You Can Turn Woodshop Scraps Into Hardwood Combs

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So. Press the piece of work flat against the belt of your sander — teeth facing "downstream" in the direction of the belt's rotation — and gradually apply increasing pressure to the teeth to make them sand down to an even taper. Then flip the comb over and sand the other side to the same taper. Continue this sanding until the ends of the teeth are sharp (but not feather-edged), and the comb's handle is no thicker than 1/2-inch (nor thinner than 1/4-inch).

Now it's time to actually put points on the ends of the tapered teeth. To do this, loosen the belt on your sander so that it can be slipped over about 1 inch beyond the edge of the machine. Then [1] turn the sander on, [2] hold the comb so that the extended edge of the belt is positioned between two teeth, [3] angle the comb a bit so as to sand away part of the tip of one tooth, and [4] turn the comb over and sand the other side of the same tooth to a point. Do this for each tooth, and try to give all of the teeth the same shape and degree of sharpness. If you don't have a belt sander, you can sand the teeth by hand.

Finally, sand "in" the edges of the comb at an angle to put a point on the comb's 1/2-inch-wide end teeth.

The Finishing Steps

All right. With sandpaper of increasingly finer grit, smooth over any rough spots that may still exist on the comb (especially along the insides of the teeth). Don't rush, it'll take time to do this job right.

If you want to bring out the texture and natural beauty of the finished "work of art", you can — if you wish — apply a light sealer. I like to combine equal amounts of shellac and linseed oil (about three ounces of each) and apply the mixture sparingly to the comb, rubbing it in well with a rag so as not to leave any excess oil. (Believe me, if even a trace of oil remains, you'll gunk up your hair!)

After the oil-shellac mixture has set in and dried, you can buff the entire surface of the comb with No. 3 steel wool. This'll bring out the grain's texture even more and give a luscious shine to the finish.

Of course, if you don't want to bother applying linseed oil and shellac to your finished comb(s), you can simply let the natural oil from your hair slowly work into the wood.

Nor does the finishing process have to stop here. Mother-of-pearl or semiprecious stones can be inlaid in a comb's handle, or — if you're artistically inclined — you might carve etchings into the handle that no amount of sawing or sanding will be able to duplicate.

Production and Marketing

Once you've mastered each step of the combmaking process, you should have no difficulty turning out two completely finished basic combs per hour. (The more sophisticated your equipment, the faster you'll be able to produce 'em.) Since I have no desire to mass-produce these items on a grand scale, however, I usually work at a more leisurely pace and spend lots of time with each individual comb.

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