Use a Chisel

A chisel is a woodworking or masonry tool. A chisel is a handle with a shaped cutting edge beveled at a variety of angles and in a variety of sizes. The handle and blade of some chisels are made of metal or wood and can be expensive. Sharp chisels can cut angles and designs, smooth rough surfaces, and chop out corners for mortises and/or dovetail joints. Knowing how to chisel can make the task easier, more effective, and safer.

Steps

Use a Paring Chisel

1. Use a paring chisel for fine light woodwork, such as shaving or sculpting.
   • A paring chisel has a thin blade beveled at an angle of 15 degrees.
   • Paring uses the knife-like edge of a paring chisel to slice off small amounts of wood.
   • When paring, push the paring chisel into the wood while the wood lies flat on a surface.
2. Secure the woodwork firmly on your workbench or in your vise.
   • The more secure the fit, the more control you will have when pushing with force into the wood.
3. Position the the blade at a slight slant to the line of the wood.
   • When you pare, you are not taking off large amounts of wood, so you can pare with or against the wood's grain.
4. Place one hand on the chisel's blade and press it against the surface of the wood.
   • This hand controls the forward movement of the chisel.
5. Drive the chisel with the other hand placed on the handle.
6. Raise or lower the chisel handle to control the depth of the cut.
7. Repeat action and sharpen the blade as needed.

Use a Firmer Chisel

1. Use a firmer chisel for deeper cuts in both heavy and light woodwork, such as shaping a mortise.
   • The cutting edge of a firmer chisel is straight and square.
   • It is ground and sharpened like a plane iron.
   • The firmer chisel has a heavier blade than a paring chisel, and its angle is 20 degrees.
2. Keep the flat side flush against the wood.
3. Use a mallet, not a hammer, to drive the firmer chisel because the mallet absorbs and distributes the impact.
4. Take thin shavings when cutting or risk splitting or damaging the wood.
   • Give the chisel a sliding or shearing motion when cutting across the end grain of wood.
5. Raise or lower the chisel handle to control the depth of the cut.
6. Repeat action and sharpen blade as needed.

Use a Gouge

1. Use a gouge for fine woodwork, such as carving or sculpting.
   • Gouges have curved points and long handles.
   • There are 8 standards of degrees to the curves, and the gouges come in several widths.
   • Gouges can be used to carve into wood or to remove wood around a design to bring the design into relief.
2. Firmly attach wood to a surface that will withstand damage when a gouge slip as they tend to do.
3. Place your forefinger at "tang" of chisel, the place where the metal blade meets the handle.
4. Use one hand to push gouge forward into the wood.
5. Raise, lower, or turn the handle to achieve the desired effect.
   • For deeper cuts, hold the gouge perpendicular to the wood and hit handle sharply with mallet.
6. Gouge with the grain or risk damage to the wood.
7. Repeat action, change size of gouge as needed for design, and sharpen blades as required.

Use a Masonry Chisel

1. Use masonry chisels to score, trim, or shape brick or stone.
   • Masonry chisels are broader and shorter than woodworking chisels and are typically made of a single forged piece of metal.
   • Masonry blades are typically duller than those of wood chisels as they are meant to work by force rather than by finesse.
2. Mark the stone clearly with paver's chalk or dark pencil.
3. Set the masonry chisel (sometimes called a "blocking chisel") perpendicular to the stone at the mark.
   • A bolster chisel is beveled on one-side of the blade and is used to break off large pieces or sections.
   • A pitcher chisel is beveled on both sides of the blade and is used to cut straight lines.
   • Sculpting or engraving stone requires a wide variety of specialized tools and chisels.
4. Strike the chisel handle sharply with a hammer, mallet, or sledgehammer.
5. Repeat the strike along the line drawn until the break occurs.

Tips

• Use a "dry block" of wood to occasionally test sharpness of the chisel by cutting into this otherwise extra piece of wood.
• Purchase chisels sensibly because regular use and sharpening requires quality tools.

Warnings

• Wear safety equipment, including goggles, dust mask, and Kevlar protective gloves.
• Chisels can be very dangerous tools because they are kept very sharp, produce splinters, and shards of debris.
• Wear protective leather work gloves to cut stone products with a masonry chisel.
• Never use a chisel that is pointing toward your body.

Things You'll Need

• Paring Chisel
• Firmer (or framer) Chisel
• Gouges in a variety of degrees and widths
• Vise
• Masher Hammer, a two headed hammer
• Rubber Headed Mallet
• Small sledgehammer
• Bolster Chisel
• Pitcher Chisel

Sources and Citations

• http://chestofbooks.com/home-improvement/woodworking/Exercises-Wood-Working/Exercise-3-Use-Of-The-Gouge.html
• http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?7413-Getting-the-most-from-your-bowl-gouge-edge-(Pics)
• http://www.masonryforlife.com/HowToBasics.htm

See also

• Sculpt Using Sand and Portland Cement
• Install Wood Dowel Joints
• Build a Mayan Temple Out of Sand
• Mix Plaster for Sculpture
• Make a Soap Carving
• Use a Wood Lathe
• Make a Rubber Mold
• Sculpt With Concrete
• Sculpt
• Make a Latex Mold

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