What is a good Marking Knife?

[Tom Henry]

I was looking to purchase a Marking Knife and thought I would get some input from the experts!!!:rolleyes:

[Hoa Dinh]

Get a hold of Steve Knight (http://www.knight-toolworks.com/). The only possible problem is the lead time.

[Larry Fox]

I am certainly not an expert. Maybe a bit non-traditional but I typically use just a plain ole razor blade - one of the general purpose ones that you get in a pack of 100 at the BORG. I always keep one close at hand when in the shop and I find that it comes in quite handy for a variety of tasks.

[John Shuk]

This is the one I have. Very nice and made by a fellow Creeker...Dave Anderson
http://www.chestertoolworks.com/markingknives.htm

[Mike Henderson]

Lee Valley makes a good one they call a striking knife. See here (http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=32531&cat=1,42936,42949&ap=1).

I also like the Japanese marking knives, but you need two - a left hand and a right hand. You can find them on eBay for a good price and also at Japan Woodworker (http://www.japanwoodworker.com/product.asp?s=JapanWoodworker&pf_id=01.040.12&dept_id=13216). Do a search on "marking knife" at Japan Woodworker to get the full list.

Mike

[Frank Pellow]

I really like the striking knife from Lee Valley. See: http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=32531&cat=1,42936,42949

[Bob Marino]

This is the one I have. Very nice and made by a fellow Creeker...Dave Anderson
http://www.chestertoolworks.com/markingknives.htm

Same here!

Bob

[John Branam]

I just use an exacto knife. It works well for me.

[Rob Russell]

This is the one I have. Very nice and made by a fellow Creeker...Dave Anderson
http://www.chestertoolworks.com/markingknives.htm

I second this. Very nice knife to use, good guy too (not knocking Steve Knight either).

[Cecil Arnold]

This is the one I have. Very nice and made by a fellow Creeker...Dave Anderson
http://www.chestertoolworks.com/markingknives.htm

John got it right. Have the LV, but Dave really knows his stuff.

[Neil Lamens]

Hi Tom:

Sloyd knife, I like the feel of the handle and more availble edge. Nothing pretty except its function.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

The best markling blade anywhere is the one that just happens to be in my hand. Usually it's a razor knife.

[Tom Jones III]

Has anyone made one themselves? Looks like it wouldn't be too hard once you gave it a little thought.

[Frank Fusco]

From the looks of your picture, you are way too young to be playing with knives. ;)

[tod evans]

Has anyone made one themselves? Looks like it wouldn't be too hard once you gave it a little thought.


these are made from an old lunchbox planer blade.....tod

47964

[John Shuk]

BTW the knives on Steve Knight's site are Dave Anderson's

[Dave Anderson NH]

I won't comment on my marking knives as some of you folks might think I'm a bit prejudiced.:D :rolleyes:

As for making your own..... (watch as Dave cuts his own throat). Making a marking knife is not hard and has the advantages of allowing you to custom tailor the handle to fit your particular sized hand and shape the blade to fit your personal style of work. For the home hobbiest, a piece of O-1 tool steel from somewhere like MSC Industrial Supply, a hacksaw, a decent mill file, and and a propane torch are the only tools really needed. In the archives of the Neandertahl Forum is my post/tutorial on how to do your own heat treating. This isn't rocket science folks and is quite easy and safe with a little patience and experimentation.

[Bruce Delaney]

I have the Blue Spruce small marking knife (http://www.bluesprucetoolworks.com/tools/index.htm), which because of its small size, works exceptionally well for dovetailing. The Veritas knife from Lee Valley, albeit a bit bigger, also works very well.

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

I made one of my own, simple, just an old hacksaw blade, ground it to a double point and then sharpened the two bevels, I CA glued a handle on it............

47966

Works fine.

Cheers!

[Andy Hoyt]

John Hart made some dandys late last year.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=27586

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=27754

[Lars Thomas]

Tom, I made mine from detail that Dave posted. Turned out great. I use it all the time. Lars

[Tyler Howell]

This is the one I have. Very nice and made by a fellow Creeker...Dave Anderson
http://www.chestertoolworks.com/markingknives.htm

2) knives, 1) awl and 1) bird cage awl. They're the best.:cool:

[Frank Fusco]

I use an awl, my pocketknife or a carving knife. Whichever I feel like at the moment.

[Alan DuBoff]

I use a Stanley 10-049 (http://www.stanleytools.com/default.asp?CATEGORY=RETRACTABLE&TYPE=PRODUCT&PARTNUMBER=10-049&SDesc=Pocket+Knife+with+Rotating+Blade) which works better for me to get in narrow dovetails than any other marking knife I have tried. While I love the beautiful marking knives that Dave Anderson makes, those type won't fit between a handcut dovetail with pins as narrow as a handsaw kerf. You folks using a tailed router to cut your dovetails will most likely not have that problem.

You can buy these at your local hardware store, I have honed the tip of mine to be rounded just a bit on the top, so that it slices the fiber, rather than tear it. This was something I learned from watching Frank Klausz's dovetail video, and Rob Cosman also reccomends doing the same in his video.

You can buy replacement blades for about $2.50 at your local OSH or BORG, and the knife costs about $7 with a blade in it. The blade length is longer than many marking knives, so it will get in a tight dovetail socket where other marking knives can't.

I also use an awl and find it works pretty well also, better on the long grain than the end. For end grain on hardwood, the Stanley above is just the ticket. You could make your own by buying the blade and putting it in a handle of your own.

[Jim Becker]

'Have the Veritas. Would buy Dave's today. While I'm sure I would enjoy making things like this, I have such limited shop time that I try to concentrate on furniture and turning when I'm in there for a rare visit...

[Tom Henry]

Now I am torn between knives! I don't have a lathe yet so I can't turn one myself. :confused:

[Dan Oelke]

So what is a "birdcage awl" ??

[tod evans]

Now I am torn between knives! I don't have a lathe yet so I can't turn one myself. :confused:


why does the handle have to be round tom?

[Lars Thomas]

See post 21 above (top item in pix). Essentially, it has a triangular blade that comes to a point.

[jeremy levine]

I won't comment on my marking knives as some of you folks might think I'm a bit prejudiced.:D :rolleyes:

As for making your own..... (watch as Dave cuts his own throat). Making a marking knife is not hard and has the advantages of allowing you to custom tailor the handle to fit your particular sized hand and shape the blade to fit your personal style of work. For the home hobbiest, a piece of O-1 tool steel from somewhere like MSC Industrial Supply, a hacksaw, a decent mill file, and and a propane torch are the only tools really needed. In the archives of the Neandertahl Forum is my post/tutorial on how to do your own heat treating. This isn't rocket science folks and is quite easy and safe with a little patience and experimentation.
Thanks for the info, I checked out your web-site great stuff , one thing your FAQ does no go anywhere

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

So what is a "birdcage awl" ??

I could very well be wrong, but I think it is a square awl, so the holes are square, which you want for making birdcages out of strips of bamboo, as they split the pieces very thin, but they are square, thus square holes............someone will correct me if I'm wrong :D

[Dave Anderson NH]

Most bircage awls are made from square steel bar stock and have all four sides of the steel tapering down to a point. Sort of like an obelisk or pyramid type tip. Stu is right in that they were originally designed to cut or ream the hole for Victorian era birdcage bases and tops. Then either bamboo or dried rushes or rattan were inserted into the holes. The most common use today of a birdcage awl is to mark the location of holes for hinges and other screw mounted hardware. You stick the point into the wood and then turn the awl to cut the wood fibers. Some folks also will turn the handles after insertion into a piece of wood and use the awl as a reamer. Some birdcage awls will occasionally use round steel rod stock and then grind the tip to either a triangular or square shape.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Hi jeremy, I just checked my website and the link to the FAQ page seemed to work fine from my computer at my day job.

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

Hi jeremy, I just checked my website and the link to the FAQ page seemed to work fine from my computer at my day job.

Worked fine for me over here in Japan as well!

Cheers!

[tod evans]

it`s workin` here in the sticks too......

[Tom Henry]

What about this one... its on sale:rolleyes:

http://www.garrettwade.com/jump.jsp?itemID=107555&itemType=PRODUCT

[Glenn Clabo]

Tom...Look at your sig line. Yes there is GarrettWade quality...and I am partial to Canadians...but I can say that our own Mr. Anderson's work is simply worth it's price. If for nothing else (and after using his tools it is not the ONLY reason) when you use it you have that hand made by someone I know feeling. Ya...it's just a mark on a piece of wood...but I think you know what I mean...think about your recent visit with Alan's school. Does mass production really make you feel the same?

p.s. Dave Anderson does not need my support...and might not even know who in the world I am. It's his tools that are the first ones that go into my apron when I enter my shop and have something to build that makes me say these things.

[Bruce Gray]

I used an Exacto knife until I bought a Crown tool marking knife. The steel in that knife has the hardness of warm butter ...impossible to get an edge on it. Needless to say, I went back to my exacto knife.

[Frank Fusco]

why does the handle have to be round tom?

Any excuse to use the lathe is a good reason. :D

[Tom Henry]

WOW!! That says a lot!!! I will be taking a hard look at those now! I do know that feeling. The feeling you get when you walk down into your shop just to look at your finished product one more time!

[Dave Anderson NH]

Hey Glenn, I do know who you are.:D The offer to drop by some time is still open and will remain so indefinately.