brush and razor! I'll check when the cat gets off my lap.

    I'll look into oils that can resist soap and water, thanks. I prefer the look of oiled wood to a CA finish.
    HARRYWALLY and walleyeman like this.
    I want a lather whip

  8. #5
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by BobH View Post
    Looks good, have you tried face lathering with it yet? It just might be soft enough for you do that.

    Bob
    Ah, you remembered I tried but was unsuccessful in terms of getting enough lather on my face. Perhaps a lower loft will help me here. At least the soft tips kept my face irritation-free, so that is a good sign. More experimentation is coming up!
    walleyeman likes this.
    I want a lather whip

  9. #6
    Always Thinkun walleyeman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Grain Valley, Missouri
    Posts
    818
    Thanked: 348

    Default

    Laurens, beautiful job. That profile does give me some ideas for handles also. Hope you don,t mind if I imitate your handle?
    You might look into "Linseed Oil". I had finished many of my gun stocks with a hand rubbed linseed oil finish. These were not production stocks but custom stocks, so there was a sizable investment to be lost.
    Once I tried it I never looked back. One thing though, you might want to rub the finish before installing the knot. Also the process takes a good week or two to get a desired finish. " PM me if you would like to know the process used"
    Lastly be careful with the binding at the base of the knot. You will find in most cases that if you squeeze the knot hair just above the base you will feel where it flares out. That flare needs to fit in the hole for the knot. It also needs to set below the end of the handle. But most of all that flare will be somewhat larger than the base of knot diameter. Just be aware of it and set your knot to desired length.
    You have made a very nice handle, keep up the good work!!

    Ray
    Geezer and HARRYWALLY like this.

  10. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to walleyeman For This Useful Post:

    Geezer (11-02-2013), Laurens (11-03-2013)

  11. #7
    Senior Member blabbermouth
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    17,299
    Thanked: 3225

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Laurens View Post
    Ah, you remembered I tried but was unsuccessful in terms of getting enough lather on my face. Perhaps a lower loft will help me here. At least the soft tips kept my face irritation-free, so that is a good sign. More experimentation is coming up!
    At least your attempt was irritation free, that is a bonus. As you lower the loft the brush should gain backbone/stiffness and it might not be as comfortable on your face as before. You could try putting an elastic band around the base of the knot at about where yo want to reset it to and try lathering again. That would give you some idea of how the brush would work and feel on the face if you reset it. By placing the band at different points and trying each time it would also give you a good idea of about where exactly you do want to reset it too for the best performance for your needs. Good luck, hope you get it all worked out. Keep us posted on your progress.

    Bob
    skipnord and walleyeman like this.
    Life is a terminal illness in the end

  12. The Following User Says Thank You to BobH For This Useful Post:

    Laurens (11-03-2013)

  13. #8
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by walleyeman View Post
    Laurens, beautiful job. That profile does give me some ideas for handles also. Hope you don,t mind if I imitate your handle?
    You might look into "Linseed Oil". I had finished many of my gun stocks with a hand rubbed linseed oil finish. These were not production stocks but custom stocks, so there was a sizable investment to be lost.
    Once I tried it I never looked back. One thing though, you might want to rub the finish before installing the knot. Also the process takes a good week or two to get a desired finish. " PM me if you would like to know the process used"
    Lastly be careful with the binding at the base of the knot. You will find in most cases that if you squeeze the knot hair just above the base you will feel where it flares out. That flare needs to fit in the hole for the knot. It also needs to set below the end of the handle. But most of all that flare will be somewhat larger than the base of knot diameter. Just be aware of it and set your knot to desired length.
    You have made a very nice handle, keep up the good work!!

    Ray
    Thank you, Ray! I would be honoured if you copied my idea And I'll send you a PM, I want to know more about oiling.

    Quote Originally Posted by BobH View Post
    At least your attempt was irritation free, that is a bonus. As you lower the loft the brush should gain backbone/stiffness and it might not be as comfortable on your face as before. You could try putting an elastic band around the base of the knot at about where yo want to reset it to and try lathering again. That would give you some idea of how the brush would work and feel on the face if you reset it. By placing the band at different points and trying each time it would also give you a good idea of about where exactly you do want to reset it too for the best performance for your needs. Good luck, hope you get it all worked out. Keep us posted on your progress.

    Bob
    Thanks Bob! I was thinking the same thing: elastic band. Shame I can't find any in my house... but I have until Thursday, because that's when I get my drill press I shaved again this morning and was still very pleased with the lather it creates. I could live with this loft (and the looks, I like the full bloom) if I had to.
    I want a lather whip

  14. #9
    Always Thinkun walleyeman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Grain Valley, Missouri
    Posts
    818
    Thanked: 348

    Default

    Hey Laurens, I sent you a pm. Could you let me know if you got it. Our dog jumped into my lap when I hit the submit button. She skidded across the keyboard and I dropped the laptop, spilled my morning coffee, and scared the dog to death!
    Finally got the laptop back up and running but can,t find any history that it did send!
    Lastly we forgot to set the clocks back also.
    Going to be a long winter for me I think!!

    Ray
    BobH and HARRYWALLY like this.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •