I finally got off my butt and finished what I consider my first real woodworking projects: a pair of mallets!
Both started out as planks that I cut into strips and laminated to form the heads. The handles were shaped with a spokeshave, and they are held in place with wedges, not glue. Finish is just BLO. I plan to add more coats to each of them.
Mallet #1 had a walnut handle and maple head. This one I cut the center strip of the head in two in order to create the mortise for the handle. This was, by far, easier than chopping the mortise with a chisel... Overall, it's not bad, but there are some issues that I notice. Things like little areas that tore out during planing or chiseling, particularly in the walnut handle. I also made the angle of the mortise too large, so there's a bit of a gap on the top of the head where the wedges didn't spread the handle far enough to fill the mortise. It's also a little on the light side, but it'll do. Not bad for a first attempt, I think.
Mallet #2 I just finished today. It's the opposite color combination of Mallet #1: a walnut head and maple handle. I started with a wider, thicker piece of maple for the handle. (Two pieces laminated together.) This let me try sawing tenon cheeks on the handle. That went okay, but I went just a hair deep on a couple of them, leaving some kerf marks where the shoulder of the tenon meets the handle. I also tried chopping the mortise in the walnut with a chisel. Talk about hard work! I ended up drilling out a good amount of the waste and attempting to square up the mortise with my chisels. Also hard work! It's definitely not pretty inside of that mortise, let me tell you... But the handle is secure. This time I used walnut wedges in the maple handle for contrast, and also left the top of the handle proud of the head for a neat design aspect. Lastly, I cut the end faces of the head at approximately 5°, as I've seen recommended, to get a more solid impact when striking a tool or board. The handle is a bit short, but I kind of like it that way. It provides more control with a heavier head.
So, what do you Creekers think? Any feedback? Suggestions? Constructive criticism? Let me have it!