It had to be done!!

[Racers]

The work is beautilful - but I wouldn't choose LV for handles.It's brittle BugBear

And yet was the wood of choice for bowling balls which get struck against each other repeatedly and often with great force. So how does that work?

My favourite mallet is LV.


~Nil carborundum illegitemi~

+1

Pete

 

[bugbear]

The work is beautilful - but I wouldn't choose LV for handles.It's brittle BugBear

And yet was the wood of choice for bowling balls which get struck against each other repeatedly and often with great force. So how does that work?

Well, spheres (or near spheres) certainly don't have any vulnerable corners that could get knocked off

I have a vintage LV mallet with a head that is absolutely shot apart with fractures and cracks, and missing pieces.

BugBear

 

[Racers]

Hi, BB

Mine is made from a bowling ball so its side grain all the way round, is yours a cylinder on a stick type so you hit the end grain?

Pete

 

[mark w]

Nice chisels, I checked out your website there is some lovely work on there, looks like you`ve got a workshop to die for.

 

[Dodge]

Well as I was delivering a piece of furniture this afternoon had a couple of hours to kill this morning so finished my chisels.

The square sections had been made octagonal on the router table using a good large chamfer cutter and after being cut to length each was mounted onto the lathe in turn.

Using a narrow parting tool the top and bottom of the octagonal section was formed

Before rounding the sections to be turned with a 1/2" wide gouge

The rounded end of the handle was then formed using a small skew chisel as well as rounding the edge of the octagonal section

The spigot was then formed simply using the parting tool

Before forming the turned section at the base of the handle with the small gouge and skew

The handles were lightly sanded and removed and the copper ferrules fitted

I cut through the old handles to expose the tang of the chisel

Before using a drift to remove the chisel blade from the old handle

I then drilled the new handles on the pillar drill, decided against doung it on the lathe as my chuck always seems to pull out of my morse taper!

And after fitting the blades, giving them a wipe of oil this is what i have ended up with

Better than the old handles - I'd say so!!

What do you think??

Basically a good result for a couple of hours effort.

 

[bugbear]

Hi, BB

Mine is made from a bowling ball so its side grain all the way round, is yours a cylinder on a stick type so you hit the end grain?

Pete

Rectilinear head, striking face is end grain.

BugBear

 

[Paul Chapman]

They look fabulous, Roger 8) Must do mine when it's warm enough to venture into the workshop.

Thanks for taking the trouble to post all those pictures.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[xy mosian]

What a smashing makeover on those chisels. All that is missing is a stamp to the handles ... " Handles by Dodge ".
xy

 

[Glynne]

Hi Roger,

Does this mean that you've given up on getting a set of Lie Neilsens - or are the Narex just for normal use?

Cheers,

Glynne

 

[Graham Orm]

What a smashing makeover on those chisels. All that is missing is a stamp to the handles ... " Handles by Dodge ".
xy

Xy, can you leave a different signature please? I keep thinking you're leaving a kiss and a hug :wink:

 

[Dodge]

Hi Roger,

Does this mean that you've given up on getting a set of Lie Neilsens - or are the Narex just for normal use?

Cheers,

Glynne

Hi Glynne,

I borrowed a set of LNs and to be honest after using them for a couple of days decided they wern't for me, I actually found them a bit too small in the hand.

I think these Narex are now going to become my favourites. (Well for the time being!)

Are you heading this way at all this year Glynne?

Rog

 

[xy mosian]

What a smashing makeover on those chisels. All that is missing is a stamp to the handles ... " Handles by Dodge ".
xy

Xy, can you leave a different signature please? I keep thinking you're leaving a kiss and a hug :wink:

OO misssus. Exactly the effect I was after

xy (just for you for you Grayorm )

 

[Glynne]

Roger

People might construe that I have delicate hands from your comment - pity that you've actually seen me use them!
Yes I will be down your neck of the woods around May if not sooner. Despite my Son-in-Law being a search & rescue pilot, my daughter won't let him use power tools or climb ladders - but it is OK for Dad to do both so I have been commissioned to chain saw wood, fix gutters and decorate the landing!
Whilst your advice around a RAS and morticer was really good, the reorganisation of my workshop took forever and I still haven't sorted the dust extraction so I reckon I'm owed a coffee and few chocy biscuits. I'll give you a shout when I'm down.

Glynne

 

[bobbybirds]

That is awesome Dodge! Thanks!

 

[Peter Sefton]

They do look very rich in LV nice job Roger.

Narex are great steel but let down a little by the stained handles although we haven’t broken one in the three years we have been using them. We are re handling the mortice chisels with Carver pattern Boxwood handles but the tangs are square section so we mortice them and then glue them as Narex do. The trick is getting the mortice plumb inside the handle

 

[Togalosh]

Wow..very nice.

How do you decide on the measurements?

How do you even make/mark out the octaganal(?) blank?

How did you make the ferules? Why copper not brass?

(..questions, questions..)

 

[Dodge]

Wow..very nice.

How do you decide on the measurements?

How do you even make/mark out the octaganal(?) blank?

How did you make the ferules? Why copper not brass?

(..questions, questions..)

Basically I made them to fit my hand, after all they are my chisels and its me who will be using them. Made a couple of quick sample bits before going ahead with the actual handles.

The octagonal section was started square in section, say 40mm x 40mm then after cutting each handle over length I planed each one over the surfacer reducing their sizes in steps - The largest left at 40mm, the next biggest had one pass on each face removing about 0.5mm per pass finishing at say 39mm, the next had two passes per face so finished at 38mm and so on.

Once the square sections were correct I then used a large chamfer cutter in the router table to take away the corners in successive passes until the even octagons were achieved by slowly raising the cutter in the table.

As for the ferrules - I used copper as I had some odd bits of standard copper pipe left from a plumbing job so cut the ferrules from that instead of buying some brass.

I have got to say though the handles have absolutely transformed the chisels, I wish I had done it a couple of years ago now when I first gor them - the trouble is I'm now looking at my others and thinking they might get re-handled too!!

 

[rileytoolworks]

Excellent work Dodge
I too have been working on octagonal handles lately, but I've gone about octagonal-ising(!) the blanks on the thicknesser.
Same as you I rough cut the blanks at 40 x 40mm section then using a false bed in the thicknessr I run the blanks through with successive passes til I achieve even flats. The false bed is made with a deep 'v'notch (made by butting together 2 45 degree cuts), which holds the blank on its corner.

I'll post some photos in another thread...

Adam.

 

[Dodge]

Hmmmmm,

Moving some wood in the store yesterday found a large piece of boxwood I had forgotten about - Reckon some other chisles may get the "Dodge" treatment next week :mrgreen:

 

[paulm]

Lovely workmanship Roger, crying out for proper brass ferrules to set them off like they deserve

Cheers, Paul