How I make Mallets.

I have never used that style of mallet. I have 3 nice ones Vaughn made me. But they are to purtty to use so I made them a nice display rack.:thumb:
Now I have these three and we'll see how they do.:thumb:
 
Are you partial to that style of mallet over one that is like a hammer?

I have never used that style of mallet.

Hmmm ... I just got confused. :huh:

For a "directional" tool like...
  • a hammer (or a hammer-style mallet)
  • a hatchet
... or a torque-requiring tool like a screwdriver

... or a non-directional tool (like an awl) that you don't want to roll off the workbench

... an oval handle makes a lot of sense. :thumb:

But if you put an oval handle on a "cylindrical" mallet, it seems like part of the usable surface would go unused. Am I missing something? :dunno:
 
The oval handle is for a cabinet makers mallet. (Big square chunk of wood with a handle) The last three carvers mallets have round handles. All though I did see a guy put an oval handle on one, and had the same confusion you had Kerry.:thumb:
 
Thanks Chuck!

I must indeed have "missed" the transition from cabinetmaker's mallet to carver's mallet, although I did wonder what ever happened to that "angled" block of wood.

My bad! :eek:
 
C'mon Kerry, try to keep up. :rofl:

Aside from the mallets I sent you Chuck, I've not made any. If I ever wear out my Harbor Freight dead blow mallets, I'll probably make a square head one like you did in the tutorial, since I do a lot of pounding, and pretty much no carving.
 
Looks like toady is the day for getting mallets done. They have been drying for some time now and I have been weighing them to keep track of the drying progress. In the last 10 days the heads have only lost .01 of an OZ. So I taking that as a sign that they are dry enough to finish.:thumb:
 
Ok it's time to finish up these mallets.
First off they all get up wrapped from the DNA drying.
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All unwrapped
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This one dried funny
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Same one. I will have to re-cut the end to square it back up. I had to do that to 3 of them all together. You can see a small amount of checking. that trimmed off with the re-squaring.
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First handle glued in place. I had to do a bit of rework on the handles. The hole in the head shrunk up and they no longer fit in.
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This one did not like it when I drove the wedge in the handle. I had 2 of them that chose to be the new 2 piece head design.

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All handled up and ready for finish.
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A shot of one with a wooden wedge.
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A shot of one with a steel wedge. Note that the wedge is going with the grain. I did that so that the wedge would split the handle in the head to help lock it in place.
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A shot of the side cover for the dead blow mallet.
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Updated

Time to finish them.

These are getting a 2 part epoxy finish. This is the mixing tub and the measuring tools.
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One dixie cup of each part.
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All laid out on the drying wires. The wires keep them up off the bench so they don't stick to it.
I set them up where they are going to dry before I coat them. That way I don't have to fiddle around with the wires while I'm applying the coat.
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Gloves on and the coating begins. I find that the fastest way to get the coat on is to just plan get down and dirty. You only have around 30 minutes to apply so I have no time to wast with trying to apply with a paint brush.
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All slimy now I rub a good coat all over the piece. Working it into the wood as I go.

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All have been coated.

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A shot of the soft face one of them is going to have.
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Now a quick trip past all of the with the torch. This does 2 things one it removes the bubbles in the finish. Two it warms the epoxy up which makes it thin out. By thinning it it soaks into the wood better.
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Now I wipe them all down to remove the extra epoxy. they will get a light sanding to knock the grain down and another coat of the epoxy.
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You can see in the back ground one of the new 2 piece heads being glued up. I'm going to try and save it so we shall see how it comes out.
 

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Chuck, can I ask a few questions? :D

1. What's the difference between a dead blow mallet and a carver's mallet and why? What exactly do you use a dead blow mallet for?

2. Why do you use green wood for the head (or top)? I know turning green wood for the handle is easier, but why the top too?

3. Why do you coat them with epoxy?

thanks Chuck.
 
Chuck, can I ask a few questions? :D

1. What's the difference between a dead blow mallet and a carver's mallet and why? What exactly do you use a dead blow mallet for?
The dead blow mallet is a assemble mallet. for driving things like dove tails together. It has a flat face and when cut at the angle it will stick the wood flat.
To make it a dead blow I put a slot in it for steel shot. t=The shot will roll to the top of the slot when you raise the mallet up and than as you strike, it will slam down to the bottom of the slot increasing the force of the mallet.

The carvers mallet is for hitting your chisels. They make them round so you can keep changing the spot where the chisel hits the head to prolong the life of the mallet.

2. Why do you use green wood for the head (or top)? I know turning green wood for the handle is easier, but why the top too?
The wood I used was green when I got it. Being hickory it is very hard when dry. Hard wood is hard to route cut and sand so I went ahead and milled it green. I prolly would not do it again if I didn't have to get an order out.
3. Why do you coat them with epoxy?
The epoxy I use is water proof. If water can't get in than it can't get out so the mallets should be very stable. Also it is very hard which will help make the mallet harder and last longer.
thanks Chuck.

Answers in green:thumb:
I should add that I was not real impressed with how much the heads moved drying. In the future I will dry them first than mill them.
 
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Made up a leather soft face for one of them today. I took the piece I cut out the other day soaked it in water. Than clamped it to the mallet. Once dry (it is now) I will unclamp it and screw it on.

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Here is the "soft face" unclamped. It holds it's shape quite well.
My leather-smith friends don't use water for forming the leather. but I find that it takes and hold shape much better for me when it has been soaked than formed and clamped to dry.
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Here it is on the mallet. I will screw it on later. I want the finish on the mallet to dry for another day or so.

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A leather wrap for the carving mallet.
First we need a piece of leather.
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I cut a strip off with my strap gutter.

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I than fit it around the head and cut it to size. Now that it cut I lay out the holes for the lacing.

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Punch all the holes. Once all the holes are punched I soak it with water so it is soft and pliable. This will also allow the leather to be stretched around the head. And it will shrink up some as it drys out.

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Now lace it up. I'm using leather shoe lace for this. Using it allows me to pull it tight with out breaking like rawhide lacing would.

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All laced up. Time to trim off the top and bottom.

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All done.

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Chuck, your leather working friends may not dampen for forming. But making the leather damp is a standard procedure. I believe most leather workers I have encountered do wet for forming.
 
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