Comments on: The Holdfast in Your Backyard

By: KMWoodAndSteel

KMWoodAndSteel — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 13:00:12 +0000

It works! Heres some pictures of the one I made: http://imgur.com/a/1XNwe

It’s a piece of Oak (Red, I think) fire wood from some trimmed branches. Of course some bugs got to it and there’s a tiny bit of spalting but even with all that, this thing really holds fast (sorry couldn’t help myself…). I’m using it only on my sawbench as I don’t yet have a proper bench that could use holdfasts. The holdfast is about 1 1/8th inch in diameter. I didn’t bother making it perfectly round though and it tapers a bit towards the end but neither seems to matter. I used a hatchet to chop a bit of wood off one side to bring the diameter down. It started about 2 inches wide.
It’s about 8 inches long and has around 2 1/2 inches of reach. It’s perfect for the sawbench. I’ve used it a bunch in the week since I made it and it hasn’t failed yet. I am thinking of filling the holes with some epoxy or something, though.
Thanks Christopher!

By: Pekingchuck

Pekingchuck — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 16:51:02 +0000

I would try this and may do so. Would like to see a pattern for the deadman, and hear suggestions for species of wood best suited for the barilette. I encounter alot of rhodendron trees where I hike in the mountains that seem to be stronger than other woods and may try that for the barilette. Of course the locust is a very hardy wood but tend to grow straight up with little to any forking.

By: GunnyGene

GunnyGene — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 20:56:01 +0000

I think it would be worthwhile to wrap the crotch area tightly with leather or strong twine to strengthen it. Especially if you plan to make one to fit a standard 3/4″ hole.

By: andrae

andrae — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 18:34:39 +0000

Reminds me of two tools Roy Underhill likes to point out.

One, a wooden jack plane where a replacement handle was fashioned from the crotch of a small tree, very similar to the illustrated holdfast but just a sawn portion of it.

Two, a cant hook where the mortise to accept the curved iron hook was chopped through a knot. The grain flows around the mortise on each side, maintaining the strength of the pole.

By: Barquester

Barquester — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 13:31:35 +0000

I’m sure he’s the school shop teacher with that tie. But isn’t sliding deadman a double oxymoron?

By: John Hutchinson

John Hutchinson — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 10:12:51 +0000

Thanks for sharing the illustration, Chris. I’m a baby-boomer sucker for those mid-20th-century gems. Deltagrams perfected the look. My favorite setup is a guy, in a tie, working over his lathe while his wife, wearing her Leave-it-To-Beaver house dress and pearls, looks on with admiration. That’s the way I run my shop. Right.

By: gehentogo

gehentogo — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 07:40:28 +0000

I’ll wait for you to try it. I am a bit reluctant to drill a 1 1/2″ hole in my bench just to see.

But, perhaps it would be awesome to use on a sliding deadman! I think I’ll try it.

By: jhaitch

jhaitch — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 01:25:40 +0000

Well, It couldn’t hurt. The relaxation of the dress code at work has led to a general demoralization of society in the last century.

And yes, I get the meaning of malapropism.

By: amvolk

amvolk — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 23:53:38 +0000

Hmmm… Do you have to wear a necktie to work with one of these?