Thursday, May 7, 2009

The New Czeck Edge/Benchcrafted Chisel


I'm proud to announce the final version of the new chisel designed for fine work from Czeck Edge Hand Tool. This tool is a design collaboration between Robert Zajicek and myself. I was looking for a small, well-balanced tool for fine work like dovetails and inlay. This tool fills the bill.

But don't be alarmed by the diminutive size of this chisel. It's a burly brute in a petite package. Bob's aerospace engineering background enabled him to pack some punch into this sweet little cutting tool. I won't go into the details, but suffice it to say it's nearly indestructible. In fact, this past weekend the very chisel pictured above was tested for durability by driving it almost completely through a 3/4" thick walnut board. The tool's handle (which is made from acrylic-impregnated curly maple) not only showed no signs of damage, it showed no signs of any contact at all. And the mallet that did the driving was also an acrylic-impregnated wood. It showed no signs of wear either.

Czeck Edge will have the first batch of chisels (in various widths) at the upcoming Lie-Nielsen show in Cincinnati, OH, the weekend of May 16-17. See this link for more details.

3 comments:

  1. Sweet, Jameel!

    Kudos to you and to Bob. I believe this chisel fits the bill. I look forward to handling one soon.

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  2. What a beauty! It looks a winner.

    Do I detect some subtle flattening in the handle? Catching rolling chisels is only slightly less fun than removing the floor dings from their edges.

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  3. Thanks Al and Bob.

    No flattening on the handle. Just make sure that glorious English bench of your's is level, Bob. (wink and grin!)

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