Chisel Handle Replacement

[Tommy Emmons]

A relative gave me several old chisels and one has the handle broken off at the ferrell. How do you get the wood out of the ferrell? There is only about 3/32 around the shank of the blade and it is surrounded by the ferrell. Is there a liquid solution that will dissolve the wood, or am I destined to dig the wood out with a dental type probe?

[Bob Smalser]

Any vise and a quarter-inch bit mounted in a power drill. Drill plumb til you hit bottom then tilt the drill and rotate it around the inside of the socket to grind all the wood out and clean the socket walls.

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/3302197/40495831.jpg

[harry strasil]

I drill a hole like Bob did, then I screw in a lag bolt or big screw and use that as a handle to extract it unless the top is beat up badly as the one in Bobs picture. When that is the problem I just put the socket end in the forge and heat it up till the stub is burning freely, then bump it against the anvil with the socket down till the stub falls out, cool the blade end in the slack tub then put the socket back in the fire and dress the damaged end on the horn of the anvil and finish it on a socket mandrel. I have even replaced missing broken off sockets with a piece of ordinary pipe that has been swaged and stretched to fit a socket mandrel I made for the hardy hole, then arc weld the new socket onto the old blade and dress it down.

[Louis Bois]

Hi Tommy,

The advice from Bob and Harry is relevant to "socket" chisels...but from what I'm reading, you seem to be talking about a "tang" chisel. You mention that the handle broke at the ferrule, which I'm assuming is brass?!?

If so, you can apply heat to the ferrule with a propane torch (which will make it expand) and twist it off with pliers. If you want to try and save the ferrule, wrap your plier jaws with something (cloth, tape, leather) before you grip the ferrule. I hope I'm reading this right...good luck!

[Bill Houghton]

but I've removed plenty of old handles from small hammers. A drill bit smaller than the wood, applied all about the shank (don't drill holes right next to each other, or the bit will fall into the adjacent hole), will kind of break up the wood. You don't have to get all the wood out with your dental probe - once it begins to collapse, you should be able to pull off the ferrule.

Another alternative: if you've got an open-end wrench that's smaller than the ferrule and larger than the shoulder on the chisel (this may/may not be possible, depending on the shoulder size on the chisel), clamp the chisel body in a metalworking vise horizontally, slip the wrench over the shoulder, and whap with a hammer. Don't try this with an adjustable ("crescent," after the signature maker of this wrench type) wrench, as you'll rack the jaw of the wrench.