Brushes

Re: Brushes

Alan Hamilton

>Dave,

For both shellac--when it's to be the final finish--and varnish I use badger-fitch brushes. They're without qualification the best I have found.

They're made by several manufacturers, and I'm sorry I cannot recommend one--mine are so old I can't read the names. Price is one indication of a top quality brush. Be prepared to spend close to forty dollars for a three inch brush. If you want to use them for varnish, or any other finish, use separate brushes for each type of finish.

If you take good care of them they will last a couple decades. Mine have been around for at least fifteen years. Each time I use mine I go through the routine of several washes in the solvent for the finish, two washes in lacquer thinner, and finally a wash in soap and water; after each step I dry them with a spinner. I use a brush comb only when necessary.

Alan

Re: Brushes

William Duffield, on the Cohansey

>Alan's got the right idea. In fact, he's got all the details right, too. I got my multi-varmint bristle brushes from Woodworkers Supply, several years ago. IIRC, they are made from badger, skonk, hawg, and maybe snorkasaurus snout hairs, too. As near as I can tell, they are item #s 850-392 and 850-399.

Steeenking badgers! ;-)

Paul M. in San Diego

>They work the best for me too.

Re: Brushes

Jack Guzman from Maine

>Woodcraft stocks badger hair brushes.Last project I did,I thought I could get by with a new Purdy natural bristle but after pulling a hair out of the finish....---Jack

Re: Brushes

Sam Simpson

>Hi Y'all,

Dave, the softer the bristle the better for such things as shellac. The softest bristles are squirrel. Though it is difficult to lay a swath of shellac without leaving an edge with any brush. The shape of the brush will make as much difference to performance as bristle type. The best shape for shellac is a mop. (round) So, a large squirrel mop will deliver the best brushing results.

But I must take this opportunity to espouse the benefits of applying shellac with a traditional rubber, as in French polishing. One thing you might try is brushing the first few coats on and then finishing with a rubber. I find that anyone introduced to these methods very quickly find themselves never returning to brush work for shellac.

Good brushes are made by "The Maguire Brush Co., Inc." suppliers are "Art Essentials - 1 800 283 5323 and Shepp Leaf Products - 1 800 971 7377"

Regards Sam Simpson.

Re: Brushes

Mike Real from Pittsburgh

>So Sam, how do you get the squirrel to stay still? ;-) Mike

Badger blenders & squirrel mops *LINK*

David Barnett

>Mops are traditional round (and unpointed) shellac brushes. It's best to buy the large squirrel mops with the jars. These have fitted lids to suspend the bristles in the shellac-alcohol mixture.

Escoda (www.escoda.com) makes a good brush for shellac and varnish. There are a couple other decent handmade badger brushes available from art and conservation suppliers. All of them can cause sticker shock, at least among non-artist/conservator types, but as in most things, you pays for what you gets.


Escoda badger flats

All the more reason to take Sam's advice. :)

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

Alan Hamilton

>David,

WOW!!

Sticker shock! Just shock? Appoplexy! Cardiac arrest! Cranial aneurism! even Respiratory paralysis! aren't adequate.

Jeeez. I think I'm going badger hunting.

Alan

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

Al DaValle

>I've been to the Esconda web site as well as many others and I can't seem to find larger squirrel mop brushes anywhere. I figure 2" diameter is ideal for shellacing furnitur. Can you be more specific in terms of what to order etc. I have been looking for such a brush for shellac for some time now. I saw Mack Headley at Colonial Willaimsburg use such a brush (not sure if it was squirrel but it was 2 to 2 1/2 in diameter mop shaped). It worked great.

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

Patrick from Europe

>OMG! My pop has one of these. Il persuade him to give it to me.

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

Sam Simpson

>Hi Y'all,

Folks, the Badger blender shown in Dave's link is not the kind of brush intended to be dipped in any liquid finish. It is, like it's cousin the Flogger, a brush intended for manipulating scumble and glaze. These are practices of the graining and faux finishing trade. They have several very special attributes. Softness and resilience (stiffness) such characteristics are to be found best in the long tail hairs of a Badger. With the added special skills of a hand crafted bristle binder and setter, brushes can be made that can be flicked like a whip but deliver a soft touch on arrival.

In contrast, the squirrel hair mop is intended to be dipped in liquid. It's shape offers a reservoir for the liquid while the softness and suppleness of the bristle allows manipulation without a hard edge.

You should find, though still expensive, a squirrel mop will not command the many hundreds of dollars that a blender or flogger will command.

I would like to reiterate Allan's wisdom of care and upkeep. Good brushes are an investment. They improve with use. And should always be thoroughly washed out. My master always insisted that my brushes where given a protective coating of axle grease following the cleaning. This was then washed out with mineral spirits before the next use. In 1964 my first set of sable pencils cost me two weeks pay. And I still use them.

Regards Sam Simpson.

PS I still think brushing shellac is a waist of time.

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

dave caudill

>Sam I won't agree or disagree about brushing versus padding as I haven't enough experience in either. I do like padding, I only wish it would add more shellac with each stroke. I am in the experimental stage right now and may very well come to the same conclusion that you have. Some of us unfortunately only learn from tripping over our own feet.

Thank you for the responses.

Dave

Re: Badger blenders & squirrel mops

Alan Hamilton

>Sam,

Axle grease? I never heard of that one. It sounds awful messy and difficult to remove--but I've never tried it. A fellow I knew who used his brushes almost every day, soaked them in raw linseed oil before he put them away. This too was removed with mineral spirits before use. I guess that's fine if you're varnishing; but for shellac I'd want to remove the mineral spirits before I stuck them in alcohol.

Alan