Project supplies?

[Tom Albrecht]

I would like my High School Students to make their own Scratch Awl as a project. Something like THIS.

Turning the wood handle and sizing a ferrule will be part of it, but I can not figure out where to get the appropriate steel rod for cutting to length and sharpening to a point on a grinder. And I'm not sure what the appropriate steel rod would be. I am thinking something around 1/8" diameter would work. I don't want to use the hardware store variety of carbon steen rods.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

 

[Hugh]

Tom,
I use brass gas plumbing parts for the ferrule. Turn the brass down after it is attached to the handle.
For the steel rod.......I use O-1 drill rod. I use 3/16" drill rod. Mount it in a collet chuck and file a taper on the rod. Then file a point on the very end.
If you use a small diameter steel rod, it will bend when in use.
I get the O-1 drill rod from MSC-direct.
Fun project.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Tom,
I use brass gas plumbing parts for the ferrule. Turn the brass down after it is attached to the handle.
For the steel rod.......I use O-1 drill rod. I use 3/16" drill rod. Mount it in a collet chuck and file a taper on the rod. Then file a point on the very end.
If you use a small diameter steel rod, it will bend when in use.
I get the O-1 drill rod from MSC-direct.
Fun project.

Thanks Hugh, is that the oil hardening rod?
I have a collection brass bullet casings for ferrules.

 

[sjbrandt]

There’s a good article by Mike Peace in the December 2018 American Woodturner on making awls. I made several based on his article and i think I use one of them every day. He suggested using spring steel, also known as music wire. I bought some 5/32” diameter rods on Amazon. They sharpened easily on my CBN wheel.

 

[Brian Gustin]

I made a whatcha-call-it 4 sided awl - cheap M2 HSS from harbor freight (just a basic set of HSS cutters meant for a metal lathe, I plan to use another piece to make a thin kerf parting tool, and with a round rod I made a burnisher for cabinet scrapers) but, if you have capability to do your own hardening and tempering, just grab some 1/8 or 3/16 square key stock from a hardware store... I like the 4-sided (square steel stock) awl as it not only lets you get a nice precise centered point (if you grind the 4 sides evenly) you can also sort of drill with it , since the 4 corners can be sharpened as well and make a very nice starter hole for wood screws, etc.

 

[Dean Center]

I always thought this would be a great project for our high school wood club, even putting together kits for them. (Using o-1 rod, 1/8" I think, possibly 3/16") Then I thought through it again. They're basically making a shiv. Imagine the school board's response when they get wind of it, especially if it's after a student stuck one in another student or teacher. We decided to take it off the list, but considered "you may not put it in your locker and have to take it straight home with you" or "you can make it here at school, but not sharpen it--you have to do that at home."

 

[Brian Gustin]

I always thought this would be a great project for our high school wood club, even putting together kits for them. (Using o-1 rod, 1/8" I think, possibly 3/16") Then I thought through it again. They're basically making a shiv. Imagine the school board's response when they get wind of it, especially if it's after a student stuck one in another student or teacher. We decided to take it off the list, but considered "you may not put it in your locker and have to take it straight home with you" or "you can make it here at school, but not sharpen it--you have to do that at home."

Good point. Easy to forget it isn't back in the good old days in my high school shop classes where we could make our own hunting knives in metal shop, Tire Thumpers and Rat Whackers on the lathe in wood shop, and 3 days a week we'd have rifle club and practice shooting in the downstairs shooting range for the rifle team... among other things that'd explode the heads of modern day school boards and PTA's

 

[Drew Sumrell]

Definitely check out Mike Peace's video on making the bird cage awls. He even provides a list of supplies.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

I always thought this would be a great project for our high school wood club, even putting together kits for them. (Using o-1 rod, 1/8" I think, possibly 3/16") Then I thought through it again. They're basically making a shiv. Imagine the school board's response when they get wind of it, especially if it's after a student stuck one in another student or teacher. We decided to take it off the list, but considered "you may not put it in your locker and have to take it straight home with you" or "you can make it here at school, but not sharpen it--you have to do that at home."

Fortunately I am no longer working in that environment.

 

[Larry Copas]

I've made all kind of awls and marking knives. Sometimes I use O1 which requires heat treating. I have a digital heat treating oven, the right speed quench, and a tempering oven. Time consuming. I also make awls using K&S spring steel music wire. Doesn't require any heat treating and most people can't tell the difference.

K&S music wire at Amazon

It can be found lots of places and different diameters. Perfect for what you are planing.



This one is a bird cage awl with a aluminum ferule made out of probably 1/2" aluminum rod. Easy to make ferules on the wood lathe out of aluminum and just a touch harder out of brass plumbing fittings. To sharpen I spin the shaft in a cordless drill pressing against a belt grinder. For the bird cage awls I have a jig to get the correct angles on the tip.

Hope this helps. Sounds like a great project.

 

[Robert Satterfield]

I believe Alan Lacer goes through the process in one of his books...

 

[Tom Albrecht]

I've made all kind of awls and marking knives. Sometimes I use O1 which requires heat treating. I have a digital heat treating oven, the right speed quench, and a tempering oven. Time consuming. I also make awls using K&S spring steel music wire. Doesn't require any heat treating and most people can't tell the difference.

K&S music wire at Amazon

It can be found lots of places and different diameters. Perfect for what you are planing.

View attachment 42520

This one is a bird cage awl with a aluminum ferule made out of probably 1/2" aluminum rod. Easy to make ferules on the wood lathe out of aluminum and just a touch harder out of brass plumbing fittings. To sharpen I spin the shaft in a cordless drill pressing against a belt grinder. For the bird cage awls I have a jig to get the correct angles on the tip.

Hope this helps. Sounds like a great project.

Thanks Larry. I watched the Mike Peace video where he uses the music wire and that looks like the way to go for this class project. In your photo above, it appears that the awl steel is round for the full length?

 

[robo hippy]

As for the drill rod, when making tool rests, the A drill rod is much harder to start with than the O or W. I would think the A would work fine for an awl without heat treating, but don't know. I consider it to be essential for the wood shop. Also did leather work for years, and it is a must have for leather work as well...

robo hippy

 

[Larry Copas]

Tom, the awl I pictured is a bird cage awl with 3 facets ground on the very tip. Here is a better view of one I use all the time.


Since I usually made a dozen or more at one time, I made a triangle jig to hold the shaft when I grind on my 2 X 72 belt grinder. The shaft is held in the jig with an allen screw. I can do just as good of job freehand, but its faster with the jig. Plain awl tips are ground by putting the shaft in a drill and spinning while grinding on the belt grinder.

Beside the jig there is a couple of the ferules I use. I like the aluminum best because its cheap.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

As for the drill rod, when making tool rests, the A drill rod is much harder to start with than the O or W. I would think the A would work fine for an awl without heat treating, but don't know. I consider it to be essential for the wood shop. Also did leather work for years, and it is a must have for leather work as well...

robo hippy

Sorry, what is the “A, O, & W” you refer to.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Turns out that K & S sells direct from their website, with a discount for schools too.

 

[Hugh]

A = Air hardening
O = Oil hardening
W = water hardening

I have made awls with the O-1 drill rod and have not hardened it. Works fine. Easy to harden though.

 

[Spike Cornelius]

My birdcage awl is O1, not heat treated and works dandy. It only gets used on wood after all!

 

[Timothy White]

I like to buy awls from the big box stores remove the handles and replace them with my own.

 

[Pat Patterson]

I often use copper pipe for ferules. Sands up real pretty and then cote them with what ever I finish the wood handle. Easy to cut with a tube cutter.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Music Wire (High Carbon Steel) vs CBN Wheels?
Will using CBN wheels for the final sharpening of my music wire awls clog the wheels?

 

[robo hippy]

Not familiar with 'music wire'. Shovel blades, at least the old ones are fine, bench chisels are fine, old hand saw blades are fine, drill rod, axe heads are fine. The softer metals like 16 penny sinker nails, lawn mower blades, standard sheet metal, cold rolled steel, brass, copper, aluminum, can clog up your wheel. The wheel is not ruined if you grind some of these metals on them, but it can take a bit to clean the wheel. I use some of the lapping fluid from Trend, and apply it to the bevel of a scraper and sharpen away. It may take several sharpenings to get the wheel back to normal. Still, it is best to keep some of the old standard grinding wheels around, just in case you want to grind softer metals.

robo hippy