This video shows a sofer writing a sefer Torah. This sofer has a good hand, writes at a nice pace, and can ask a decent price. But one can also tell how the sefer Torah industry has commercialised the process, allowing for better productivity.
Note the following:
1) The sofer is writing on a light table, which means he does not have to worry about planning the spacing and can just trace over the letters. This saves a lot of time. This also minimises mistakes and saves time of repairs.
2) The quill is a plastic kulmos with a repository, which means you need to dip it into the ink every few lines instead of every few letters. Also you do not need to sharpen it and make new quills. Both of these save time.
3) The klaf today is more refined and smooth, easier to write on. Not uneven and rough like the old days. I'm sure lots of "mei klaf" is added. This enhances writing speed and quality of writing.
4) Double sirtut. Again this enhances quality and neatness.
5) The tagin / …
Shalom R. Shmuel,
ReplyDeleteI was in Israel a bit over a month ago and dropped into their factory to check them out. The atzei chayyim are indeed very nice, yet pricy when compared to Hershkovitz and about 2-3 pounds heavier. Their entry level set begins at around $1400 and goes up from there. The atzei chayyim have planed edges on their circular plates to keep the rollers from moving. They have bearings where the central dowel meets the plates allowing the ba'al koreh to easily from one section to another. Overall a nice and ingenious design for one who wants the novelty and doesn't care about the price.
I've bought several, I brought it to their attention that the paint chips off easily and this has never happened with Hershkowitz, hopefully they have now fixed the problem with their paint
ReplyDeleteI've bought several, I brought it to their attention that the paint chips off easily and this has never happened with Hershkowitz, hopefully they have now fixed the problem with their paint
ReplyDelete