David:The rest of the die sinkers chisels

[george wilson]

Last night I could not get this picture into my "folder" to post. these are rough and ready die sinker's chisels forged at only red heat from HSS. A few are other alloys. The straw brown colored ones are W1 drawn to that tempering color. On the very right are forged HSS blanks not yet ground to shape on their ends,buried under other chisels. Their un -finished front ends sticking out. This gives a better idea of their size,average about 6" long.

Some of the chisels are commercially made cape chisels that I have re ground for special use. Normally they are for chiseling out keyways on shafts without a milling machine,or where the shaft can't be gotten out to be put into a milling machine.

My wife has a bunch more up in her shop for jewelry work.

[Jim Koepke]

George,

Thanks for all of your interesting, informative and inspiring posts.

Sometimes I get the feeling it would be easier for you to tell us what you haven't done compared to the long list of what you have accomplished.

jtk

[Jonathan McCullough]

Geez George do you have a metal shaper too?

[george wilson]

I do have a metal shaper,but I have only used it once,to cut a keyway in a bevel gear. I don't understand the question,though. Please explain. These are just rough forged chisels.

[David Weaver]

George - question about how you're hardening HSS...

Are these chisels made of stock that's completely uhnardened, or are you heating hardened stock to a dull red?

The cape chisels presumably are HSS if they're made to cut keyways? or are they some type of die steel?

Thanks for elaborating on these, they are something I wouldn't have attempted had you not enlightened us. Sooner or later, I probably would've just spent $200 for an unsatisfactory stamp.

[george wilson]

I made the chisels out of ANNEALED HSS,not yet hardened. Softening already hardened HSS would be difficult. My electric furnace does not cool down slowly to anneal the stuff!Really,it's difficult to anneal already hardened HSS. Must have to be cooled SUPER slowly.

The cape chisels were commercially made ones I did not make. Just re-ground them. It is not easy to find decent commercially made cold chisels. I've tried many brands,and now just make my own.

The commercial ones aren't HSS. HSS is too brittle to make cold chisels from if hardened and tempered in the CORRECT way. It's a good steel for CUTTING steel,but doesn't handle that kind of shock to well. Carbide is WAY too brittle for chisels. ˆt's more like glass,and could easily break if you are taking an interrupted cut on a lathe,or if you stop the lathe with the carbide cutter still engaged with the metal. Point breaks right off . It works fine IF conditions are RIGHT as a cutting tool.

[Jonathan McCullough]

I don't understand the question,though. Please explain.

I was just confirming my deduction--cutting keyways, without a milling machine, using something shaped like that, leads naturally to the metal shaper. They seem like jolly useful things for something like flattening a frog receiver on a plane, and scads of other stuff. I'd like to make one from Gingery's plans.