What is better?
I have a customer with a shel yad (Rabeinu Tam) approx age 40 years, which has cracking on the end where the parsha begins being rolled. The ink is weak along a cluster of creases which exist at the far left edge of the parshiyos (in this case shema parsha). It's unlikely that even if I go over it, that it will be strong long term and will likely continue to crack. The Rosh parshiyos and the first three of the yad parshiyos seem solid and I'm not worried about them.
Do I:
1) Fix as best as possible even though it will likely continue to deteriorate as the ink is quite brittle in that section?
2) Replace the last 2 parshiyos (I have some newer ones of similar level from a sofer that had a psul in the first parsha. So it won't cost the customer anything and therefore expense is not a factor in this decision). Although I am confident this option will last longer, the disadvantage is that the yad will now consist of two pieces (glued together).
Which option is preferred?
My gut tells me to change because it is not a financial expense to the customer and there is no chashash of psul. However if I leave it and the ink continues to crack we have a potential possibility that they could become posul.
Do I:
1) Fix as best as possible even though it will likely continue to deteriorate as the ink is quite brittle in that section?
2) Replace the last 2 parshiyos (I have some newer ones of similar level from a sofer that had a psul in the first parsha. So it won't cost the customer anything and therefore expense is not a factor in this decision). Although I am confident this option will last longer, the disadvantage is that the yad will now consist of two pieces (glued together).
Which option is preferred?
My gut tells me to change because it is not a financial expense to the customer and there is no chashash of psul. However if I leave it and the ink continues to crack we have a potential possibility that they could become posul.
Dio LaNetzach is flexible. It will never crack. I have a friend, a sofer, who every year had to fix many cracked letters on a Megilla, where it was folded by mistake on the letters. I gave him Dio LaNetzach, he fixed all the cracked letters with Dio LaNetzach, and after that the letters never cracked again.
ReplyDeleteHarav Friedlander zt"l, used to tell sofrim:
דיו לנצח יציל את עם ישראל מסת"ם שנפסלים
I do that sometimes by old sifted torah but if I put it on top of regular thick brittle ink it will come off with the ink when it flakes down the line?
ReplyDelete*sifrei
ReplyDeleteOption 2!
ReplyDeleteBut why can't you charge the customer for the new Parshiyos?
DeleteThe owner of the tefillin is klei Kodesh his financial situation is not the best, I have a set with a psul in the first parsha from a sofer friend, they are brand new and same type of ksav. Why do I need to charge, it didn't cost me anything, I'm saving shemus from genizah plus Zeh nehneh v'zeh lo choser, everybody wins.
Delete
replace
ReplyDelete