Tried something new tonight...

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TimS124

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Apr 11, 2012
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735
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Asheville, NC
This is the first shaving brush I've turned and the first time I've turned this material…it's soapstone.

It turns like butter…very very powdery butter. :big grin:

It's a gift for my son who discovered "real shaving" while in college. Hopefully, he'll graduate next Fall so I can shift to spending his tuition money on tools for me. :big grin:

He says he already has a stand for his current brush and "will just use that". In other words, I'll be turning a stand in early January…

I offered a razor as well but he said he only wants a cool brush. So, I guess the cool razor will be in February after he decides the brush and stand are lonely… :laugh:
 

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TimS124

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Apr 11, 2012
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Asheville, NC
Nice, I bet the feel is something else

Where did you ever find a big enough piece of soapstone ??

I was worried it would be heavy but it feels really nice to me. I'm not sure what his current brush is made from but I think it's just a standard store-bought plastic one. So this will be slightly beefier but not enough to detract.

That brush was made from a small piece that I hand cut from a larger chunk. :biggrin:

I picked this stone up directly from Sierra Hills Stone in Angels Camp, CA. I'm in their neighborhood a few times a year and love being able to pick exactly what I want. The price there is $1.50/lb and I don't pay shipping…so it's easier to get bigger chunks.

They have piles of offcuts as well as bigger stones. The offcuts let you see the character of the stone…just pour some water on it and the color stands out.

Sometimes there's a huge difference between the wet and dry look for soapstone. You have to bring a water bottle with you to see the finished colors or you end up passing over incredible stones or taking home some that look promising, but just turn dark and fairly featureless once a finish is applied. Fortunately, I was still able to get the really nice stones once I figured out what I should be looking for (a benefit of being able to visit multiple times a year).

Sierra Hills Stone provides the soapstone kits that Hobby Lobby carries. Hobby Lobby stocks a solid chunk that's 3" x 5" x 2 1/8" for $10.

I think that Hobby Lobby chunk would be enough to yield four shaving brush handle blanks, or $2.50 per brush blank plus time/effort to cut the block down to size. There should be a wee bit of leftover as well for something else (maybe a matching base for a brush stand).

That's based on PSI's recommendation of 2" x 2" x 2-1/2" for shaving brush blank size…your preference may be quite different.


You can see a picture of one of their cutoff piles that I pick through via this item from their Etsy site:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/69421236/sculpture-quality-california-soapstone?ref=shop_home_active

The photo shows that there are some pretty good sized pieces in the pile and they can provide much larger if desired. They sell to artists, sculptors, countertop makers, etc. I believe they have their own local-ish quarry as well.

You can find their dedicated web site at: Sierra Hills Stone

I would bet they'd be happy to pre-cut shaving brush blanks in the stone of your choice if anybody wanted to get several. I have no idea what the cost would be to get it slabbed but you can tell by looking at their scrap pile that they're set up for doing that kind of work.

I prefer getting a larger chunk and having more options for what to do with it. Leftover "natural" edges can be made into funky pen stands, small carvings, accents, beads, lots of options...
 
Last edited:

gimpy

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Joined
Mar 10, 2012
Messages
2,579
Location
Danville, Pa
Nice, I bet the feel is something else

Where did you ever find a big enough piece of soapstone ??

I was worried it would be heavy but it feels really nice to me. I'm not sure what his current brush is made from but I think it's just a standard store-bought plastic one. So this will be slightly beefier but not enough to detract.

That brush was made from a small piece that I hand cut from a larger chunk. :biggrin:

I picked this stone up directly from Sierra Hills Stone in Angels Camp, CA. I'm in their neighborhood a few times a year and love being able to pick exactly what I want. The price there is $1.50/lb and I don't pay shipping…so it's easier to get bigger chunks.

They have piles of offcuts as well as bigger stones. The offcuts let you see the character of the stone…just pour some water on it and the color stands out.

Sometimes there's a huge difference between the wet and dry look for soapstone. You have to bring a water bottle with you to see the finished colors or you end up passing over incredible stones or taking home some that look promising, but just turn dark and fairly featureless once a finish is applied. Fortunately, I was still able to get the really nice stones once I figured out what I should be looking for (a benefit of being able to visit multiple times a year).

Sierra Hills Stone provides the soapstone kits that Hobby Lobby carries. Hobby Lobby stocks a solid chunk that's 3" x 5" x 2 1/8" for $10.

I think that Hobby Lobby chunk would be enough to yield four shaving brush handle blanks, or $2.50 per brush blank plus time/effort to cut the block down to size. There should be a wee bit of leftover as well for something else (maybe a matching base for a brush stand).

That's based on PSI's recommendation of 2" x 2" x 2-1/2" for shaving brush blank size…your preference may be quite different.


You can see a picture of one of their cutoff piles that I pick through via this item from their Etsy site:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/69421236/sculpture-quality-california-soapstone?ref=shop_home_active

The photo shows that there are some pretty good sized pieces in the pile and they can provide much larger if desired. They sell to artists, sculptors, countertop makers, etc. I believe they have their own local-ish quarry as well.

You can find their dedicated web site at: Sierra Hills Stone

I would bet they'd be happy to pre-cut shaving brush blanks in the stone of your choice if anybody wanted to get several. I have no idea what the cost would be to get it slabbed but you can tell by looking at their scrap pile that they're set up for doing that kind of work.

I prefer getting a larger chunk and having more options for what to do with it. Leftover "natural" edges can be made into funky pen stands, small carvings, accents, beads, lots of options...


I would like to thank you for the in depth of your findings.
I will be ordering some after the holidays.

Again thank you
 

TimS124

Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2012
Messages
735
Location
Asheville, NC
Thanks for the info. Will have to stop by the next month when we go up to Murphys to pick up our next wine club selection.

Tom,

I just checked maps.google.com and their street view is well off from where Sierra Hills Stone really is…gotta love the mapping folks. D'oh.

They're in the old Angels Camp train depot. They still use the old train scales to weigh stone that's being purchased. :biggrin:
 
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