The International STa"M Forum

Many are aware of the shocking story circulating about "Rabbi" Michoel Tzadok Elkoen, a Charedi sofer from Jerusalem who was found to be a non Jewish Christian Missionary. While the story itself is very concerning, some people are worried that may have ended up with his STa"M (Sifrei Torah, Tefillin or Mezuzos), since these items often go through many hands until they reach the end customer. Well, the good news is that he did not write in large quantities, he was involved in many other things besides Safrus. Furthermore, he wrote Sephardi Ksav, so if you don't buy Sephardi ksav then you definitely have nothing to worry about. For those interested, I am posting a picture of his ksav below. (He posted pictures of his writing several times on the internet.) If one is really worried, an expert sofer can tell if a suspected item is a potential match to the said ksav. (There are certain nuances that are different here to your typical Sephardi ksav.) Certainly if there is a...

 Hi - another question I received and was asked to post on the forum: " What is the minimum width of a Yud (by kulmus and cm) and how would that translate in a Shiur Parsha?"

 Hi - I received the following question and was asked to post on the forum: Can a mezuzah be written in a way to have a Stumah that is according to the Alter Rebbe and Ta"z (simultaneously)? Thanks

A careful examination of the above Parasha of Tefillin reveals the Daled of the word Echad to be written with an excessively long foot.  Likewise, the foot is overly slanted to the right causing one to perhaps mistake it with a KHAF PESHUTA.     Can this DALED be redeemed by the reading of a TINOK as halakha recommends in many parallel cases, or is this REGEL so overly long that the letter has lost its shape and the reading of a TINOK is rendered useless and to no avail, even if read as a DALED.  Your informed insight is welcomed.

 Someone recently purchased "Avodas Yad" retzuos, black on both sides. Looking at it closely, it appears to be shpalt leather. Is there such a thing as shpalt avodas yad?? It makes no sense to me. Why would someone go to the trouble of making avodas yad on such low level retzuos? And why would someone buying shpalt want avodas yad? Surely if you see shpalt that is supposedly avodas yad, it reeks of fraud and likely isn't avodas yad. Is this a fair assumption??

 Hi everyone, I need a tikkun for yeshayhu that I can get sent to me in Florida. It is not the ben asher version. Anyone have a number of someone that ships or emails a tikkun? Thanks for any leads

Am wondering if anyone has a nice ksav and available now to ship to Canada in time.  The budget is not high as needs to be in Canadian $ under $1k. if you have something please post image of ksav. Thank you

Got a second Shaila in my Mezuza - unlucky... Question is if there's a shinui tzura from Lamed to a Samech, which happened by an accidental smudge in the wet ink. The spillage and the base of Lamed are connected. In my previous shaila I got lucky but this one will maybe force me to scrape the line, which is chaval as I worked very hard in this Mezuza. Any thoughts? I'm planning to ask a posek when I have a chance but would appreciate your thoughts. YK

 I received the following sheila which I’ll put out to the STaM community: What scanner is required for computer checking? Or is there a camera that works? Is it better to scan and email to a computer checking service? Or to get a program myself? Thank you for your help

 

 

Warsaw Ghetto tefillin discovered 76  after hiding in bunker. Amazing rescue of these precious objects. My thoughts turn to the men who wore the tefillin in desperate circumstances.  News article

  A little ink got smudged in a bad place - inside the Reish. Can this be a shinui tzura to Hei? The smudged ink is rather small but I’m curious to know your opinions.  Git voch YK

 Is it a cheshash if the moshav of an ayin comes down very steeply or has a bit on the bottom of at least an os katana that goes down vertically (I will try and attach picture soon)?  I have heard some are machmir with this so it should not be a shailo of a tzadik pshuta.  Thoughts anyone?

The regel of the nun of בין עינכם appears to be coming from the left corner and then angling slightly to give the appearance of a slight blita rather than actually  being slightly to the right any comments ?  

I'd just like to share a simple tip that has worked well for me over the years.  Rolling mezuzos can be awkward, particularly if the klaf is thick or if the mezuzah has to be rolled tightly to fit into a narrow case. Sometimes it takes several attempts to roll nicely, and often one can make creases in the parchment and even bruising of letters on the left side, both which eventually cause the letters to break or crack and ultimately shorten the life of the mezuzah. What I suggest doing -  is to roll the mezuzah loosely and then put an elastic / rubber band around it. Leave it overnight or even for a few hours so it gets a circular shape and it will be much easier to roll after that. In fact, it will be much like rolling a used mezuzah and you should be able to get a perfect roll without making any creases etc. You can even roll several mezuzos loosely inside each other with one rubber band. I always do this for expensive mezuzos even if the klaf is thin and the case isn't tigh...

Hi, does anyone have video or pictures of a good technique of how to install wrapping-out ("Sefard") shel yad retzuos in the Maabarta? The way I originally learned to do it often causes damage to the retzuah. Thank you.

ד' וה' דבוקים - יש חוששים שנפסלו כי נעשו כחי"ת של רש"י (גג פשוט, ולא מחולק בחטוטרת. ומבואר בפוסקים שחי"ת של רש"י כשרה בדיעבד) קודם שכתב רגל שמאל של הה"א. וא"כ גרירת הנגיעה, הוא חק תוכות. ולדעתי שאין לחשוש כן, במקרה שלפנינו (כלומר אין לחשוש לשינוי צורה, שיהא גרירת הדיבוק חק תוכות, אבל בודאי צריך להפרידם משום שאינן מוקפות גויל עד שיפרידם). וזה בצירוף ג' טעמים: א) הגג כאן אינו פשוט כחי"ת דרש"י, אלא ניכר שנפסק, והן שתי אותיות, כי הדיבוק אינו בכל עובי הגגות. ב) רגל ימין של הה"א - אם נחשיבו כרגל שמאל של החי"ת, הוא באמצעו של האות. ויש פוסלים ה"א [וכל שכן חי"ת] שרגל שמאל אינו בצד שמאלו אלא באמצע הגג. ואע"פ שפסק בשו"ע רבינו שבדיעבד כשר [אם תינוק יכירו], מכל מקום בצירוף שתי השינויים הללו, ברור שתינוק לא יטעה להחשיבם כחי"ת דרש"י. ג) באמת בכתב זה [כמו ברוב הכתבים היום] אין עושים כלל חי"ת דרש"י, אלא חי"ת של חטוטרת כרבינו תם [והוא המנהג הפשוט ברוב הקהילות], ואם כן כאשר נשאל תינוק בה...

הצד"י הזו נפסלה, כי היא גם גימ"ל מחמת נגיעת גג הלמ"ד ותגו לגוף הצד"י, על כן הוא גם צד"י וגם גימ"ל - ופסולה משום שאינה כתיבה תמה [כלומר כתיבה ברורה, כל אות בצורתה המיוחדת]. וגרירת הנגיעה - הוא חק תוכות, ואין תקנה לפרשה זו. דין זה דומה לראש הלמ"ד הנכנס לחלל הד', שפוסל את הדלי"ת - מטעם כתיבה תמה, כי אין ברור האם זו ד' או ה'.