A very special shaving brush - and stage photos

[Penpal]

Neat mate thanks for sharing 99% of my shaving is electric but in later years I find a blade shave very satisfying and not accompanied by pools of blood, must be pleasant to have play with profit in your brushes quite an education that mostly badger brushes are made in China and typically I now will seek out the overstuffed ones cant beat the best of for my different stand I have in my mind, made heaps of pen stands in burl and I have some burl bonanzas set aside. Your stacks of new knots remind me of my carnivorous plants when I buy they come in a plastic cone around the pot and plant for protection such a simple thing so important.

Thanks mate Peter.

 

[Jimjam66]

A great tutorial, Rod - but am I the only one thinking that turning the brush handle AFTER mounting the silver collar is only for the very brave? Must make turning and sanding a bit of a butt-clencher surely? Or are my cahones just too small?

 

[RodN]

A great tutorial, Rod - but am I the only one thinking that turning the brush handle AFTER mounting the silver collar is only for the very brave? Must make turning and sanding a bit of a butt-clencher surely? Or are my cahones just too small?

Yes... it is good exercise for the sphincter muscles with a precious metal. But it is the only way of getting a really nice "shape flow" where the wood has a curved profile into the metal. The shape is made using a small bowl gouge and a steady hand with light cuts, being careful not to actually make contact with the metal. Turning the wood separately never results in a perfect fit if the tube is glued on afterwards.

It is vitally important that the metal "tube" is mounted dead central to the wood and its axis! If it is slightly off centre, even by a tiny amount, you end up cutting both wood and metal to even up the joint. That isn't the end of the world with solid metals, as you can get away with sanding and polishing the metal to make it look "right". The really awkward and critical ones are where the metal tube is plated. Then there is no wiggle room as the plating would be removed.

I have another one on the lathe at the moment (this morning), where the sleeve is brass but gold plated. So when turning and sanding the wood I have to be careful not to touch the metal !!

Cheers
Rod

 

[Buckeye]

Rod, do you sell any of the Brush Knots?

Peter

 

[Bill Mooney]

A true master of your craft Ron. Your brushes are excellent & so was the tutorial. Thanks for showing.

 

[RodN]

Rod, do you sell any of the Brush Knots?

Peter

Sorry, but no.
I have to go to a lot of trouble to get them. Despite them being expensive anyway (and a considerable investment to order in bulk!), they end up being even more valuable to me, as each one turns into a sale of a brush for me.

There is a supplier in the USA that sells single knots of all grades and types, do a Google search for "TGN badger knots" (The Golden Knib). Some of their more expensive ones are pretty good knots, $45 + or so, and they also sell cheaper knots too. But the postage and then the import dutues and VAT makes them even more expensive of course. Avoid those that are labelled as "Best Badger" or "Pure Badger" or "Mixed Badger"..... as those are actually the *lowest* grade badger knots. I have a few of those here somewhere, and you can have them for next to nothing if you want them. But they are pretty nasty! (I won't use them in my brushes) :-)

Oh yes... edited to add: there is a seller from China on Ebay called "Ace Guo" who sells silvertip badger knots in small quantities. His knots are what I would describe as "reasonably fair", and he is a reliable seller.

Cheers
Rod

 

[Buckeye]

Sorry, but no.
I have to go to a lot of trouble to get them. Despite them being expensive anyway (and a considerable investment to order in bulk!), they end up being even more valuable to me, as each one turns into a sale of a brush for me.

There is a supplier in the USA that sells single knots of all grades and types, do a Google search for "TGN badger knots" (The Golden Knib). Some of their more expensive ones are pretty good knots, $45 + or so, and they also sell cheaper knots too. But the postage and then the import dutues and VAT makes them even more expensive of course. Avoid those that are labelled as "Best Badger" or "Pure Badger" or "Mixed Badger"..... as those are actually the *lowest* grade badger knots. I have a few of those here somewhere, and you can have them for next to nothing if you want them. But they are pretty nasty! (I won't use them in my brushes) :-)

Oh yes... edited to add: there is a seller from China on Ebay called "Ace Guo" who sells silvertip badger knots in small quantities. His knots are what I would describe as "reasonably fair", and he is a reliable seller.

Cheers
Rod

Okay thanks for that Rod, I can understand you not wanting to sell them.

Peter

 

[RodN]

I just completed the gold one...

and here it is against #2076 from yesterday.
The new one is quite a bit larger, and with a 30mm diameter knot.

Rod
.

 

[Phil Dart]

Fantastic. What an eye opener and a great tutorial. Apart from the obvious skill and quality, my naive little mind had absolutely no idea that a market exists for shaving brushes in such quantities as you are able to sell them. A revelation to me!

 

[PhillH]

Fabulous stuff, been all over your site like a rash !

I knew there was a market for serious quality shaving accessories now I know who is supplying it.

True artistry.

 

[bassethound]

Really mind blowing Rod, thank you very much for those posts, amazing stuff!

 

[Kawakers]

very informative and a nicely made brush