Speaking of Chisels...

[John Dykes]

I sit behind a desk all day, so when my wife called and said, "Are you going to be able to come to your daughter's school Thanksgiving lunch," I jumped on it... Not only would I see my sweet daughter, I could also pad my lunch by 15 minutes just to get that little extra time in the garage.

I started digging my first mortise for my workbench late last night. Bored it out with a brace, and now am chipping away to make the tenon fit. Not an easy job - but enjoyable. Beat on some LN chisels here, pare a little with a large Japanese chisel there, pull the waste out with a smaller LN chisel - rinse, repeat.

After digging out a little waste with the 3/8ths chisel, I'm holding it by my side and hear a "clink" on the concrete next to my feet. A2 isn't as tough as everybody claims, and now I have a good sized chip to contend with!

I thought about a dollop of epoxy when I bought them, but would love to replace the handles on the LNs some day. I can't be dropping chisels on concrete just anytime they feel like coming out.... I frequently bang the handle on the bench to set it, but I guess not enough.

Thoughts?

- jbd in Denver

[Chris Friesen]

Obviously you need to install wood floors in your shop.

What about a small dollop of caulking inside the socket?

[Alan DuBoff]

How about just grinding the chip out, sharpening it, and just using it!

I like epoxy to hold the handles in, and do that on the old Stanley's I have.

[John Guarino]

You can do it with rosin, as many old timers do/did.

Cheap, reliable, renewable, reversible.

[Doug Shepard]

I epoxied mine on this summer. Never actually lost one onto the concrete floor but close. I just couldn't keep the handles on no matter how hard I whacked on them. The thing that finally pushed me into gluing was when I sliced myself pretty good grabbing for one that was heading for the floor. The side bevels can be very sharp and I caught it but got nailed - not deep, rather like a giant paper cut. I got out the epoxy a few days later.

[Ken Shepard]

Epoxy will definitely do the job, but I prefer a dab of silicone caulk. It will hold the handle securely, but if for any reason you want to remove it, a bit of tugging and twisting will free it with no damage to either steel or wood.

[John Keeton]

John, at least it wasn't that nice new Japanese chisel you were so pleased to have purchased in Berea!!

[Mike Henderson]

I had that trouble with my LNs. The problem seems to be that the socket is too smooth. On old socket chisels, the socket was always very rough with lots of metal projecting out into the socket (like metal splatter). When you drive a handle onto an old chisel, it stays.

It would be good if LN would roughen up the inside of the socket a bit instead of making it so perfect.

Anyway, I used a small amount of epoxy and that holds them in well. A bit of heat will release the handle, but even if you have to cut it out, it doesn't matter because you'd only do that if you were going to replace the handle.

Mike

Off topic - Here's some handles I've made recently. From left to right they are:
Wenge - an very good wood for chisels and good looking
Bloodwood - another very good wood and keeps its color
Walnut - Okay but not great
Zebrawood (2 shown) - Nice but I'm not a big fan of zebrawood.
East Indian Rosewood - Seems good but I haven't used it that much yet.
Rosewood with sapwood - very nice looking
Ebony with sapwood - also nice looking
Cocobolo in paring chisel length - beautiful wood but oily and doesn't stay in the socket well.
Ebony in short length - another beautiful wood but fragile. I like this short size on thin, short chisels - gives better control.

Not pictured - pecan (excellent but not as pretty), maple (same comments as pecan)

[Johnny Kleso]

I was looking for my pics of the MWTCA tool show at the GA Agrarama... They had a Terpintine Still and the by product of making Terps is Rosin.. They had two or three 55ga drums of Rosin just stitting in the weather with no use.

You can buy some at a music store or just use epoxy..

[John Dykes]

Holy smokes Mike...

[Mike Henderson]

Holy smokes Mike...

It's the curse of being retired and having too much time on your hands.

Mike

[Joe Cunningham]

It's the curse of being retired and having too much time on your hands.

Mike

Curse? Looks like you are quite handy on the lathe. That is one power tool I think I ought to take a course for (I do mostly hand work)

[Mark Roderick]

Although someone joked about needing wood floors, the point is really correct. I have those black rubber mats in front of my workbench. Not only are they great for your feet and back, but I drop tools with regularity and am happy to know that no damage will be done when they hit the floor. So it's really a win-win proposition, much more effective than using epoxy to connect the handles to a chisel!

[Mike Henderson]

Curse? Looks like you are quite handy on the lathe. That is one power tool I think I ought to take a course for (I do mostly hand work)

Yeah - I think a lathe adds a lot to what you can do with furniture - think turned legs. But you need to go into it with your eyes open - the cost of the lathe is only the beginning. You need to buy tools and have a way to sharpen them. And to sharpen them, you really need a jig system - it's really difficult to do things like a spindle gouge by hand, especially if you're just an occasional turner like me. The total cost probably doubles the cost of the lathe (very rough estimate and depends on the lathe you buy).

And like you pointed out, you need some instruction to get started.

But it really is worth it and I recommend adding a lathe to every furniture shop.

Mike

[alex grams]

Mike I call BS on you being retired. You look much too young in your profile picture to be retired. And if you are retired and that picture is indeed you, what were your winning lottery numbers? My Lottery retirement plan needs some help...

This thread makes me want to put some padding next to my future work bench, to save hand tools from concrete death.