The chisel, as I explained a little when I introduced hand tools, is one of the most commonly used hand woodworking tools, and even if you use woodworking machinery most of the time, you can't do without a good chisel. This week we take a good look at chisels and their care.

As a beginner, you should use the flat chisel the most. There are 3/4 inch, 1/2 inch and 1 inch chisels. With these three sizes of flat chisels, you will be a good beginner. set. The price can be bought cheaper, because you have to practice grinding and so on later, there will be more opportunities for loss, and you can buy expensive ones after the skills are proficient. It is best to choose a chisel that is resistant to knocking (either with an iron ring or plastic at the end), so that you can safely hit it with a hammer when you use it.

A chisel has two faces, one beveled and one straight. When chiseling, remember that the range of the face is what you will save, and the other face is to be removed. Before chiseling, draw a line, and then use a chisel or a scriber to press/mark a dent. When chiseling, be careful not to be greedy, and chisel a little bit, so that the chisel will not be so fast, and the chisel will be easier and more accurate. Degree is also better.

Chisels are mainly used in several directions, horizontal, diagonal and vertical.

When it is horizontal, it is mainly used to clean the surface. When using it, hold the handle of the chisel with your main hand (right hand for right-handed people, left and right for left-handed people), and control the direction of the chisel with the other hand. The hand that controls the direction is as close to the cutting edge as possible. , which is more accurate. It is also worth noting that beginners use uneven force, which can easily cause the back of the cleaned surface to be lower, because it is generally more forceful to push the chisel to the back.

When slanting, pay attention to the sloping face downwards. The sloping face will make the overall direction of the chisel horizontal, so that it will not go too far into the wood block due to excessive force. Another thing to pay attention to is the direction of the wood grain, the chisel should be cut in the opposite direction to the wood grain. If it is along the grain, it is easy to cause tearing and destroy the wood block.

Remember to keep the chisel perpendicular to the block when vertical. At this time, a hammer is usually needed to assist. When beating, pay attention to be firm, and the number of times of beating should not be too much, and the probability of errors will be reduced. When holding the chisel in your hand, you can hold it as low as possible, so that the chisel can be placed more precisely where you need to chisel, and when the hammer is used, the chisel can be more perpendicular to the workpiece.

Keeping the chisel sharp is very important, the sharper the chisel, the more precise you can be when machining the wood because you have better control. When does it need to be sanded? On the straight side of the chisel, use your fingers to feel if the blade is rolled back, and if so, it needs to be sharpened. Generally, I use a whetstone to grind, and the grinding of the bevel can be used with a sharpener to adjust the grinding angle.

Having said all that, here's what was promised in action the other day. Found teak that was tested in the last few weeks and was relatively easy to work with. First check that the blade of the flat chisel is straight, as cheap chisels may not be straight enough. The inspection can be done with a ruler (the same method can also be used to measure whether the surface of the wooden block is flat in the future). If the chisel is not flat, it must be ground to a flat position, otherwise it will affect the accuracy of the tool.

Once the tool is in order, you can use a line on the block to trace the position to be chiseled, and also draw the depth of the side. The block is then held in place with clamps, and then a chisel is used to make scratches along the line, which will cut the fibers of the block, and then use only moderate force when chiseling to limit the range of processing. When scratching, you can choose to use your body pressure to press the chisel down with your bare hands, or put the chisel on the wire and hit it with a hammer. When aiming at the line, the hand holding the chisel should be as close to the cutting edge as possible, and at the same time, pay attention to the direction of the chisel bevel should be the direction of the waste. If you are not confident enough, you can put the chisel slightly inside the line when scribing the line, because too much chisel can't save it, and too little chisel can be repaired slowly. In addition, pay attention to the verticality of the chisel when drawing the line. If you are not confident, you can use a square ruler as a reference.

After cutting the wood fiber in the processing area with a chisel, you can use the chisel diagonally with a hammer to remove the unnecessary wood blocks. Pay attention to the slope downward and do not use too much force. After chiseling, you can chisel the previously scribed area to ensure that the outer wood fibers have been completely cut off. Then you can lay the chisel flat and clean up the unwanted sawdust. If you didn't check whether the plane of the flat chisel is straight or not at the beginning, it will be difficult to do at this step, and the things you make will be inaccurate, so I prefer to slow down and ensure the integrity of the tool.

In short, woodworking chisels are one of the most commonly used hand tools. You must practice more to master them. When using them, pay more attention to the direction of the wood grain and think more. At the beginning, you can buy cheap chisels to practice, but pay attention to the poor workmanship of cheap chisels. Remember to check them before using them, otherwise you will be busy. You can prepare some materials first, and you can practice your hands when you have time.