Contact Info for re-knotting (vintage) Rooney?

I received what MIGHT be a vintage Rooney brush, and I would like to have it restored with a genuine Rooney knot, if possible (if it is indeed, a Rooney). I didn't pay very much (less than $10), so it's no loss if the brush turns out to not be a vintage Rooney. The brush handle feels like porcelain, and is nice and heavy. I like the handle, even if it's not a Rooney.

Other than the graphic of the fox, the brush is unmarked. The brush is part of a matched set, which included a razor, bowl, and the brush. The bowl is marked "Made in England Rooney" on the bottom. The bowl is missing its lid, and the razor is broken. Only the bowl is marked with the name Rooney.

Does anyone know if Rooney will re-knot a brush? If so, does anyone have any contact info, preferably an email, for Rooney? They do not appear to have a web page.

If the brush turns out to not be a Rooney, I will probably re-knot it with a Golden Nib knot.

Here are photos, if anyone is interested. The top and bottom photos are the graphic on the brush handle. The middle photo is the bowl, and NOT the brush.

I wish you the best in finding contact info. If not, I think a couple of the craftsman on the forums might be able to help you reknot it. I wish we could get our vintage handles reknotted from the manufacturer. I'd love to have my vintage rooney restored.

Classy - it reminds me of a vintage beer engine handle for Bass.

That would be great with a 1/1 knot.

Rooney doesn't have a website, email address or phone number. Nobody seems to be sure where the factory is located.

Your best bet may be to ask a vendor to contact them for you.

Good luck.

Beautiful brush, Dave. Best of luck with your restoration.

Ah, so you won that...

I thought about putting in a bid just for kicks, but decided not to.

If you get ahold of Rooney... could you spread the knowledge around?

Ignatius said:

That would be great with a 1/1 knot.

Rooney doesn't have a website, email address or phone number. Nobody seems to be sure where the factory is located.

Your best bet may be to ask a vendor to contact them for you.

Good luck.

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Yeah, it's a small brush handle. I don't have a good measurement on the knot diameter, but it looks like it's approximately 22 mm. I definitely want a short loft knot.

Dpflaum said:

Ah, so you won that...

I thought about putting in a bid just for kicks, but decided not to.

If you get ahold of Rooney... could you spread the knowledge around?

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Yep. The bowl and the razor are not worth keeping, but the brush handle is rather nice. I'm glad the bidding was kept low.

Here's the corporate contact info for an "R A Rooney," maker of brushes and brooms, in London in the UK:

Address:Unity Works, Sutherland Road, London, E17 6BP, United Kingdom
Telephone:(020) 8418 5555
Fax:(020) 8418 5500

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Source: http://manufacturing.kellysearch.co.uk/profile/r+a+rooney/gb/london/e17+6bp/350562795

Hope this helps!

Scissors said:

Here's the corporate contact info for an "R A Rooney," maker of brushes and brooms, in London in the UK:

Source: http://manufacturing.kellysearch.co.uk/profile/r+a+rooney/gb/london/e17+6bp/350562795

Hope this helps!

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Thanks! Too bad they don't have an email address listed. Now I have to remember what we all did before this interweb business.

I know a phone call to the UK is expensive, but you'd find out right away if this is the Rooney brush manufacturer we all know and some of us love (I do, at least). From there, maybe you could get an email address to which you could send your photos, etc., to see if this is something Rooney made and, if they did, can restore. A fax would be expensive and not as useful, and snail mail would be maddeningly slow—well, it would for me. YMMV, as they say.

There is a domain, rarooney.com, that brings up the message "Our shop is currently unavailable, please check back soon."
if you point a browser at it. A whois.net query brings up this info on it (along with other stuff):

Administrative Contact:
nicholls, kevin [email protected]
58 Billacombe Rd
Plymouth, Devon PL9 7EX
GB
+44.1752222464

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So maybe will Kevin Nicholls character might be someone to get in touch with—although when I checked roosalon.com, I found it's a commerce site that sells Aussie hair and beauty products—for people and pets. Might could be this fellow just slings code, did Rooney's first commerce site, and isn't in touch with them anymore—but could be holding their domain name hostage? (Sorry, my imagination tends towards worst case scenarios)

Anyway, I hope there's someone you can find through all this who'll say, "Oh yes, I remember that brush," and can replace the knot. If so, post pictures when you get it back!!