Mallet preference
#11
What's your preferred type of mallet for cutting dovetails?
Thanks in advance
Mark
Reply
#12
I vastly prefer a "carvers style mallet"

I tend to use one of the green head polyurethane mallets. I have two of those; 20oz and 12oz for different sized dovetails.

I also have a 5 lb stainless steel carvers mallet that I wrapped in leather and I will use that from time to time.

I like a heavier mallet as I can take lighter taps and get more control without a big swing.
Peter

My "day job"
Reply
#13
I like a round head vs a flat faced mallet. I always reach for my 16 ounce Blue Spruce. Lovely weight and feel in hand!
Reply
#14
interesting Peter, I asked because I've seen some videos using the smaller brass mallets. I'm just getting back into hand cuts, after a long hiatus, because of painful disability in my hands. I'm switching to Japanese style saw because western grip hurts too much. I use the type mallet you described now and thought maybe a shorter handle could increase my control. Your opinion is appreciate. At this point I am primarily a box maker.

mark
Reply
#15
It's the length of the stroke that gives control more than the mass of the mallet. Short stroke with the 20 oz will move more wood than the lesser mass.

I make my own out of hornbeam, and the weight's about the same in any 4.5" diameter, but the longer (lever) handle is the way I get more power.
Better to follow the leader than the pack. Less to step in.
Reply
#16
conestoga woodworks?

Link?
Reply
#17
+1 I've tried a urethane coated mallet and didn't like it. To me, it just reduces feedback. They are supposedly designed to transfer more of the energy to the chisel, but in reality a lot of that energy just goes to compress the urethane vs. transferred to the chisel. I will use a square mallet for heavy duty chopping like for mortises, but lately, I've pretty much gone to a tailed tool for making loose tenon mortises.

tirebob said:


I like a round head vs a flat faced mallet. I always reach for my 16 ounce Blue Spruce. Lovely weight and feel in hand!


Still Learning,

Allan Hill
Reply
#18
I like the 20 ounce Stanley "soft face" hammer.

Anything heavier, and I start mis-hitting.

Anything lighter, and the chisel wanders.

I don't like metal hammers on my chisels.

I find the larger the face, the more likely I'll strike off center.
Reply
#19
Well, I prefer a steel gennou for Japanese hooped chisels. That offers the most feedback and feel ...



The round carvers mallets are totally wrong, in my opinion. I have the Blue Spruce version, and it is beautiful, just wonderful ... but wrong for bench chisels ... for me. Smaller heads offer more directed downforce in a smaller area. This translates to efficient use of force.

My second mallet is a wooden face/leather face modification of the LV Cabinetmakers mallet. Also excellent feedback with a solid wack. Good weight. Used on non-hooped chisels ...



And if I need to keep the noise down, I use an 18oz Thor ..



Regards from Perth

Derek
Articles on furniture building, shop made tools and tool reviews at www.inthewoodshop.com
Reply
#20
Since I've taken to sawing out the dovetail waste with a coping saw, I've almost stopped using a mallet altogether. I just pare with hand pressure. If I need a mallet, I just grab whatever happens to be at hand.
Steve S.
------------------------------------------------------
Tradition cannot be inherited, and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour.
- T. S. Eliot

Tutorials and Build-Alongs at The Literary Workshop
Reply


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 2 Guest(s)

Product Recommendations

Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.