Show Off Your Chisels

[Blue-deviled]

Yeah, inquired of my local online blank supplier for boxwood and I could have a bit to make one handle for a mere 30 bucks

Got a couple of new small boxwood handles from Hans as patterns.

Have tried Cottonwood for turning which was a waste of time. Don't know whether that's the same as Cottoneaster.

Euro. Beech is the nearest equiv. to Boxwood it seems but I hate the stuff. Hard to finish well and it gives you nasal cancer.

Any idea what else might suit?

Len 'The Wood' Smith has been toting Lemonwood from South America as quite the boxwood replacement. You could ask Jimbur for a bit of African Boxthorn to test! Does it have to look like box, or do you just want something to smack around?

[NCArcher]

Does it have to look like box, or do you just want something to smack around?

rsser was chasing some timber for handles over 3 years ago. He may have finished that project by now.

[RayG]

If you are looking for boxwood handles, then Lee Valley has the traditional octagonal London pattern boxwood handles in various sizes.

Octagonal Boxwood Chisel Handles - Lee Valley Tools

No affilliation etc...

Regards
Ray

[Blue-deviled]

rsser was chasing some timber for handles over 3 years ago. He may have finished that project by now.

I realised the slight delay not long after posting...no offense intended!!!! Er, Rsser, how did the handles come out?

Actually, as this thread appears to have gone Lazarus, maybe I'll post some chisel photographs!

cheers,
B-D.

[Blue-deviled]

If you are looking for boxwood handles, then Lee Valley has the traditional octagonal London pattern boxwood handles in various sizes.

Octagonal Boxwood Chisel Handles - Lee Valley Tools

No affilliation etc...

Regards
Ray

Thanks Ray,

They look rather fine. Actually at about the time this thread started (ie some years back) I did purchase some decent London pattern, and some carving handles in boxwood from a UK firm. I'd best dig out their address as they were a good source of decent quality second-hand tools as well.

I like the declaration of affilliation (or lack of, as in this case). It could catch on!

cheers,
B-D.

[Orsomagno]

UHM, after all these foreign chisels, Le voilà something from Italy... ok, ok, just joking, I've got no italian (do it better ) chisels in my collection:

from left to right, some famous english paring chisels, the bevel edged ones (english and french), three socketed stanley 750, three scottish pattern maker's gouges, my three mortice chisels (with an incredible 40 mm goldenberg), a wilkinson's sash mortice chisel (3 mm), and a set of firmer (mostly english).

The mortice chisels (not shown) vary in range from 2,2mm to 20mm, if I remember correctly. (never used or sharpened one, sadly)

I recognize not only I'm not a woodworker, but I can't have only what I need. But hey, That's my fun, after all...

[kiwioutdoors]

Nice Chisels Orsomagno
How many years has that bench been in the family?

[Scribbly Gum]

Nice Chisels Orsomagno
How many years has that bench been in the family?

Same from me.
BTW, how tall are you?
SG

[Blue-deviled]

Same from me.
BTW, how tall are you?
SG

Very nice spread! Are you standing on another bench?!

[rsser]

rsser was chasing some timber for handles over 3 years ago. He may have finished that project by now.

That's against the code!

I did a repro Berg handle out of Stringybark Willow. V tough but pink rather than yellow. Since then Luban kindly gave me some half logs of Osage Orange. The hold-up now is that my bimetal bandsaw blade needs sharpening and I'm debating whether to jump in without researching how to, or reading up on the process (also against the code).

Doing the Berg proved to be an interesting puzzle in terms of order of work, partic sizing the hoop.

btw Cottonwood is not the same as cotoneaster; if the attribution was right, the only cottonwood I've turned was green and so soft and fibrous as to be impossible. And the only cotoneaster I've seen was cream not yellow.

[jimbur]

I have a few bits of osage orange - they seem to be tempered rather than seasoned.
Cheers,
Jim

[Blue-deviled]

I realised the slight delay not long after posting...no offense intended!!!! Er, Rsser, how did the handles come out?

Actually, as this thread appears to have gone Lazarus, maybe I'll post some chisel photographs!

cheers,
B-D.

Do carving chisels count? The bulk of the short-handled are Stubai. Of the four on the right, the two leftmost are Addis, the others are Howarth and Greaves. All (aside from an apricot) are handled in Apple wood.

[jimbur]

OK, finally managed to collate and ID all of my late Father's chisels.

It's always good to see a good working set of chisels - no pretensions to them, just honest tools.
Cheers,
Jim

[Orsomagno]

Same from me.
BTW, how tall are you?
SG

The bench is the result of an exchange my grandfather did in the 60. As he had no more room to store and use his own workbench (a big one), he exchange it with this one. little, but old, battened and poorly constructed

ok, when I was young i contributed so much carving and decorating the front part, but it's called "patina" nowadays..

the bench is 85cm and I'm 180cm tall. quite comfortable, but the top has too much the sahara dunes effect to successfully planes on it again.

[NZStu]

The blue handled Marples range was considered to be of premium chisel quality when it was sold, and I don't know why this blue line of chisels by Marples doesn't command more at markets and on Ebay.

I've just picked up 3 old blue handled Marples on Trademe for $30. I already had an old 3/4" one my dad gave me, and the 3 I've just bought are, very conveniently, 1/4", 1/2" and 1".

There seems to be some variable opinions of these out there. From what I can gather, the new ones are garbage but the old ones are actually pretty good. The ones I have would, I think, qualify as "old": at least 30 years, probably more.

Anyone had a go at rehandling these? It would be nice to have decent wooden handles on them. How do the plastic handles come off?