Finally got around to making a chisel handle

[Gary Herrmann]

Been spending all my time on the lathe making Christmas presents. Lots of variations on a theme. So to get a break, I decided to make a handle for the 1.5" Greenlee Firmer I picked up for cheap - because it was missing a handle.

I kept the same basic shape and length as original handle but made the actual handle area a bit longer. I actually like the way mine feels better than the original handles. I think it turned out pretty well. Didn't gave any maple or ash big enough so I used a chunk of dogwood I harvested a couple years ago.

[Alan DuBoff]

Gary,

That's wonderful, although I don't call those firmers, I consider those to be large paring chisels. Those are excellent tools, I have a few, one that was given to me for Galootaclaus a few years ago. That is excellent for cleaning up the tails, if you cut dovetails.

I would love to have an entire set of Greenlees of those...mine are all between 1"-2", I love that style. Good for tenon and mortise cleanup as well for final paring, IME. Maybe they are actually bench chisels. But I thought the firmers had flat sides.

[Bill Houghton]

I agree with Alan that it's more of a paring than a firmer chisel - I'd worry about breaking it if you nailed it with a mallet heavy enough to move that width of cutting edge through the wood.

I also agree with Alan that wide paring chisels like that are lovely things to have. I've got one - can't recall if it's 1-1/2" or 1-3/4" wide, and too lazy to go out to the shop - that I don't use often, but am SO grateful for when I do need it. If you ever have to do any long mortises, nothing beats a wide paring chisel, IMHO, for cleaning off the side of the mortise, as I discovered when I did an architectural-size lockset mortise a few years back.

[Gary Herrmann]

Well, the only reason I called it a firmer is that I found a jpg online that looked like this and other Greenlees I have. It's attached below. I've also seen auctions on the bay for Greenlees that were called #230 firmers and included the box, but I guess it could have been for a different chisel than the one sold. The couple Greenlee bevel edged bench chisels I have have much wider bevels than this one.

Splitting hairs tho. I'm not expert enough to argue either way.

[Johnny Kleso]

I think it looks most excellent !

I pretty sure it's a firmer...
The paring chisels are 1/2 as thick as that one and pretty hard to come by also..

[Ken Werner]

Ditto what Johnny said.

[Jim Koepke]

Great looking handle.

Making one's own allows one to make them any style they want. Also it is easy to make dimensional changes to fit your own hand.

I have been making mine out of a few different woods. Getting used to using a lathe took a little while, but now I am getting to where repeating a shape is not hard. The shape will stay pretty much the same for my paring chisels, there will just be different wood to make it easy to pick the size or function by the handle.

jim

[Jim Becker]

Nice work, Gary. Looks great and I suspect it will "do the job" very well!

[James Carmichael]

Cool. Looks like a plain ol bevel-edged bench chisel to me. "Firmer" is a pretty nebulous term, IMO.

I've got a couple of nice old Greenlee socket chisels, too. Someday I'll unbox the mini-lathe and turn some handles.

[Tom Sontag]

Well, I'll be the first to disagree. The chisel looks like it was alright when you got it. But to me it seems you put on this handle made of nice wood that looks much like the original shape in the catalog.

Take it from me bub, when you make a custom chisel handle, it should look like a barely rounded 2x2 stuck it the socket, or perhaps like a fat tapered sausage with tear-out like no wiener you have ever seen. I have this first hand mind you. What you have in your picture is nothing like any personal custom made chisel handle that I know.

Frankly, I doubt you made it.
;)

[Jim Koepke]

Take it from me bub, when you make a custom chisel handle, it should look like a barely rounded 2x2 stuck it the socket, or perhaps like a fat tapered sausage with tear-out like no wiener you have ever seen. I have this first hand mind you. What you have in your picture is nothing like any personal custom made chisel handle that I know.


Why so sour? If we can not allow our creativity to escape into a custom chisel handle, then we should maybe find a different hobby.

My collection of chisels all have handles, some better than others. For me though, I want handles that are made for my hand. Will likely sell off the left over handles or use them on chisels found at yard sales and such until a custom handle is made.

For some of my chisels, the maker's handles will be copied. Nothing wrong with that. I like the early Buck Brothers socket chisel handles. There shape has some influence on the shape I have settled on for my other chisels.

Sure beats a barely rounded 2X2.

The handle below is made of some old rosewood a friend gave me before he passed on. I remember him when ever see or use it.

It is one of the most comfortable to use handles I have made. Have since made a couple more of the same size in different woods. They are a pleasure to use.

jim

[Alan DuBoff]

Jim,

Pssst...I think he was joking. ;)

Tom was paying compliments! Go back and re-read it and you might get a different take on it. :)

But I like that handle Jim, that looks very tasty!

[Gary Herrmann]

Why so sour?

Don't worry Jim, Tom was kidding. He's one of the few people I know that are even more sarcastic than me.

Plus, he does make a really nice barely rounded 2x2...

Tom, I still need to come visit and look for some Osage too, once I get all these presents done.