A Look At My Students

Robert Hirsch (left) with me working on kolmosim. Robert is an accountant who is learning safrus as a hobby. He resides in Fair Lawn, NJ

Avraham Birnbaum, from Monsey, NY is learning safrus as a hobby.

Elchanon Zuckman, President and CEO of Z Electrical Contracting Inc., one of my first talmidim, and a great friend. If you need a great electrician you can find him by looking on the right sidebar under "Get it done right by the pros I trust".

Moshe Amar started out with me, and is now a well known S'faradi sofer. He is from Spain, and resides in Har Nof, Israel with his wife and children.

Reb Yosef Hammer from Monsey, a very focused talmid of the Safrus Program

Rabbi Daniel Melamed, one of my very first talmidim. He now resides in Yerusalem with his wife and children. He learns in kollel and works as a sofer. I sell tefillin and mezuzos that he writes. Contact me for more info.

Rabbi Melamed consulting with one of the Dyanim of the Badatz. They are discussing the halachos of tefillin battim.

Rabbi Gedaliah Levitin resides in Lakewood, NJ. He is working on his first megillah, and is learning how to check tefillin and mezuzos. Rabbi Levitin was zoche to finish shas this past year! Tzkeh l'mitzvos!

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.

Safrus Programs, Lectures, and Events

Rabbi Michaels is available to speak about tefillin and mezuzos in a classroom setting or for adult education classes in your shul. He brings along an interesting assortment of displays that he has collected over the years. His goal is to make the mitzvos of tefillin and mezuza come alive for the group. He has spoken to both young children and adults across the religious spectrum. Rabbi Michaels can be contacted at 845-290-2546 or by email at offices@mezuzadepot.com.