Chisels for wood carving. We create a work of art! Chisel sharpening technique - choosing the right angle Corner chisels drawings

Every master who works with wood has a carpentry chisel in his arsenal. The wood chisel is very useful in works that are related to the processing of wooden blanks. Ideally sharpened blades of various shapes are used for threads of any complexity. In hardware stores, you can buy both ready-made sets of devices and chisels by the piece.

Chisels for carving. Classification

A chisel is a professional carpenter's or joiner's tool used to prepare wood blanks for further processing. It will help to remove the chamfer, apply carving ornaments by removing excess layers of wood. The design of the chisel is very simple - it is a plastic or wooden handle and a sharpened blade of various shapes.

There are the following types of chisels:

a straight chisel is needed for processing wood blanks and cutting out simple grooves
oblique chisel has a blade that is beveled at an angle of 450. It is used for cutting longitudinal grooves, as well as work related to the primary processing of the workpiece
angled chisel similar to the English letter V, 2 closed blade planes are at different angles. It is needed to create V-shaped grooves. The sharper and smaller the angle of the cutter, the deeper the cutter will get.
A semicircular chisel for wood is perhaps the most important type of this tool. Such a semicircular tool is used to prepare the product, and also cut out ornaments of varying complexity, apply serifs. A semicircular chisel can be round, medium or sloping
cranberry is very similar to a semicircular chisel. The main difference is that its working surface is rounded not only along the edge of the blade, but also along the rod. This shape guarantees a more precise movement of the tool along the wood. Cluckarzes are different. Their cutting part can be rounded, angular or straight
Caesarics can also be called a type of semicircular chisel, but they have a narrower working part, only 3 mm wide. Their main purpose is cutting thin grooves and working out the smallest details of the ornament.
graters have a mushroom-shaped handle and an oblique cutter. They are mainly used for cutting grooves. With increased master pressure, the carving becomes clearer and deeper
A rivet is a mini-chisel for wood, which has a thin sharpening of a narrow blade, similar to a sharp leaf. This tool is used when conventional chisels cannot create a drawing of the required accuracy.
marigold is also a type of mini chisel. It is designed for cutting thin pieces, however, more rounded than rivets
the back chisel, like cranberry, has a notch convex outward to create a protruding pattern above the plane of the main blade.

Almost all of their listed chisels can have various modifications. A flat chisel is wide or narrow, an angular one with a wide angle and a narrow one, a round bend can be flattened or radial.

Choosing a chisel

Before choosing a chisel, you need to decide what kind of woodcarving you will be doing. If you rarely use them, you can buy an inexpensive kit that contains the main models of the device. Most often, such kits are purchased, for example, for repairing windows or other simple tasks.

However, if you are engaged in wood carving and plan to develop in this direction, then you should not save. You need to purchase the highest quality tools. According to the manufacturing method, there are three types of models:

forged. Such chisels have the thickest blade, as a result of which they can easily interact with hardwood
cutting. These attachments are handy for precise and accurate handling of soft to medium woods.
stamped. When working with them, it is necessary to install a thrust washer so that the device does not deform when the mallet hits.

The craftsmen consider the most convenient chisel length to be 10-15 cm. A longer tool can withstand less load. The handle can be made of wood or plastic. According to reviews, the plastic handle is more durable and withstands impact loads better.

Its period of operation, as well as the quality of the product obtained, directly depends on the quality of the chisel. The quality of the fixture depends on the quality of the hardening of the metal part. The best for chisels are tool metals, which are characterized by high strength and a longer service life. Tool steel is indicated by the following markings:

drop forged
the inscription "chrome-vanadium"

It is worth paying attention that the manufacturer is noted on the labeling. If this information is not available, and the price of the set is quite low, then you have a Chinese counterfeit in your hands.

In the event that the type of steel is not marked, you can check its real quality on a grindstone. When sharpening properly hardened steel, burrs develop and can be easily removed. If no burrs develop, the steel has been overheated and the tool is a hazard. If burrs are formed, but they cannot be removed, it means that the steel is too soft and will not withstand sharpening, and the sharp edge will deform even with little effort.

The main techniques of wood carving

Different carving techniques assume a different position of the fixture in relation to the wooden plane. There are three main ways to work with wood with a chisel:

pruning. This work is carried out on the growth of fibers; the tool is placed with the not sharpened side of the blade up, while you need to hold the handle with one hand, and the blade with the other so that your thumb is directed to the handle. If you hold the chisel in this position, then the craftsman can easily set precise efforts to obtain the most even and smooth surface.
side cutting or picking of grooves. Flat chisels are used to produce rectangular grooves. A sharp edge can be beveled or straight. Most often, such a chisel is sharpened only on one side. Variants with a semicircular sharp edge (in the form of a quarter or semicircle) of the canvas are used to create grooves in a circular manner
perpendicular cutting. In such work, the chisel must be held by the handle with one hand, and the blade must be held with the thumb and forefinger of the other hand. In this way, you can thinly cut wood shavings once. Note that this method is the most time consuming.

Wood carving chisels are not designed to cut a large layer of wood in one go. Their task is to remove excess wood gradually, adhering to pre-defined lines.

During the cutting process, you can use a mallet or hammer. You will need these additional tools if you need to quickly make a depression or hole. At the same time, complex patterns require long-term work and are cut slowly.

Universal chisel

Just a few years ago, work with wood was carried out using hand tools, but today there are devices, for example, an electric chisel, which make it possible to significantly facilitate the work of the master, as well as increase the speed of work while maintaining high quality.

The electric chisel is called universal because it allows you to carry out a wide range of work. High power chisel models can handle old parquet stripping or roughing a large piece of wood, removing knots and other hard particles. It is unrealistic to cope with such work with only hand tools.

This tool is considered universal because it has many attachments of different shapes and sizes. For example, small semicircular and straight nozzles of 4 mm will help to make patterned carvings or engrave the master's initials, and more massive tools, whose width reaches 5 cm, are designed for removing wide chips, as well as roughing.

As you know, a sharp blade is safer than a dull one. This statement is also true for the chisel. An important point is to clean the sharp edge of the chisel once or twice a year, depending on how often you use the tool.

Even brand new chisels may not be sharp enough to carry out complex woodworking, for this reason it is worth sharpening them before using for the first time.

If old chisels have uneven or damaged chamfers, they can be corrected with a grinding wheel. It is necessary to hold damaged chisel chamfers near the grinding wheel to remove serious burrs, dirt and rust.

The stone must have three levels - beginner, medium and small. It is such a stone that will make it possible to achieve the most acute condition. Sharpening stones are sold at garden and hardware stores. The stone is sold with lubricant, if it is not included, the seller will recommend purchasing it separately. The most effective are the following types of stones:

water stones. For such stones, ordinary water is used as a lubricant. They need to be soaked in water for a few minutes before using. This type of stone is very popular in Japan.
oil stones should be lubricated with petroleum based oil prior to use.

Start sharpening the chisel from the flat side. The flat face has a mirror image after proper sharpening. You need to move the chisel back and forth along the stone chips. Hold it with both hands, make smooth and forward movements, without jerking. If scratches appear on the flat surface of the stone, work must be continued on a stone of medium grain size, and then on a fine one. The flat side of the chisel will be completely sharpened when it has a mirror image.

Sharpening a chamfer with a stone is quite difficult. Better to use a special device. Place the chisel in the sharpener and tighten the screws to secure it tightly. Depending on the type of chisel, it is necessary to set the device to form an angle of approximately 20 to 35 degrees:

cleaning chisel - 20 degree angle
an ordinary chisel - an angle of 25 degrees.

Place the chamfer against the coarse-grained stone. Hold it with both hands. Move the chisel back and forth over a thin stone, as if stretching. If the chamfer is scratched, continue working on medium grit and then fine grit. When changing a stone, it is worth rubbing the blade.

Carpentry and joinery tools are also essential in the home craftsman's arsenal, like a hammer, pliers or screwdriver. But besides the presence of this tool, it is advisable to skillfully use a chisel or chisel. It is correct to say: "As you sharpen the instrument, you will play it."

What is a chisel and what is a chisel

A wood chisel is a carpentry tool designed to gouge deep grooves and holes.

The tool looks like an elongated metal bar fixed in the handle. The end of the chisel handle is looped back with a crimping element that protects the handle from splitting.

The chisel is a hand-held woodworking tool in the form of a sharpened steel plate with a handle. Wood chisel is designed for chamfering, punching out small depressions and processing small curved surfaces and grooves. Structurally, the chisel consists of a sharpened blade and a handle, in most cases wooden, less often metal.

The chisel differs from the chisel in the angle of sharpening of the cutting element, as well as in the absence of a double-sided chamfer along the entire length of the blade, relative to the sharpening side. Another difference between a joiner's chisel and a chisel is the larger diameter of the metal rod, so it is impossible to confuse a chisel with a chisel.

Chisel classification

Chisels are classified according to the method of advancement in the cavity of the material, the shape of the handle and the size. However, the main classification parameter is the shape of the instrument: longitudinal or transverse. Therefore, the further use of the chisel depends precisely on this form.

Method of promotion and principle of operation of chisels

The method of advancing the chisel in the material can be carried out by short-term blows on the handle with a special tool: a hammer or mallet. This type of chisel is used when working with hard woods that require significant physical effort.

Externally, chisels of this type have a long handle and a cutting part. When working, the chisel is held with one hand, and the other produces rhythmic blows on the handle. To strengthen the structure of the handle, a reinforcement is made - a loop. When working, it is better to give preference to a polyurethane or rubber hammer. Another type of chisel has a long handle but a shorter cutting edge. This chisel is designed to be used with both hands and to advance the tool.

It is better to work with this type of chisel with soft woods. The grip head is rounded and sleek to fit comfortably in the hand. A rubber mallet can be used in the case of dense wood for better advancement in the material. There are also chisels, the advancement of which in the material is carried out exclusively by hand.

Chisels of this type are much thinner and shorter than other types. The advancement in the material will depend on the angle of the cutting edge and the size of the work piece. This type of chisel is preferred by professional woodcarvers and inlayers of wooden products.

Cutting element shape

The transverse shape of the cutting element, which means the end profile of the blade, is divided into the following types:
Transverse shape
straight
flat
radius
brace
corner

Chisels with a straight blade have a strict shape without bends.
Chisels with a flat transverse profile are distinguished by the thickness and width of the blade, as well as the straight or curved shape of the cut.
Radius chisels are the most common type. A radial chisel is a cutting tool in the profile of which part of the circle is present.

When choosing a radius chisel, you can make a simple test: a chisel placed on the end should ideally outline a circle around itself. Agree that such a universal chisel will allow you to perform carpentry work quickly and accurately.

Stapled or box chisels are tools that have different heights on the cutting edge.
Corner chisels have a profile in the form of the Latin letter V. The main parameter of this type of cutters are the height of the side of the angle and the value of the angle, reaching 90 degrees.

Longitudinal shape
cranberries
curved.
Cranberry chisels have a steep longitudinal bend of the cut, which begins to bend closer to the end of the chisel blade.
Curved chisels are the owners of the complete buckling of the blade. In this case, the web does not have a bend in a separate part, as, for example, in cranberries, but completely the entire web.
Working with a chisel and chisel will be comfortable if the tool is well and correctly sharpened. How to sharpen a chisel correctly?

How to sharpen a chisel

Any home craftsman knows that the working condition of a hand-held cutting tool is characterized by good sharpening. The quality of sharpening a chisel is easy to guess by examining the cutting edge of the tool. The appearance of chipped and curved areas on the blade already indicates that it is time to look for a block, emery or abrasive wheel for sharpening.

The sharpening work is carried out using bars, as well as industrial-made abrasive grinding machines. For the manufacture of whetstones, carborundums, fine-grained sandstones and known abrasives are used.
Before starting grinding work, the bar must be moistened with machine oil. The processing of the chisel blade on the bar is made by applying the entire plane of the sharpened part.

Pressing the tool blade against the bar with your hands, translational movements are made in the direction of the chisel movement. Work on sharpening on an emery or abrasive wheel is done in the same way, only in this case the wheel itself makes the movement. If, after sharpening the chisel blade, burrs are formed that bend in the opposite direction, in this case the chisel is turned over and the whole plane is pressed against the abrasive tool. These techniques are repeated until the appearance of burrs is excluded.

The final finishing of the blade is done with a polishing paste. For sharpening semicircular, curved or corner chisels, the principle and sharpening techniques are identical. When sharpening a tool, you must carefully monitor the current state of the working surface, avoiding distortions and rounding. Therefore, the condition of the abrasive or emery wheel plays an important role in the sharpening process.

How to sharpen a chisel with your own hands will help you video.

I sharpened a couple of narrow chisels, like sharp ones, they cut well, but the chamfer, which in theory should be flat, always turned out to be semicircular. This, of course, is all the little things and does not affect the quality of work, especially if you do not do woodcarving, but use chisels only occasionally, when you need to cut grooves or recesses for hinges, locks. It is easy to get rid of this jamb on an electric grinder, but when sharpening manually it is somewhat tiring.

And when it came to a chisel 4 cm wide, I realized that I needed to make some kind of holder (corner). I didn't want to bother too much with its design, since we use chisels once every five years and very often we don't have to sharpen them. At first I tried to make it on a loop so that the sharpening angle could be adjusted, but very quickly I abandoned this idea, the structure turned out to be shaky, and when you set the angle less than 40 °, the structure starts to take up a lot of space.

In general, I assembled a monolithic corner from three pieces of chipboard, a couple of corners and several self-tapping screws. I set the length of the main piece along the chisel (so that the handle does not rest on the rack).

This piece (platform) is needed so that the chisel handle does not interfere when tightening it with a plate.

We drill, countersink and fasten the platform.

As a clamp, I screwed the plate from the window bolt.

I set up a rack and marked the holes on it

Before screwing it into place, I sawed off the corners so that it was more convenient to hold the corner when sharpening

Reinforced with two long screws.

Tests showed a slight backlash with strong pressure on the corner, so it is better to put the metal corners with a stiffener or cut out triangles from the same chipboard instead of iron corners. Better yet, just cut out a ready-made monolithic corner in the shape of the letter L from chipboard or plywood, thus getting rid of any joints in the corner, but this will be a completely different design. The dimensions were not particularly calculated, everything was assembled from chipboard stubs, but just in case I drew the dimensions.

In this place (photo below), from the corner on which the corner stands, I cut off a couple of millimeters of pvc edges, since during sharpening such a long contact area slowed down the corner very well, left only three centimeters from the edges as legs, the best option it would be to screw the rollers around the edges, but this will complicate the already complex design. :-)

This is a very old homemade chisel on which I will check the corner, a little killed of course, but the piece of iron itself is good :-)

Everything is assembled and ready for sharpening.

I sharpened on ordinary sandpaper in three passes, the lightest and the paste is for showing off, but more on that below :-)

Then I made a mistake that increased the operating time several times, before sharpening, slightly leveled the cutting edge with a dremel so that it was even and not in a semicircle, but as it turned out, the chisel had minor wear on the opposite side at the corners. This means that I would have to chamfer 5-6 mm to get a smooth edge. I know what is supposed to make it even, but for myself I decided to make an exception. :-)

This picture shows how easy it is to set the desired sharpening angle, did not get too carried away with geometry, just put two pieces of chipboard under the chamfer and thereby got the same angle that this chisel had before sharpening.

The chamfer is flattened.

The beginning of the formation of a burr, you can already see the rounding of the corners of the edge due to the fact that on top of the corners there is wear. I didn't get hung up on this.

After the burr has appeared along the entire edge, we go to paper with a smaller grain, well, then to the smallest one, the more steps the less paper consumption.

I used this paper as a zero, (it's above) I removed the rest of the burr on it.

After zero, you can already see the reflection almost like in a mirror :-)

And the paper does not cut badly, though with a little effort and at the same time it must be driven from side to side, the movements are similar to how bread is usually cut.

In principle, this sharpening is enough for me, but still decided to try to bring it to planing the hair. For showing off, I used what was at hand, namely, paper with even finer crumbs and goi paste.

I didn't find a belt or a piece of leather, I just applied a paste to a sheet of paper and polished the chamfer on it.

The result was a mirror, the paper began to be cut a little easier, sometimes it is even unnecessary to drive it from side to side, but simply feed it onto the blade. Hair shaves badly, only cut off a few hairs, so one can say it does not shave at all. Most likely I'm sharpening incorrectly, but it doesn't matter, Temka is about a corner for sharpening flat pieces of iron, and each one sharpens in his own way. :-)

Fragment of the video. Well, something like that, something like that, she cuts my paper. :-)

In general, I am satisfied with the corner, the geometry in the reflection does not break much, which means that the corner does its job.

It is impossible to imagine a modern carpenter without a set of chisels. And, although this woodworking tool is of German origin, our compatriots have made a huge contribution to improving the standard sizes of chisels for wood carving.

Why do you need a chisel?

This tool can do a lot. In experienced hands, using a chisel, you can:

choose an unnecessary volume of wood, and in hard-to-reach places;
align the edges of wooden furniture;
get roundings with any radii;
create a whole composition from a shapeless piece of wood (here, however, you need a certain set of chisels).

It is generally accepted that chisels are exclusively a woodworking tool, but this is not the case. Certainly sharpened chisels can work with soft metal (aluminum and even mild steel), leather and plastic.

The functions of a chisel are similar to the work performed by a chisel, the only difference is in the volume of wood removed: they are smaller for a chisel, since the cutting edge itself is narrower than that of a chisel. The angle of the cutting edge is also different.

Chisels are used in the manufacture of wooden objects (joiner's chisels), for artistic wood carving (artistic cutting chisels), for processing wood on a lathe (machine chisels).

Such a wide variety of joinery operations gives a chisel for wood carving the shape of the working part of the tool. She may be:

Straight - for smooth edges along the entire length of the workpiece.
Oblique - for cutting narrow grooves and obtaining corner edges.
Semicircular and round - for the formation of radius curves or spherical fragments. Sometimes such chisels are called graters.
Angled, which is used to design blind holes of non-circular cross-section.
Curved, designed for working with undercuts and spherical surfaces (such chisels are called cranberries).

The opposite, nozzle part of the chisel - the shank - is a forged conical rod that is driven into a wooden handle, after which it is fixed in it with a special ring - it is necessary so that the tool blade does not come out of the handle upon impacts.

A good quality thread chisel blade is made of 8XF or 13X tool steels. The peculiarity of the metal is the presence of a rather high percentage of carbon (not less than 0.7 ... 0.8%), as well as the obligatory presence of chromium, and sometimes tungsten. The hardness of the chisel should not be lower than HRC 59 ... 60: otherwise, in front of you is an ordinary Chinese fake made of 45X structural steel, which will have to be sharpened every time.

For the convenience of work, it is worth purchasing a set of chisels. Kits from the brands Sandwik, Narex, Bahco are appreciated (chisels from Enkor are quoted from domestic ones, but on one condition - if they are made in Russia, not in China).

Technique for working with a chisel

In addition to a chisel for wood carving, a mallet is needed - a wooden hammer, with blows on the back of the handle and shaping occurs. You can work on soft wood with chisels without a mallet.

The main operations of thread shaping, which are performed using chisels:

Trimming edges. It is carried out only along the fibers, and consists in the forceful movement of the straight chisel with the non-sharpened part of the blade upwards.
Side cut and groove cut. Here oblique, angled or semicircular chisels are used - the type of blade is determined by the configuration of the edge. The sharpening of the blade is mainly one-sided, and the quality of processing depends on the sharpening angle: a shallower blade processes wood better, although the removal of shavings in this case is less.
Cutting the fibers in the transverse direction. It is produced with a chisel of any type, but with a freshly sharpened blade, otherwise material tears and the formation of burrs are possible. The most time consuming technology, since the applied effort is the greatest, and the removal of the waste per pass is the least.

Carving near knots. Curly chisels are used here, mainly round and semicircular. This type of tool provides a more gradual penetration of the blade into the workpiece, which reduces the possibility of scrap during work. The same chisels are used for grooving.
Cleaning the semi-finished product from wood residues. If such work is to be performed in deep, semi-closed cavities, then you should use cranberry. The curved working part of such a chisel provides access to the most difficult parts of the work surface.
Removal of material on the machine. This technology is used less frequently in carving, mainly for pre-processing. For hard wood (oak, pear, walnut), the number of spindle revolutions is reduced, and the chisel used should have a shallower blade.

It should be noted that for the success of the operation, not only the type of chisel is important, but also the width of its working blade. When carving wood, it is recommended to use a narrower tool, which provides the work with increased accuracy.

Choosing chisels for carving

The metal of the blade has already been discussed. The steel grade is indicated electrographically on the chisel itself. For imported products, the marking must contain the symbols of the elements - W, Cr, Cr + W, W + Cr + V. Some manufacturers will indicate the product and the steel grade itself, for example, 62SiMnCr4, 80CrV2 or 86CrMoV7. Lettering like "hardened steel" should not be taken seriously.

The technology of obtaining the shank is of great importance. It must be forged, with appropriate metal flow lines. Forging gives the structure of the steel a fine grain, and contributes to a more even distribution of hardness along the length of the chisel. Otherwise, at the transition from the blade to the shank, a stress concentration zone is formed, which, taking into account the impact nature of the load application, will eventually manifest itself in the form of surface cracks. In addition, in forged shanks, the metal fibers are not cut, which gives the nozzle an increased elasticity. Instructions for forging on foreign-made chisels are reported in the form of an explanatory inscription "drop forged". If there is no such inscription, the shank, most likely, was performed by milling, and its durability will be significantly less.

The quality of the heat treatment of a woodcarving chisel is easy to determine by the nature of the burrs formed when sharpening the tool on a grindstone. If the burrs are removed easily, since they are kept on the surface only due to the magnetizing forces, then the chisel hardening is done correctly.

The next choice is the length of the blade. It should not be less than 130 ... 150 mm, but it is undesirable to acquire chisels with an increased length - their longitudinal durability decreases, and a long tool is not always practical for delicate woodwork.

Wood is more suitable for the material of the handle: it is "warmer" and better withstands shock loads, absorbing most of the vibrations. On the other hand, plastic is durable, so the final choice will be determined by the complexity and frequency of the operations performed.