Thread: Dovetailing mallet

Improved broom handle mallet #1. Have to start somewhere. I think perhaps the handle could be a bit slimmer, but I'll try it out a bit before jumping in and turning another. It weighs in at 340g.
mallet.jpg

Hi Fuzzie

Look at the examples I posted. The handles all have one thing in common: they taper towards the head where they are gripped. The morticing mallet only differs in that it has two sections to grip (one further out for power, and one in a "choked up" position for control).

Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi Derek,

I note the flare of the handle towards the head on many mallets like yours and the Wood Is Good urethane ones but I didn't really think about it as a design point other than perhaps being for support of the separately pieced head.

Today's exercise was really more of an unplanned experiment with the lathe and tools at the men's shed as well as testing out the scungy Ironbark I have to work with at the moment. It is as much turning practise as it is a mallet experiment. I didn't start with a plan, I just stuck a piece of old Ironbark joist in the lathe and guessed a few dimensions and tried not to have any catches turning a handle shaped object.

I'll take onboard your suggestion and see if I tend to hold it close to the head when I come to use it and how that might affect its serviceability.

That's the benefit of a bit of experimentation I guess. Starting out with no preconceived ideas I hope I'll eventually get to identify and understand the features of different mallets and how they apply to and affect the way I work.

Cheers,
Franklin