Rubberset Restoration WIP

Don't know if this is appropriate for this forum, but it's sort about shaving and sort of about polishing, so I thought I'd give it a shot. Mods please move/remove if need be.

I recently got a Rubberset 400 aluminum shaving brush on eBay. These were made in the 30's (I think), and are really beautiful when polished up and reknotted. Here are a couple of "before" pics. The brush was in decent shape, but had a ton of small dings and pits in it that didn't show up in the seller's listing.




I've spent the past two evenings working on it with a 3M Fine sponge pad, and here we are at present:





I'll move to a Superfine next, then Ultrafine and Microfine, then a buffing wheel and maybe finish with some Mother's Mag polish. I have a new knot for it, and just have to figure out how to get the old one out without damaging anything. The top unscrews with the knot in it, but there's some 70 year old asphalt or something holding the knot in--tough stuff.

Stay tuned.

 

Where does one buy a new bristle part? Is that what you mean by knot?

 

Looks great polished!
I've never restored a brush so not sure what's involved with setting the knot.
You might try some needle nose pliers and just grab a bite full of hair. Probably facing some tough epoxy.

Yes that is the knot. Only place I know is whippeddog.com. Great brushes from what I hear

 

You can also drill out the not too. Might be easier than pliers.

 

I might try drilling. Wish I had a lathe.

My favorite place to buy knots is thegoldennib.com--great selection and service.

 

Sweet, one more place to reference!

Let us know how you end up removing the knot

 

Removing the Knot: Not Easy

Before doing any more polishing I decided to remove the knot. As I feared, whatever was holding it in there for the last 80 years was tough stuff. Here's the top with the bristles cut off:



And here's a shot from the bottom, showing the glue:



I decided to drill first. I wrapped the knot holder in hard weatherstripping and put it in a little vise, then went after it with the largest bit I have:



Success. I wish I had a larger bit.



I worked at this with a pocket knife for a while (I knew I'd get a knife reference in here somehow), to this point:



Unable to move my hands any more, I hit it with a Dremel. This is a last resort for me, as bad things can happen quickly at 15,000 rpm.



Fortunately it worked this time. I also used the wire brush on the Dremel and finished with a steel dental pick. This is beautiful:



I was finally able to assemble the brush. Several more polishing sessions to come, but at least I know it will be workable when it's done.

 

I was going to suggest the dremel, not sure why I didn't.
It looks really good!

What did you use as glue for the new knot?

 

The knot isn't glued in yet---I want to finish polishing first. I'm hoping I can find a glue that will hold it securely yet is not ultra permanent, in case I want to try a different knot someday. Suggestions?

 

Can you set it a bit lower? If you want to pull the knot 3M 5200 is a good choice.

 

Thanks for the glue tip.
The knot is already set lower---that shot was a quickie while I was working. Here's one with it as far down as it will go:

 

very good looking brush.

 

That will giter' done

 

Great WIP Bill. Thanks for sharing.

 

nice one!

 

DONE

Finally got a chance to finish polishing the brush handle. Here's how it looks:





Got some 3M 5200 adhesive to set the knot with (thanks Jim), then a little Mitchell's Wool Fat and we're shaving like it was the '30's.

 

Looks brand new! Job well done