I ordered a 26 mm Silvertip grade A knot from TGN so I made up a few handles. Still pondering the loft but I would guess 50-55 mm.
great handles, Oscar. Your work is fantastic. I like a little backbone, so I would think 50mm loft would do nicely.
Not that I'm going too start turning but may I ask what material this that?What size lathe ? And isn't turning acrylics,plastics hard on the tools?And any other information you would like too share would be great. I find myself coming back too drool over that picture,really nice work.
For the knot, I wouldn't go higher than 50mm, the super is kind of floppy... As for the handles, handle 1 the keyhole copy is pretty sweet!
tucco99, I'll try and answer your questions. First off, I have 2 lathes both Jet brand. One is a small bench top "mini" and the other a heavier duty model (sorry no model # on it). I use the big lathe for all my stuff though if I wanted I could use the mini. The mini is set up for buffing, mostly for straight razor restoration and buffing scales. The 3 handles in this thread are made from inlace acrylester. Any acrylic should work, PolyGem, etc. No, I don't find it hard on the tools. The primary turning tools I use are : a heavy duty roughing gouge, a spindle (or fingernail) gouge, a skew and occasionally a rounded scrapper. Finish with micro mesh and buff then polish. If you guys have any specific questions, I'll try to answer them, but I'm no expert just a hobbyist.
Oscar: Very nice. Quick question, how much larger than the knot size do you drill the center hole and how deep do you set the knot? Just starting turning and and looking for some suggestions. Thanks!!
stoney, I like the hole just a "hair" bigger than the knot, so it doesn't insert tightly. As far as depth, it's dependent on how you like your brushes to feel on your face.. Example being, some people like a stiffer brush for face lathering and some like a floppier brush. Within the same hair type and diameter, shorter is stiffer and longer is floppier. To confuse things more, hair type and diameter will also play into your loft setting (or how deep you set the knot to achieve the feel you want). Say you have a 22mm knot that's 62mm long and you want your loft set at 50mm you need to drill your hole 12mm deep. This is just my opinion and I'm no expert but with a 2 band finest from TGN with a knot ranging from 20-24mm a 50 mm loft wouldn't too far off, maybe a little less on the 20mm. With a Silver tips I'd go shorter. Everyone has their own opinion on loft and knot dia. and what type of hair so it's really a guess trying to advise someone on what to do. Hope this helps.
Thanks Oscar. I am beginning to understand. The hole is WAY more critical from a technical standpoint than I had realized. Should be able to fine tune the brush characteristics. It makes sense now. You can control loft with your setting depth, and the diameter of the hole should affect the stiffness and bloom of the brush by restricting (or not) the bundle of hair above the knot base. Sounds like a good excuse to buy more Forster bits GREAT!
