Salvaging Abused Tools Part 2 - Saving an Early Titan Firmer Chisel

This Titan firmer chisel was made in Tasmania some time after World War II - most likely in the early 1950's

It is a 1-1/2 inch Titan Firmer Tang Chisel with plain straight edges and wooden handle - one of their earliest designs.

This design very closely resembles that of a Ward and Payne from around the same period, and it may have used the English chisel as inspiration.

Ward and Payne Sheffield

I like this style because of the comparative thinness of the blade compared to the registered firmer types, and the straight edges are an aid to paring square joints.

In the 1951 McPherson's Catalogue, this chisel cost 8/-8d.......... eight shillings and eight pence.

If my maths is correct - and adjusted to average weekly earnings and inflation, that would be about $65 in today's money. So, enough to make you think carefully about putting a set of these together

I happily paid $15 for it in its current condition. Why? Because the blade is almost full length in spite of the added skew, and it is almost unmarked. The handle is another matter entirely.

Titan Tasmania Australia

The angle of the picture doesn't show it well, but there is a skew across the blade of around 1/4 inch from one side to the other. Note that the back of the blade shows the original factory grind marks and no pitting - a huge plus.

This is a better view of the back of the blade - the factory grind is quite apparent here - as is the added back bevel !!!! Why do people insist on ruining a cutting edge like this?

This side view shows the back bevel more easily. Note how clean the edges are. It is not uncommon in chisels of this age to find dents, pits and burrs along edges. This one is very straight - almost original.

So the blade is what excited me in the first place.  The handle, however, is very sad indeed.

It has been pounded with a steel hammer and badly split. Here you can see the circular imprints of the hammer head. The damage is severe.

A whole billet has been struck from one side of the handle - and is lost.

The rest of the handle is fractured along multiple axes. It is beyond repair, and a new handle will have to be made. Fortunately, the ferule is intact and can be re-used.

I won't be able to turn a new handle until I visit the Guild workshop, so I will work on the blade in the meantime.  The skew and back bevel need to be removed - cooling often in water while grinding - so as not to affect the temper of the steel.

Once the blade is ground back to square, I established a new bevel. I chose approximately 26 degrees - which with a further microbevel will finish close to 30 degrees. Note that the skew grind that I inherited here has left a small part of itself behind when the new bevel was established - this will eventually disappear as the chisel is re-sharpened after each use.  Currently it is only cosmetic.

Next step is to flatten the back of the blade.

This was a chore!

Here it is after about an hour and a half on the stones, and not finished yet.

This blade is the exact opposite of a good Japanese bench chisel which has a concave back.

This one is convex, and needed a mountain of work to get it to this stage..

What shows up clearly here are the original factory grind marks, this chisel has never been flattened before. The steel is good - I can't wait to use it.

Along with the back flattening, the new bevel needs sharpening. This is a fairly simple passage through the stone grits to final polish on a hard arkansas stone. - Yes I still use oil stones.

Here is the back nearly finished. I ran out of steam at this stage, but there isn't too far to go.

Next - the handle.

I found a piece of osage orange that will suit.

It is hard and dense and finishes nicely.

Osage orange is native to the United States and it grows as an exotic on the northern tablelands of NSW.

A good friend gave me a couple of pieces.

It turns easily and finishes well off the turning chisel.

The existing ferule can be re-used and has been nicely made, with a tapered end to lead onto the handle.

Certainly a huge improvement over the poor battered original.

It will also take a mallet without splitting so promises to be practical as well as beautiful.

The finished chisel will earn its keep and look good in the tool chest.