Restoring chisels questions

[bobnewboy]

Hi All,

Yesterday SWMBLT and I went to a local auction with some friends from our village. There was a lot of dross, but I bid for and bought this box of chisels and the like:

https://flic.kr/p/2oM95Sf

I was quite happy to get some tools at a very good price - super cheap. All of the items need sharpening of course, which I’m happy to do. However I wonder if I should do anything about the handles of the chisels/gouge? I like the old patina that they have acquired over the years, but a couple of them have fairly bad chips/splits. Most of the handles appear to be in boxwood, with one in ash. Is it worth trying to tidy them up, or will I just lose the original shape and utility of the handles? I am particularly happy with the spokeshave, which only appears to need a good cleanup and sharpening of the blade to bring it back to excellent condition.

Also is there any way to re-sharpen or recover the teeth on the small double-sided, double graded rasp?

Cheers, Bob

 

[Mesquite]

I'd leave the handles as if they aren't mushrooming over. If they are then just remove the edge and reshape to solid wood. The chips won't interfere with use unless they get worse.

The important thing is to use a wooden mallet, not a metal hammer on wood chisel handles.

If the rasp is getting dull then it's scrap I'm afraid.

 

[FerlasDave]

If I were you I’d probably be tempted to shorten the handles in order to remove the trashed wood. The problem with old chisels like this is they’ve often been sharpened on with a grinder so be careful that the steel has not been cooked, if they seem soft then you can re heat treat them. I’ve done a few with a blowtorch and vegetable oil and had good results.

Clean up the four in hand with a wire wheel and it will likely be great for years.

 

[Dave Budd]

I'd take off any loose bits and sharp corners, then clean and oil them. If they are split, i'd dribble thin ca (superglue) in there first. It'll not stand up to much pounding, but will be fine for light hitting and hand pushing.

With the rasp, you can sometimes give them a little life by standing in acid (even vinegar) for a while. The idea is that a layer of metal either side of the tooth is eroded and a fresh, if raggedy, tip is left. Personally i just buy a new one as it's never worked well enough for me.

 

[crosslandkelly]

You could tidy up the ends of the damaged handles, by trimming them down to take a brass or copper butt ferrule.

 

[Stew]

I'd take off any loose bits and sharp corners, then clean and oil them. If they are split, i'd dribble thin ca (superglue) in there first. It'll not stand up to much pounding, but will be fine for light hitting and hand pushing.

With the rasp, you can sometimes give them a little life by standing in acid (even vinegar) for a while. The idea is that a layer of metal either side of the tooth is eroded and a fresh, if raggedy, tip is left. Personally i just buy a new one as it's never worked well enough for me.

Not that I’ve done it, but I thought one of the ideas of acid sharpening files was to but wax down the file backwards to act as a resist and help make a sharper tooth.

 

[bobnewboy]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I haven’t had much time to have a go at them yet. For the handles I think I’m leaning toward removing any sharp edges and filling cracks with super runny CA glue. I’m only expecting to use these as hand pushed tools, or with a leather faced mallet at the very most, so a glue and cleanup will probably be fine.

 

[Dean]

You could always trim and put a new butt cap, the one in the picture is made from leather, sand it to shape and you'll get to keep the old patina on most of the chisel.

 

[bobnewboy]

You could always trim and put a new butt cap, the one in the picture is made from leather, sand it to shape and you'll get to keep the old patinaView attachment 81022 on most of the chisel.

Is the leather butt cap just a strip of leather fixed with a small pin / nail?

 

[Disabled Preppers]

As and ex chippy of the hand tool era , i see a couple have nasty chunks out of the handle i would just get the wire wool out clean the metal and oil that all , the handles i would either by hand or as i love these days use a dremel to just take off any nasty bits that could splintter and as anthoer has shown you could on the worst handle use the dremel make a light ring and wrap with some leather and if it was me i would use wet leather as when it drys it will go tighter .
I am so glad others are keeping the old tools alive , now days to many can not hang a door without power and power tools to do the hindges and locks .

 

[bushwacker bob]

Your rasp looks like a farriers rasp and is meant for excess keratin not wood, so is best thrown into the scrap bin

 

[bobnewboy]

Ok, thanks again all. I’ve sharpened, cleaned and oiled the blades by hand as i go along, and they seem to be taking a good edge. Only time and use will show if they’ve been abused on a wheel enough to lose their hardness.

The handles will take a bit if work to get rid of the hammered wood, but that’s only necessary one a couple. The next job is to sharpen the gouge, which has been ground internally and externally (!). I think it was an in-cannel gouge originally….

 

[Dean]

Is the leather butt cap just a strip of leather fixed with a small pin / nail?

Here is a screenshot from the same video, the fella carved a peg out of the top and glued the leather around the peg.

 

[Jared]

Your rasp looks like a farriers rasp and is meant for excess keratin not wood, so is best thrown into the scrap bin

Looks like a common 4 in 1 wood rasp from here.

 

[Mesquite]

Looks like a common 4 in 1 wood rasp from here.

Yup, that's what it looks like to me as well

 

[demographic]

I have masses of old chisels rescued from my local secondhand toolsale place, Marples (Shamroxk emblem), Storemont, Schmidt and Zeigler (with a nice bull emblem) Henry Taylor paring chisels, Robert Sorby (Kangaroo emblem) and even one from Penrith (T. Althams and Sons).

Worth getting the coarsest diamond hone you can find on Ebay (mines an 80 grit) to really get rid of the dodgy edge fast althoughI have two mates with Tormek water cooled grinding wheels and in the times I've needed a new handle I've bought the ones with the iron hoop on the striking end cos I'm never gonne faff about with wooden mallets.
Paring chisels are a different matter and they'll get octagonal handles.
Many of mine have been registered mortice chisels so they can take some hammer.