Chisel handles

[Carl Beckett]

I purchased a set of Narex chisels with no handles. I will be making the handles. First timer.

The end that goes into the wood handle appears cast, then perhaps polished. This makes it somewhat rounded corners and smooth overall.

Should I try grinding these corners more square/sharp, to provide more 'bite'? (which also might allow more interference without splitting, although rounded corners might offer more surface area 'friction' at the contact points).

I understand fitting may be some trial and error depending on the wood hardness - do you have starting point recommendations on the degree of interference?

Appreciate any insight.

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[David Carroll]

For those types of tangs I would be tempted to leave them exactly how they are, drill a tight-ish "clearance" hole (snug, but not a force fit) and then epoxy them in place. I've done this to a number of decent chisels that came to me with horrible plastic handles, but which were otherwise fine. It's not the traditional approach, but yours are not traditional tapered tangs.

DC

[Edward Weber]

+1
This is really the best way of attaching this type of tanged tool.
You can take a file to the tang and cut some grooves if your concerned about loosening but it's really never been an issue for me.

The epoxy can always be heated up to remove the handle later on down the line.

[Jim Koepke]

Handles for some of my projects have been drilled slightly smaller than the size of the tang or shaft on the item to be mounted.

Awl with Apple Handle.jpg

This scratch awl was made with HSS drill rod. The handle was drilled with a bit a few thousandths smaller than the rod. It has held quite well.

If a file can easily cut your tangs, that would mean the shaft is soft. You might be able to create some barbs on the tangs with a cold chisel (a chisel made for metal work). I've done this with cut nails to make an extra holding grip.

It might also be possible to drill a hole in the tang and then through a ferule on the handle and use a pin to hold it in place.

Gimlet in Chuck Handle.jpg

That was used to hold a chuck from an old brace in the handle pictured.

jtk

[Rafael Herrera]

Chisels are nowadays drop forged. I wouldn't bother grinding the tangs unless they have a burr or some other roughness.

The right drill bit to use will depend on the size of the tang, perhaps the manufacturer has a recommendation, ask them. If the hole is slightly smaller than the tang, then you can just mallet the handle top and fit it using only pressure, no need to glue.

I re-handled a few chisels some time ago. You can see three examples at the top of the picture.

In order to get a good fit between the bottom of the handle and the conical bolster, the hole must be straight along the axis of the handle. You might need to hollow the area around the hole to prevent a gap once the tang won't go in any more.

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If this proves difficult, you could use a leather ring to hide the gap. Here's an example of a poor fit.

20210717_152026.jpg

[Christopher Wellington]

I have done one homemade handle for a Richter chisel (I tried to turn down the factory ash handle on the lathe and ended up splitting the wood).

I made the handle from hard maple, drilled a 3/8" pilot hole for the tang, and drove it home with a mallet. It felt like a good, tight fit without risking splitting, and the chisel has been solid ever since. Don't forget to put the ferrule on first!

chisel.jpg
Factory Richter on the left, custom maple handle on the right.

The idea was to make the handle a bit less top-heavy to improve precision and reduce fatigue from the "pencil" grip. The shape is modeled after a LN mortise chisel, which I find to be comfortable. This 3/8" Richter is now my most-used bench chisel in the shop.

[Derek Cohen]

I purchased a set of Narex chisels with no handles. I will be making the handles. First timer.

The end that goes into the wood handle appears cast, then perhaps polished. This makes it somewhat rounded corners and smooth overall.

Should I try grinding these corners more square/sharp, to provide more 'bite'? (which also might allow more interference without splitting, although rounded corners might offer more surface area 'friction' at the contact points).

I understand fitting may be some trial and error depending on the wood hardness - do you have starting point recommendations on the degree of interference?

Appreciate any insight.

20240102_141118.jpg20240102_141107.jpg20240102_141115.jpg

Carl, the tangs on the Narex chisels are similar to those of Japanese chisels ....



I have detailed re-handling these chisels in an article below, with some thoughts about doing it better the next time.

https://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolRe...aRebuild2.html

Then I completed re-handling a full set of Kiyohisa ...



The chisel below began life as a black plastic handled Stanley. The only difference with the Narex was a round, rather than square, tang ...



To answer your question, a slip fit is generally all that is needed. Sometimes, however, the tang does not make this easy as it is not uniform. Getting it square in the handle then is tricky, and waste needs to be chiseled out. By then the mortice is wider, and a little epoxy is needed to be used to line all up securely.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Edward Weber]

[QUOTE=Rafael Herrera;3292919]
In order to get a good fit between the bottom of the handle and the conical bolster, the hole must be straight along the axis of the handle. You might need to hollow the area around the hole to prevent a gap once the tang won't go in any more.

If this proves difficult, you could use a leather ring to hide the gap. Here's an example of a poor fit.

QUOTE]

I have a set of the unhandled Narex chisels, they come with a leather washer designed for that purpose and to absorb excess shock when being struck.

[Carl Beckett]

Thank you all for some great insights.

The set I have do indeed have leather washers - but - assuming I can get a good snug fit to the shoulder handle, is the leather washer preferable?

All else being ideal, would you put the leather washer on it or leave it off?

My first thought would be if there is shock absorbing it implies movement. And movement, over time, will loosen. So I was inclined to leave these out but welcome opinions.

[Rafael Herrera]

The set I have do indeed have leather washers - but - assuming I can get a good snug fit to the shoulder handle, is the leather washer preferable?

You won't see leather washers in older chisels. My skeptical side tells me they came up with them to hide an imperfect fit and then explained it away as an improvement, to dampen the mallet strike, which sounds goofy if you think about it.

The chisel certainly looks better if there is no visible gap between the handle and the bolster, so the leather washer is insurance for a good look.

[Edward Weber]

You won't see leather washers in older chisels.

HUH

I've seen plenty

[Jim Koepke]

My first thought would be if there is shock absorbing it implies movement. And movement, over time, will loosen. So I was inclined to leave these out but welcome opinions.

It seems the washer would be compressed with the first few blows of a mallet. How much movement would there be after the washer being compressed?

Many wood handled chisels came with leather washers at the top of the handle. Most of these had a dowel at the center of the leather washers. This didn't absorb the mallet's blow. It did keep the top of the handle from mushrooming.

Is it possible a leather washer at the junction of wood and steel keeps this from happening at the bottom end of the handle?

jtk

[Rafael Herrera]

HUH

I've seen plenty

Old as in early 20th century and older.

Marples made chisels for quite some time and is a good reference for the different types of chisels that were offered in the past.

https://williammarplesandsons.com/chisels/

Here is a Howarth catalog from 1884.

https://archive.org/details/jameshow...e/n12/mode/1up

Or a 1894 Buck Bros. catalog.

https://archive.org/details/BuckBros...71894/mode/1up

---

The washers seem to be a relatively recent innovation. Of any significance, that is debatable.

[Edward Weber]

That was going to be my next question, what's your version of old.
Apparently it's in the 125 year range.
Then what do you consider new? less than 125 or something else?
I see a chisel with a leather washer from the 1950s, I don't consider it as relatively recent innovation.

And Jim, that's exactly my understanding. The washer at the connection point help keep the wood from mushrooming outward and eventually splitting. Which also depends a lot on how the ferrule is fitted.

[Jim Koepke]

The washers seem to be a relatively recent innovation. Of any significance, that is debatable.

This made me curious so my old Stanley catalogs (.pdf versions) were consulted.

My oldest, a 1914 edition didn't show any chisels.

The 1926 version showed some socket chisels with leather topped handles.

jtk