Chisel handle?

ObjectZero

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Chisel handle:hammer:?

Since I was looking to get in to engraving by doing hammer and chisel engraving since it’d be more with in my budget and making a small engraving hammer is nothing for me (blacksmith).
But when it comes to the chisel handle I see very little about them online. There seems to be very little reference about the handle. I guess it’s not something complex, but it still seems weird that I can find almost double on hammers but not the chisel:thinking:.
When looking for ones for sale I found even less. I think on my search I managed to find one pre-made chisel handle for sale. Do most engravers just make their own, why are there so few out there pre-made for sale and why are there so few details about them?
 

Sam

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chisel_handles 2.jpg

GRS makes a steel chisel handle which is the Belgian style, and it uses GRS QC graver holders.

A common 3/4" dowel about 4" long will also work well. Chisel handle preferences are all over the place so there's little agreement on what size, shape, or material is best. Mine are wooden and patterned after Lynton McKenzie's, and they're just fine.
 

JJ Roberts

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I buy my Belgian style chisel handles from Ray Phillips Ngraver Co. there made of steel and are around $10.00 each. J.J.
 
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Jerry K

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The Lynton McKenzie videos, although 30 years old, offer an excellent discussion regarding chisels and chisel handles. Mr. McKenzie was a Master and a great teacher. His demonstrations are easily understood, and he spends a great deal of time showing the how he uses the tools.
Jerry K
 

monk

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i made a few of my own. .5" dia brass rod. drill to allow insertion of the gravers. cross drill and tap for a set screw. or-cheaper yet, a few inches of an old mop or broom handle will work. the handle can be most any material. the bashing it gets from the hammer is not all that great
 

John B.

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GRAVER HANDLES.
If you use round handles made of wood, like Sam pictured you might like to add an empty de-primed .45 ACP cartridge case to the end.
Sam has a gentle tap and his look fine. But if you get carried away or with time the case will prevent splitting or mushrooming the wood.
Downside is they are a little noisier than plain wood. If I use plain wood handles I use a small rawhide mallet instead of a chasing hammer.
Belgium square style handles are my choice because your hand will feel the rotational orientation of the tool without visual help as soon as you pick it up. The rotational orientation between the thumb and forefinger is extremely sensitive.
And being deaf I enjoy the the sound of a steel hammer on a steel tool. :)
But different strokes. As a blacksmith you can easily make either style. Great work has been done with both types.
Best of luck with your journey into the engraving world.
 

Flashmo

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i made a few of my own. .5" dia brass rod. drill to allow insertion of the gravers. cross drill and tap for a set screw. or-cheaper yet, a few inches of an old mop or broom handle will work. the handle can be most any material. the bashing it gets from the hammer is not all that great

My chisels mimic Monk's, except I used 3/8" 12L14.
 

Big-Un

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When I first started engraving, my wooden handles were vibrating too much, so I drilled a hole in some 1/2" steel rod and inserted my gravers in them and hed them in with JB Weld. Still have them and that was thirty plus years ago.
 

SamW

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The long one near the middle is my old H&C handle, given to me by Ray Viramontez. This is the German style handle he learned with under Werner Shuck. I always found it fit my hand very nicely and can be turned from wood dowels. It now holds a triangle scraper to good effect.
 

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Weldon47

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From left to right:
1.An Ngraver brand metal handle
2. A GRS metal handle with quick change tip
3. A wood handle with a .38spl case as a ferrule
4. The hammer I've used since 1979

Weldon
 

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highveldt

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Chisel handle:hammer:?

Since I was looking to get in to engraving by doing hammer and chisel engraving since it’d be more with in my budget and making a small engraving hammer is nothing for me (blacksmith).
But when it comes to the chisel handle I see very little about them online. There seems to be very little reference about the handle. I guess it’s not something complex, but it still seems weird that I can find almost double on hammers but not the chisel:thinking:.
When looking for ones for sale I found even less. I think on my search I managed to find one pre-made chisel handle for sale. Do most engravers just make their own, why are there so few out there pre-made for sale and why are there so few details about them?

Ozero;

PM me your address and name and I will send you some chisel handles that I made on my lathe from aluminum bar stock--that I used to learn chisel engraving.

Regards;
Steve (ABANA blacksmith in my younger years)
 

Lofide20

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Feb 25, 2017
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View attachment 40534

GRS makes a steel chisel handle which is the Belgian style, and it uses GRS QC graver holders.

A common 3/4" dowel about 4" long will also work well. Chisel handle preferences are all over the place so there's little agreement on what size, shape, or material is best. Mine are wooden and patterned after Lynton McKenzie's, and they're just fine.
Sam
Does GRS still carry those handles? I couldn't find them on their website.
Thanks
Jim

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 

John B.

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Hi JJ and Karlspinks,
Just a little more info on the Waller tools.
The Weller handles with removable tips can be used with either graver or burnisher tips.
Neil Hartliep used them exclusively to engrave with the Waller square carbide engraving tips for all his main cutting.
The tips are removable and screw threaded into the handles.
He liked these handles and tips because they are quite short and made it easier for him to engrave back towards himself in the Asian and Indian manner.
The handle laid across four fingers of his left hand and was held in place by his thumb. His right hand held his short hammer
Neil engraved many guns very quickly using this method.
 

monk

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my very first one had no handle. it was an ideal length to start. made from a 3-corner file. heat treated to soften it some. ugly, but it works
 

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