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Mallet handle - photobug - 10-03-2021
I am going to build my first woodworking mallet. The video I am emulating has a fairly straight handle and no lead or BBs in the head of the mallet. I would like to taper the handle and possibly add weight to the head.
I am looking for suggestions on how to create a subtle arc to the middle of the handle.
The head will be roughly 2.5 x 4" made of Paduak and Walnut. How important would it be to add some BBs or lead in the head?
RE: Mallet handle - iclark - 10-04-2021
Posting the link to that video that you are using for guidance would help us understand what style of mallet you are trying to make.
Assuming this is your first mallet, I would suggest making it without trying to add any weight. There will be enough opportunities to learn without adding the extra challenge(s).
Assuming that you are making a cabinet-maker's mallet, the traditional ways of shaping the handle would be shaping with a bandsaw, scroll saw, or coping saw followed by scraping and/or sanding. Alternatively, some people like to carve their handles and some like using rasps after the saw.
RE: Mallet handle - AHill - 10-04-2021
Best choice is a lathe. You could also use a spokeshave. Clamp one end in a vise and go to town. Another choice is to take one end, chuck it into your hand drill or drill press, and use coarse grit sandpaper to shape to the desired taper.
RE: Mallet handle - photobug - 10-04-2021
(10-04-2021, 12:00 AM)iclark Wrote: Posting the link to that video that you are using for guidance would help us understand what style of mallet you are trying to make.
I am basically following this video.
Although this is my first mallet. It appear fairly easy and way within my skill set including adding the weight.
This vid is basic and the handle in it has no taper at all. I would guess without much weight it is not really needed. But I like the idea of some taper or shape.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLWycj2o1Xk
RE: Mallet handle - photobug - 10-04-2021
I watched this video and got the idea for extra weight. I won't be heating my own lead but could easily drill a hole with a forsner bit and add BBs and some epoxy to keep the BBs from rattling. When making the handle he had some nice curves that looked symetrical. It seems like a good place to start with a symetrical cut out then shape from there. I have rasps and spoke shaves but not much experience using them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P24ieuYDSI0
RE: Mallet handle - photobug - 10-04-2021
The last video I got inspiration from is this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnFKpXsXbc&t=742s
He just takes a flap disk on an angle grinder and free hands a shape. I would hate to get that far and over grind the handle. Also he is a retired NFL lineman. I would assume he is not only bigger but much stronger than I am.
So my plan is to follow video one, for the head. Add some BBs. Then create shoulders below the tenon and then taper the handle somehow.
The tenon cutting wedge insertion and handle shaping are all first time efforts for me.
RE: Mallet handle - FrankAtl - 10-04-2021
photobug Wrote:The last video I got inspiration from is this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnFKpXsXbc&t=742s
He just takes a flap disk on an angle grinder and free hands a shape. I would hate to get that far and over grind the handle. Also he is a retired NFL lineman. I would assume he is not only bigger but much stronger than I am.
So my plan is to follow video one, for the head. Add some BBs. Then create shoulders below the tenon and then taper the handle somehow.
The tenon cutting wedge insertion and handle shaping are all first time efforts for me.
I like John Malecki but had no idea he was a former NFL lineman. I'll have to check out his info.
I like the mallet in the first video the best, but both are nice. It's probably easy enough to make a test handle and sort out the process. If it goes well, use it for the real one.
RE: Mallet handle - photobug - 10-04-2021
(10-04-2021, 12:16 PM)FrankAtl Wrote: I like John Malecki but had no idea he was a former NFL lineman. I'll have to check out his info.
I like the mallet in the first video the best, but both are nice. It's probably easy enough to make a test handle and sort out the process. If it goes well, use it for the real one.
I had never heard of him before searching for a mallet video. At the beginning of the video he said "Yinz". As a child of two Pittsburgh natives I knew what Yinz meant so looked him up. I am now a fan also.
RE: Mallet handle - FrankAtl - 10-05-2021
Well I just learned something y'all!
RE: Mallet handle - iclark - 10-05-2021
If I remember correctly, one of my co-workers got bismuth pellets from a gun supply business for his son's science project. The bismuth pellets are for loading one's own shotgun shells. The smaller beads work better than B-Bs for making a dead blow hammer or mallet.
The problem with using cast-in-place for weight (the molten lead like in the video or B-Bs in epoxy) is that they always make the weight of the mallet head off center.