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Post by promhandicam on Nov 19, 2008 21:54:54 GMT
inspired by a recent article in Good Woodworking by Andy King and his post here, I decided to order a Gramercy dovetail saw kit. I found a piece of ebony that was about the right size - just needed shortening a bit . . .  and after a couple of evenings drilling, sawing (on Doms old startrite  , rasping, filing, sanding, bashing, oiling, waxing, ended up with this . . .   very pleased with my first attempt at making a saw handle. Doing it brought back happy memories of my first posting in Africa - a village called Bolobo in what is now the DR Congo. The village used to be renowned for it's ivory carvers but due to the ban on the sale of ivory, some of the old guys had switched to carving ebony. Sitting at my bench working on the handle brought the memories flooding back. Anyway, I just need to learn how to use it now ;D This will hopefully be resolved in a couple of weeks time on a trip that is planned down Salisbury way  Steve (Bolobo was also where I found my wife ;D) |
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Post by modernist on Nov 19, 2008 22:05:37 GMT
That is a beautiful job and interesting handle shape with that high top horn.
The ebony is unusual and a classy touch. How thick was the blank?
If I can make one constructive comment I think I would line up the screw nut slots.
A credit to you
Brian
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Post by jfc on Nov 19, 2008 22:06:19 GMT
Very nice but .............. Is that a huge stack of Iroko I see  PS . Wanna swap some Ebony for some wenge ? |
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Post by promhandicam on Nov 19, 2008 22:47:59 GMT
That is a beautiful job and interesting handle shape with that high top horn. The ebony is unusual and a classy touch. How thick was the blank? If I can make one constructive comment I think I would line up the screw nut slots. A credit to you Brian Thanks Brian. The blank / plank was 30mm thick - planned down to 22mm. The handle shape is taken from the template that Gramercy send with the kit. Steve |
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Post by promhandicam on Nov 19, 2008 22:55:30 GMT
Very nice but .............. Is that a huge stack of Iroko I see No, that's mahogany (khaya ivorensis) . . . . the iroko is in the 'sun room' (aka lean to) ;D Steve |
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Post by paulchapman on Nov 19, 2008 23:07:31 GMT
That's a fabulous job, Steve  Cheers Paul |
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Post by engineerone on Nov 20, 2008 0:00:57 GMT
nice one steve, it will be interesting to see how you find the handle in actual use. paul |
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Post by jonnyd on Nov 20, 2008 8:09:42 GMT
Hi the saw looks good and i am quite intersted in having a go myself. Did you order the kit from the states or can you buy it here.
jon
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Post by thebloke on Nov 20, 2008 9:48:35 GMT
This will hopefully be resolved in a couple of weeks time on a trip that is planned down Salisbury way Steve Steve - looking forward to having a look at the saw, everything will be ready for the weekend - Rob |
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Post by promhandicam on Nov 20, 2008 9:53:54 GMT
Hi the saw looks good and i am quite intersted in having a go myself. Did you order the kit from the states or can you buy it here. jon Hi Jon. I got mine from tools for working wood - including postage paid £53 and it took about 10 days to arrive. The price in sterling has gone up a lot in the last few months - wish I'd bought it when it was $2:£1  However I did have a result in that although there was a label on it from HMRC saying I had to pay about £10 customs charges the postie delivered it and I didn't pay anything. Ray Iles sell the complete saw for £89 - not sure if you can get the kit in the UK. Steve |
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Post by dom on Nov 20, 2008 10:10:56 GMT
That's lovely Steve, I'd be proud of that.
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Post by sainty on Nov 20, 2008 13:40:14 GMT
I like that Steve, I bet you couldn't wait to use it. If it was me it would probably have grubby paw marks all over it before I had a chance to finish it.
rgds
Stu
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Post by jonnyd on Nov 20, 2008 20:58:13 GMT
Thanks for the info steve. I'll pop down to ray isles and take a look as he is only 15mins down the road from me.
jon
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robo
Junior Member
Posts: 70
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Post by robo on Dec 13, 2008 22:55:53 GMT
Steve are you sure the wood is Ebony?
Rob showed us a piece, at the Wilton Bash, you had given to him but the consensus was that is was Blackwood?
Lovely handle and saw - I bought a D/T kit and the Carcase one the other week from Joel himself in Brooklyn - so no duties but the pound at $1.47!
Handles to be made from walnut.
R
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Post by paulchapman on Dec 14, 2008 15:31:48 GMT
Steve are you sure the wood is Ebony? Rob showed us a piece, at the Wilton Bash, you had given to him but the consensus was that is was Blackwood? I have a small piece of the wood as well, Rod, and I reckon it's Ebony. Haven't used it yet but should be able to tell for certain when I do - Ebony has a quite distinctive smell when you work it. Cheers Paul |
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Post by promhandicam on Dec 15, 2008 9:24:28 GMT
Steve are you sure the wood is Ebony? . . . . snip Hi Robo. Looking at pictures here I would be pretty sure that it is Ebony. Also the person I bought it from - a professional carver in Lomé, Togo - and those who dimensioned it told me it was Ebony. At the end of the day, until fairly recently no distinction was made between African Blackwood (mpingo) and Gaboon Ebony as they are so similar. Perhaps when Paul gets around to using his piece perhaps he can give us his opinion! Cheers, Steve |
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Post by paulchapman on Dec 15, 2008 10:13:16 GMT
The piece you gave me, Steve, seems very much the same as this piece  which I used when making a new handle for a walking stick  Still got some of that piece so I'll try to do some comparisons some time, but I'm sure it is Ebony. Cheers Paul |
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robo
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Post by robo on Dec 15, 2008 19:29:43 GMT
Paul & Steve - I stand corrected. Looking through my wood identification book (Terry Porter) my pieces of Blackwood look more like Ebony and vice versa. I suppose the only way is to check their Specific Gravities: African Ebony 1.03 (weight 1090kg/m2) African Blackwood 1.2 (weight 1200kg/m2) but that is taking it a bit far  Rod |
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Post by paulchapman on Dec 15, 2008 20:38:50 GMT
but that is taking it a bit far Yes ;D |
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, rasping, filing, sanding, bashing, oiling, waxing, ended up with this . . .
However I did have a result in that although there was a label on it from HMRC saying I had to pay about £10 customs charges the postie delivered it and I didn't pay anything. 
