Letters Touching

Nottice the first two letters of the second line are touching. Since they didn’t change the shape of the letters, and they didn’t turn one letter into another letter,  it was able to be fixed. This was seen on mezuzos that had been previously checked. When people ask me why they have to get there mezuzos checked if they were checked a few years ago, I can show them this and hundreds more like it. Believe me, I see this all the time!

Battim: Rebuah Regel Vs. Rebuah Yad

Rebuah Regel tefillin battim are made square by operating a milling machine powered by foot pedals. Some battim are made ‘Yad Yad’ meaning that the squaring of the battim is made only with hand power. The question is: is ‘yad yad’ really better than rebuah regel? I asked Reb Avraham Tzvi Wosner and he said there is no difference (except the higher price for yad yad). There are also battim that are made by a milling machine that is powered by electricity. These are called ‘mechonah’. They are less expensive than rebuah regel, and are the most common type of gassos battim.

Mezuzah With Window For Shakai

It is a very old custom that the back of a mezuzah has Hashem’s name (Shakai) written on it.  Sometimes the margin of the mezuzah is too large and when the mezuzah is rolled, it covers the shem. It is brought down that when we walk by the  mezuzah we put our hand on the shem and kiss our hand, in the same way that people kiss the sefer torah.  The best way to do this is if you actually see the letters of  Hashem’s name. Some people make a window by cutting the klaf as shown in the above picture, but it is better to simply fold the klaf. I asked Reb Wosner if it is really better to cut a window in the klaf than to just cut the margin of the klaf down a bit. He agreed that once you are cutting the klaf it hardly makes a difference if you are cutting a window or cutting the whole margin. Sometimes instead of cutting the klaf or making a window, people fold the edge of the klaf. This is the most preferable method. If you have mezuzos and you need help folding them please call me. For a small charge I will neatly roll up your mezuzos and put them in the cases. If you would like to see how I roll mezuzos watch my video in  How To Roll A Mezuzah.

Protect Your STaM From Water Damage

 

Be viligant when it comes to water. Many people bring me megillos that have come into contact with water. Store your megillos, and mezuzos in waterproof containers. If you keep your megillah in a silver case put it in a plastic bag before you place it in the case. Many people have told me stories about housekeepers that decided to polish the silver case, thinking they were doing their employer a favor only to find out that the employer was not as enthusiastic as they thought he would be. In fact, there is a megillah in my office awaiting repair for this very reason. The megillos pictured above were in a closed breakfront.  A pipe burst from the ceiling, dripped onto the breakfront, trickled inside and ruined the megillos. Are they still kosher? Probably. Although I will not be able to make them look new, I will be able to make them usable.

What Is The Proper Location For a Mezuzah On A Wide Doorway?

 The halachah requires the mezuzah to go on the outer tefach (four and one half inches) of the doorway. There are two possible reasons why this is so. One is so that the entire house is protected. The other is so that we come into contact with the mitzvah at the earliest point in time. When the door in question is an outer door the custom is to put it on the outermost spot (unless it will be heavily rained upon). On the inside doorways, since they are already protected by the mezuzos that are on rooms that are closer to the outside of the house, the minhag (custom) is to put it on the middle of the door frame.

How To Roll A Mezuzah

Here are a few pointers to help you roll up your mezuzos.
1) It is only difficult to roll up new mezuzos. Once they are old they are already round and easily roll up to the size you need.
2) You roll mezuzos from the end of the mezuzah to the beginning, that is, if you are looking at the writing, from the left to the right.
3) If you don’t have an electric pencil sharpener insert you can use a round pencil. But trust me, the pencil sharpener insert is much better.
4) If you can’t see the shem Shaki on the back after you are done rolling it, loosen up the tension on the mezuzah. It can be as big as you need as long as it can fit into the case.
5) Mezuzos writen on thick klaf may be difficult to roll. You may need to hold them shut with a bit of tape.   

6) The reason I roll the mezuzah on something round is so that they don’t get creases. Your mezuzos will last much longer if they don’t have any creases. Over time the letters will fade where there are creases.

7) Many people use plastic rap to roll mezuzos. I prefer waxed paper. I find that it lets the mezuzah breath, resulting in less instances of water damage. Additionally, it is much easier to work with. I can cut fifty or a hundred pieces of waxed paper to size and store them one on top the other. Try storing Saran Rap pieces in a pile. What a mess that will be when you try to separate them!

If you need help rolling your mezuzos please give me a call at 845-290-2546.

How to roll aMezuzah

How To Roll a Mezuzah

How to roll a mezuzah

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