Woodworker's Journal 2010-34-2, страница 12
Stumpers Woodcutter's Wedge Woodworkers wedge in a few answers to our recent mystery tool. Questions & Answers continued What's This? Jim Eslinger's mystery tool (and case, below) comes from the Lionel Company and has two dials that count to 100. Do you know what he has in Bismarck, North Dakota? Send your answer to stumpers@woodworkersjournal.com for a chance to win a prize! "What's THIS?" echoed John Stinchfield of Phillips, Maine, in response lo our mystery tool from December 2009. "It is a wood cutter's wedge for felling trees with a buck saw so the blade will not bind in the tree." In fact, when Dur Seible of Durham, Connecticut, purchased the pair of east-iron items, "The seller claimed they were wedges used when sawing a sizable log." Dur wasn't quite sure about that — but other readers' responses mostly confirmed it, with a few clarifications. I.loyd Selienk of Abrams, Wisconsin, explained that die woodcutter would "Start cutting the tree, and as you cut about halfway through or so, you drive the wedge in the cut to make the tree go the way you want it lo fall." "There are two of them," said Keith Stofjdon of Bellflower, California, "because originally there was a piece of chain connecting the two wedges." According to Russell Ellis of Springfield, Massachusetts, "The example you show is a boll pattern or Eastern style. Smaller wedges were used by high toppers." Some readers did have Winner! Russell Ellis, Jr of Springfield, Massachusetts, wins a DELTA 13" Portable Thickness Planer. We toss all the Stumpers letters into a hat to select a winner. interesting alternative uses. Bob Laflerty of Richmond, Kentucky, thought "it was used as a lime squeezer in bars to mix drinks." More likely was Griffin N. Reynolds of I-enoxville, Pennsylvania's thought: "This tool looks like a 'pitch.' They were used to locate and split seams of flagstone [in quarries]. Several would be used along the edge until the seam opened up and the flagstone was lifted." And a fascinating alternative came from John Humoiil of Franklin, Wisconsin, who said, "The wedge was used to break the cope (top half) from the drag (bottom hall) of large molds" in a foundry. According to John, whose grandfather's foundry closed in 1965, the cope only needed to be lifted half an inch, and the wedges would be made from tile metal poured by ihe foundry. "They would not be for sale, bill might bear an asset number. Several wedges would be used at the same time, to lift a large cope." —Joanna Werch Takes Ql have been turning small objects on my lathe and have been using a combination of cellulose sanding sealer, which dries almost instantly, friction polish and camauba wax stick with good success. However, the labels on these products do not indicate what is in them. What ingredients are in cellulose sanding sealer and friction polish? Can they be made or purchased from the large home center stores, or can 1 make my own? Thomas Plackowski Houghton Lake, Ml A In all likelihood, the cellulose sealer is actually nitrocellulose sanding sealer, which is basically nitrocellulose lacquer mixed with zinc stearate to add body. You can buy nitrocellulose lacquer sanding sealer at most any home store or industrial coatings supplier, along with lacquer thinner for thinning and cleanup. Friction polish is almost always a mixture of shellac and wax. These are usually not sold at home stores or paint stores. You could mix your own, but it's a bit tricky, since not all waxes will mix readily with shellac, and it is best done with professional paint mixing equipment, which 1 am guessing you do not own. — Michael Dresdner Contact us by writing to "Q&A," Woodworker's Journal, 4365 Willow Drive, Medina, MN 55340, by faxing us at (763) 478-8396 or by emailing us at: QandA@woodworkersjournal.com Please include your home address, phone number and email address (if you have one) with your question. 14 April 2010 Woodworkers Jourruil |
