RUSTIC HOMEMADE HAND TOOLS
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With this done, merely fit the handle securely into its
receptacle (using a small wedge, if necessary), and have at
your to-be-stripped timber in "shuffleboard" fashion. By
scraping horizontally at the surface of the offending log,
you can have it peeled in jig time . . . and you'll find
that your new "chisel" will make short work of stubborn
knots, too!
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FROE
A froe is used to split logs into billets, or to cleave
blocks into thin sections (as when making shingles). The
heart of this device is an old automobile leaf spring . . .
which provides not only the sturdy steel necessary to
guarantee a durable tool, but also the shank to which a
handle can be fastened. Select a spring with a width of
about 2-1/2", and torch it to a 16" overall length,
including the suspension unit's shackle mounting hole in
your measurement. Now grind both sides of one long edge to
form a double-faced cutting surface with a 15° angle
(in relation to the blade's flat "loins") on each side.
Next, fashion a handle out of a 17" length of available
hardwood (we used a dogwood limb . . . but oak, hickory, or
ash would be fine, too), making certain that its diameter
fits snugly within the spring's shackle "eye". Insert the
wood from the side opposite the ground edge and lock it in
place with a hardwood wedge.
To use the tool, hold its handle vertically and place the
cleaving edge against the end of your billet, then beat on
the blade's uppermost (or striking) surface with a froe
club (you can make one from a piece of hardwood). By
levering the cutting bar back and forth after each blow,
you can separate the wood sections while still maintaining
some control over the direction of cut.
DRAWKNIFE
This straightforward device operates like a plane, except
for the fact that its depth of cut is controlled by the
user. . . who simply changes the blade's "angle of attack"
to slice more or less wood away. To make the tool, we
removed a straight 12" section from the same piece of
spring stock used in the froe, and ground an even,
one-sided bevel—at an angle of 33°—along
one edge of the steel. Then we took two pieces of 3/8"
round bar, each about 7" long . . . bent them (over heat)
to form equal-armed 45° angles . . . and welded one of
the handles to each end of the blade, so that the grip:
were behind the cutting surface and leve I with the bar.
Finally, we put a sham edge on the knife with a whetstone,
making sure to maintain a straight bevel.
