Repair Suggestions: Cracks in Wood Handle

A couple of years ago I purchased a beautiful Thater brush with an ebony wood handle.

After using the brush for a while (once per week), I noted hairline cracks in the wood handle.

Here are two photos I took: the first when the brush was new, the second shows one of the cracks:

I emailed Thater and attached photos. I received the following reply
Dear Sir,

we are sorry that you have to complain about the brush handle.

Just send the shaving brush to our company and we will replace
the handle.
A crack like the one in your brush handle occurs very rarely but can
happen as we are talking about wood.

The address to send is:

Heinrich L. Thäter GmbH
Albertstraße 8
D-90478 Nürnberg

I duly returned the brush and received a new brush from Thater.

All was well until cracks began forming on the new brush as well.

I too very careful care of both brushes. They were gently rinsed after use, shaken, stropped on a towel. The first brush was stored standing up, the second brush was hung upside down.

I suspect the problem is with the wood itself and I am wondering whether I can fill the cracks to stabilise them.

My thought is to fill the cracks with slightly diluted Weldbond glue. Weldbond is water resistant.

Any suggestions on a better way?

weldbond might work, otherwise an epoxy filler.
thater was nice, but it does appear that their stock of these handles is defective.
chalk it all up to learning and experience, and look into another brand of brush as an alternate.

I also think epoxy would be a better answer, and you can color it if you want.

Before doing anything else though, I would contact the brush company again.

fill it with jb weld. sand it lightly. use a black sharpie in a straight line right over the crack. do not over fill it. once jb weld is dry it is not going anywhere. then use thompsons deck sealant on the whole thing. the clear. should not crack again. if the sharpie does not cover it enough use an automotive touch up fiber glass pen. depends on how much it means to you. if you don't already have all that it is like $50 of stuff. unless you just stop at the jb and a sharpie. I use that method for a quick fix on wood. there are much better ways and even more expensive to do.

The issue appears to be an over-stuffed handle. Alternatively, it could be stress on the handle from face shaving (my Thater instruction manual says to avoid face shaving). In any event, I agree that you should again contact the manufacturer and look to another replacement.

I have found that CA glue (superglue)bonds well to wood. I have used CA glue numerous times as a finish on pens. I made my first shaving brush recently and used a CA glue finish on it to make it waterproof. You can sand it smooth and polish it to shine like glass. IMHO I would get some thin CA glue and drop it into the crack then spray it with some accelerator. Then apply some medium thickness (gap filling) CA along the crack to close it up. You may need to apply multiple coats to completely fill the crack. When spraying with accelerator, spray from a distance to avoid discoloration of the glue.

I'm a DIY type guy, but in truth it might be best to send the brush back to the manufacturer for repair or replacement.

rassage said:

fill it with jb weld. sand it lightly. use a black sharpie in a straight line right over the crack. do not over fill it. once jb weld is dry it is not going anywhere. then use thompsons deck sealant on the whole thing. the clear. should not crack again. if the sharpie does not cover it enough use an automotive touch up fiber glass pen. depends on how much it means to you. if you don't already have all that it is like $50 of stuff. unless you just stop at the jb and a sharpie. I use that method for a quick fix on wood. there are much better ways and even more expensive to do.

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I suspect the knot is too dense. It feels tight when dry, so that is probably the problem.

I have had several pens made from Ebony split. The wood seems to be prone to splitting.
One of the reasons I tend to go away from woods for shaving brushes. There is the option of
resin stabilized woods, but good quality is hard to find. Also, several woods cannot be resin
stabilized as they are either too dense or too oily, or both.

I went to school for band instrument repair and anything made of wood be it ebony, african black wood or maple needs a good coat of mineral oil on it sometimes. Liberal amounts is best to saturate it let it sit for awhile and anything that is left not soaked in just wipe off with a paper towel. The cracks can be due to the wood drying out or it could be due to stress on the thin lip...this would happen alot on wood clarinets....we usually either cut the top off and reapply a new wood top/plastic top or to keep the genuineness we would brass pin it and brace it with Cyanoacrylate (read Super Glue) then take 2000 wet paper/mineral oil and smooth it out.

EDIT: it may also be better to use a black wood dust in the super glue to match coloring, apply while it is drying. Also keep in mind many many small coats dont try to fill it all at once or you will get runs. Use a needle to put drops in the crack and build it up not all at once.Much stronger due to the layering instead of all at once and also you dont screw up the brush inside with glue sticking it all together.

Pull the knot out and put it in a different handle.

Big Jim said:

I also think epoxy would be a better answer, and you can color it if you want.

Before doing anything else though, I would contact the brush company again.

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Give the company another chance.