Tools to start with

[Toucan13]

Hi there

In September I'll be starting on a small boatbuilding course where I'll be building myself a nice clinker pram dinghy. As a new entrant to the world of wooden boat building and with a birthday in the offing, what would forum members recommend as a good 'ask' in terms of tools that might be useful and might be suitable to ask for as a birthday present?

Thanks in advance
DT

 

[ValleyForge]

A good question Toucan, & best wishes for the course.

My choice would be a good plane, so vital for shaping & finishing individual pieces & for giving the final finish to edges, coamings etc.

 

[JesseLoynes]

Hi, good luck with the course, I did something similar up at Lowestoft a few years ago now, great fun.

The people running the course should be able to furnish you with a list of necessary, useful and ideal tools to have. Notice there are three different categories there.

I'd agree with Valleyforge, an nice plane is always good. To start with a good No.4, and it's definitely worth getting a good block plane. Others you'll find as you go along, but those are the two to start you.

The rule of thumb is to spend money on anything with a cutting edge. Blunt instruments like screwdrivers and hammers do differ, but it's really only about comfort. As much as I'd love to use a £40 Estwing hammer, a £7.99 Stanley one does the job perfectly well.

However, when it comes to planes, chisels, saws etc, price makes a big impact. The quality of the metal, it's ability to retain an edge once sharp etc is important if you don't want to go mad. Blunt edges just ruin things. It's horrible.

I've got a decents set of Marples chisels that I have for standard work, and then I'm collecting secondhand chisels of more specific shapes etc. New chisels are quite expensive - I'd generally reckon £18 and up each for reasonable quality, - so finding s/hand "Sorby"s or similar at a fiver each is a good alternative.

Depending on where you are, I'm sure someone here will know a good tool store where you can get decent quality stuff, with good advice.


Oh, I've just re-read your post. If you are doing clinker work, you really need a good rebate plane with a fence for the planking among other things. If you can find a "Clifton" one, grab it, they are a thing of beauty, and well worth the money.

I'd say for clinker dinghy work, your order of importance is block plane and rebate plane, chisels, No.4 plane, tenon saw, comfortable mallet, then the rest.

Good sharpening stones are worth investment too. Whether you go for oilstones, waterstones or diamond types are down to personal preference. Again, find a good local shop where you'll get reliable advice. And try more questions here if you need specific help.

All the best, enjoy it. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

P.S. All this is my personal point of view and experience, and may well be denounced as hogwash by the next poster, but there you go. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[burgundyben]

They say when buying houses its location, location, location.

With wood working tools its sharp, sharp, sharp.

A good block plane with a low blade angle is very useful.

Not denounced as hogwash.

 

[Toucan13]

Thanks for the comments so far. Certainly given me some food for thought. Next question then is where to buy from. I live in Wivenhoe (Essex) and am doing the course at the Nottage Institute which is a great place if you don't know it. Well worth a visit.

Anyone know of good suppliers around Essex, or alternatively good suppliers/ makes of tools that sell on the web?

Thanks

DT

 

[SwedishLass]

You can never have enough clamps..... seriously! There are enough people around who have built the Nottage dinghy over the years. Many are WSC members ask around. Echo (not that post) the comments made about chisels and planes. Good saws and a bench hook will also save a lot of anguish. The balance and feel of the blunt instruments, especially the mallet will save a lot of blisters.
In keeping with the usual url try Geoff's woodwork .

 

[srp]

Absolutely agree with all these posts - a good No 4 plane and something to sharpen it with. If you want to economise go for a secondhand Record or Stanley (the old ones are better than the ones sold new nowadays). If you've got more money, then a Clifton or a Lie Nielsen would be a dream come true.
For hand sharpening, I personally favour Japanese waterstones and a honing guide with a full-width roller. Again, with plenty of money you could go for a Tormek whetstone grinder - I can honestly say I have never regretted spending the money on this, absolutely invaluable and produces an edge so sharp its unbelievable.
Axminster for new tools. Be careful buying secondhand - car boot dealers often polish and grind tools up to make them look nice, but ruin them in the process.

 

[roly_voya]

I would start with the basics - A good tool box, you will possibly make one as an 'aprentice piece' but untill then you need one. For pressies you could ask for measuring instruments, square, ruler, profile gauge, pencils are all cheap enough for kids garannies etc and the sort of thing people can get without going to specialists. Then concentrate on 'personal tools' like chisels, plane etc which the college will probably supply good enough ones to start with anyway.

 

[nmiller]

Hi
You will need the lightest ball pein hammer you can find for clenching up over the rooves if you are building trad rather than gluing the lands, I found a lovely Spanish made one that had a long slender head instead of a short dumpy one. I would recommend a Japanese pull saw, ideal for cutting off the plank ends at the transoms. Try to find a Tilgear catalog, they are an excellent source of tools.

 

[tyga]

An "angle gauge" (I think that is the right term) is even more useful than a carpenter's square since there are very few right-angles on a boat. It is the best tool I know for transfering angles from one piece to another. Since it does not have to be made so accurately you can buy a cheapo. Mine has a plastic handle and came from the "all one price odds and sods tray" at my favourite hardware shop in Hong Kong - it cost the equivalent of 50 pence.
It looks like a carpenter"s square with a slotted handle in which the blade pivots and can be locked at any angle by a butterfly nut.
BTW if you buy a square I recommend buying an all steel engineer's square rather than the traditional wood handled carpenter's square.

 

[tyga]

I also recommend getting your own set of wood drill bits. Get advice from the people running the course as to the best pattern. My personal favourite for must jobs is an auger bit with a central screw point.
Buy the best quality and find someone you can trust to sharpen them.
I agree with SRP's recommendation of Axminster, I have always had first class service from them.

 

[andrewbodenham]

Without sharpening stones any edge tools are useless. I'm converted to Japanese waterstones - the standard of my work took a great leap forward when I ditched my old oilstone.
Japanese saws are also a revelation - Axminster have a good range.
A lightweight cordless drill will be a good investment. I have a 14v Makita which is excellent.
And I wouldn't be without my Yankee screwdriver. I rarely use the pump action, but the long length makes for easy driving and the interchangeable bits means less kit in the toolbox.

 

[srp]

[ QUOTE ]
An "angle gauge" (I think that is the right term)

[/ QUOTE ]
Sliding bevel gauge. I've never actually seen a real one, but have seen a picture of a boat-builders sliding bevel, which is double ended - it's used to set both angles on the compound bevel you need to mark on, for instance, the end of a stringer where it meets the stem. I've always meant to make one but haven't got round to it.
Agree with the engineers square - a little 2" one fits in your pocket and is invaluable.

 

[jhughes]

Rather than buying a traditional carpenter or engineers square why not get a Nobex folding square Axminster Power Tools . Incredibly accurate and stays so even if dropped, folds up in your pocket or toolbox and locks automatically at preset angles. I bought the small and large version years ago and they have both done me proud.
Also if you are building in Clinker a small rebate plane is invaluable as other posters have said, make sure you get one with screw adjustment for the blade and not the kind where you have to tap the end of the blade.
Steel 6" and 12" rules, flat carpenters pencils, profile guage and loads and loads of clamps!

 

[Keith 66]

Good tools are money never wasted, Axminster do an excellent range and dont forget to look in junk shops boot fairs etc, for chisels, if the handle is split if the blade is quality its worth restoring, look out for Matheson's of glasgow or old Sorby ones.
Saws are another story i like the old Diston of philadelpia saws but confess since buying a vaughan bear saw (pull saw) a few years ago they are now relegated to wall decorations!