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Simple Scratch Awl, A Good First Tool to Make

All you need is a drill with a range of bits, a pencil,  some sand paper, two  small blocks of wood, some epoxy, and an inexpensive round diamond file. A vise will make it safer to do, and a saw, knife or chisel might make your work easier.  A bit of masking tape [...]

January 6th, 2009 | Category: Hand Tools, Metalworking, Tool Making, Tools, Tutorials, Woodworking | 3 comments

Tool for Making Blades

Not yet perfected, but it is showing good  potential as a prototype.

The wood clamp slides along the two bars.  The held blade slides across the grinder.

The angle and position can be adjusted.

After using it a bit, it needs to be easier to adjust and micro adjustment to slowly [...]

January 2nd, 2009 | Category: Hand Tools, Metalworking, Power Tools, Tool Making, Tools | Leave a comment

Fleam, Bowsaws, History and Faith

I just this week read a post about fleam over on Popular Woodworking. Aparently Colonial Williamsberg does not put fleam on their saws, since there is no evidence of fleam on saws in Colonial America.

This got me to thinking, Tage Frid, an expert among experts,  liked to use a ripsaw  for cutting dovetails [...]

November 13th, 2008 | Category: Hand Tools, Injustice, Metalworking, Speculation, Tool Making, Tools, Woodworking | 3 comments

Etching Steel, Failure

I enameled several steel slabs for etching in vinegar. When I went to scribe them, the enamel chipped off in large chips. The slab that I did not degrease the chips came off as sheets, but even where the slabs were treated to perfection, the enamel flakes off too large. I need to find [...]

October 28th, 2008 | Category: Metalworking | 2 comments

Sharpening Tools, Part 5

A few odd points to clear up some common misunderstanding on tools and sharpness.

The first point is, that unless you are changing the actual angle of the blade to make it a lower degree angle, you are more specifically making the blade keen.

Making a blade keen does not make a weaker [...]

October 16th, 2008 | Category: Hand Tools, Sharpening, Tool Making, Tutorials, Woodworking | 4 comments
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