gavel plans

[Joe Jansen]

I am looking make a judges gavel but would like some detailed plans with dimensions. Anyone know where I may be able to find some.

Joe

[Dale Thompson]

I am looking make a judges gavel but would like some detailed plans with dimensions. Anyone know where I may be able to find some. Joe

Joe,
I had the same problem a couple of days ago. The truth is that the dimensions go all over the map. Handles go from 7" to 3 or 4' with the same head. Try:
www.gavelstore.com
www.gavelstore.com/new_oak_gavel.html

The second link will give you some ROUGH dimensions and you can scale the rest. Good Luck and I hope that some other members can give you more precise help! :)

Dale T.

[Joe Jansen]

Thanks for the links the pictures and some dimensions are helpful
Joe

[Curt Fuller]

I made a gavel a while back for an auctioneer friend. The heavier the wood and the larger the thing you smack it on, the louder it is. The first I made sounded kind of wimpy. If I remember right on the one that was a keeper the handle was 12" long, the mallet 2" in diameter, and the thing you hit it on was 6" in diameter. It made an attention getting whack. Sorry I don't have a picture.

[Keith Nielsen]

Joe,
may I make a suggestion or two If you want the gavel to last Turn Threads on the handle and the head hole. Then the head won't pop off the handle when you give it a smack on the plate. Also a little CA glue helps when you thread the head on the handle.

Good luck
Keith

[Dale Thompson]

Joe,
may I make a suggestion or two If you want the gavel to last Turn Threads on the handle and the head hole. Then the head won't pop off the handle when you give it a smack on the plate. Also a little CA glue helps when you thread the head on the handle.

Good luck
Keith

Keith,
Great idea! :) What size threads do you use? 1/2", 3/4", other? :confused:

Thanks again for the idea! :D :)

Dale T.

[Dale Thompson]

Joe,
I just made this mallet today. The pics are not for the mallet. They are intended to show the "spalted" Red Oak which I think is fairly rare. I always thought that Oak was pretty resistant to fungus. :confused: I KNOW that it is resistant to ME!! ;) :eek:

Anyway, my wood guy gave me two boards (about 15 board feet) of it because he wasn't sure what it was and had no market for it. The mallet is for him because of the free wood and the fact that he always gives me a "fat" load when I order. :) For example, the last time I called him I asked for about 200 bd. ft. of Red Oak. He gave me a price of $250. Fine! I gave him the cash and was shooting the breeze with one of his guys while he put my load on my trailer. I thought the pile looked a little "fat" and when I got home I realized that there was over 400 bd. ft. on the trailer. It was about 1/3 Select and 2/3 1sts and 2nds. :eek: :) It was even separated for me.

Of course I went back the next day to complain and give him a bill for the extra work that it took for me to unload the "overage". ;) :cool: I'm just one heck of a nice guy! :rolleyes:

Anyway, the attached pics look like the mallet is "reasonably" proportional to a "REAL" one. The block is 1 3/4" thick, 4 1/2" at the base and 3 1/2" on the actual "sounding" surface. The handle is 10" long (total) and 1 1/4" at its largest diameter. The head is 4 1/2" long and 2 1/2" at its maximum diameter which are the two beads near the heads.

Dale T.

[Jim Becker]

Here's an SMC thread about one I did not long ago... "Click Me" (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=27087&highlight=Gavel)

[Joe Jansen]

thanks for all the help. I Hope to get started on this in the next few weeks. Just need to finish up a few shop renovations. Then I can finally get back to building stuff.

Joe

[RL Johnson]

Larry Hancock has a PDF file that you can download for detailed instructions on how to make a gavel.Try this link
http://www.turnedtreasures.com/pdf_pages/gavel_turning_pdf.pdf