Chisels and their types; axes
Carpentry chisels, by job, are paring, mortise (cutting) and gouge chisels. Paring chisels are thin: with them bevels are made on board edges, holes and sockets widened and thin boards cut through. Cutting holes in thick, hard wood is done with mortise chisels, which are thick. A chisel is sharpened on one side: a paring chisel’s sharpening angle is 18–35°, a mortise chisel’s about 25–35°. The handle is made of tough wood such as maple, beech, elm or walnut, with a metal ring on the end. When chiselling, a backing board is placed under the item so the bench is not damaged. An axe is used to split, chop and hew wood; hewing is taking shavings off wood, chopping is striking across the fibres. Never keep a hand in front of the chisel edge: the holding hand must not be in the direction the blade travels. Children do not work with an axe at school; that is done only by adults, in the open.
Chisel model: the pupil draws a chisel and its sharpening angle on paper (drawing a 25° angle with a protractor). Real chisels and axes are shown only in the teacher’s hands.