Slick with a straight socket?

[Bryan Deel]

Hello everbody, I just got 3 5/8 James Swan slick and the socket is positioned straight, just like a framing chisel. Could certain trades want a slick without a cranked handle? I am going to bend the socket so I can use it for framing and furniture, but am curious about the "cast steel" stamp. The body seems iron like my other framing chisels, except for the gob of metal at the bottom of the socket, but I assume this is the cast portion? And if so, what precautions should I consider before heating the base of the socket?

Thanks for your insight, Bryan

[Bill Houghton]

Cast steel referred to a type of steel, once considered high grade stuff. It's not the same as cast iron.

Don't know about the straight socket; that's interesting.

[Roger Nair]

Hi Bryan, There are two basic ways the vintage chisels were forged. The most common method was to forge weld a tool steel plate to a wrought iron or a mild steel body. The second method was to forge the entire blade from tool steel, thus making a more expensive tool. The major characteristic of the laminated blade is that the bottom is convex. The solid steel bodies are more normally straight. So a laminated slick does not need a cranked neck, the rocker of the blade provides the clearance for the socket. So first examine the slicks blade for rocker on flat surface and see if the shape of the blade gains enough clearance. Also you need to only flatten the bottom no more than 4 inches from the edge. I am not the right person to advise you on heating and forming an offset. Here's to hoping you will not need a mod.

By the way, what makes a laminated chisel similar to a fine katana? They are forged and welded straight but the curve is revealed when quenched.

[steven c newman]

That explain why my 1-1/2 Vancamp is a bit curved. One can actually see where the cast iron meets the steel on the bottom of that chisel267014the big one in the middle is the Vancamp. Socket is straight.

[Bryan Deel]

Thanks Roger. The rocker on the bottom is very slight, perhaps honed away over the past century. It is a beautiful bevel backed model, but if I am to use it it will have to be modified. The socket will have to be raised 3 degrees or so. Thanks for the info, especially the part about the rocker emerging in the quench. Cheers