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Unknown tool

john lucas

john lucas

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Before I moved I was doing some task repeatedly and decided it was time to make a tool to make it more efficient. So I made the tool. Now almost a year later I have no earthly idea why I made it. Anyone have any guesses. I do have dovetail jaws and thought it might be for doing rebates but then why would I make the grinds on the right hand side.


unknown scraper.jpg
 
Looking at it as pictured I would use that tool to undercut a mortise or tenon to accept the dovetail profile of the jaws. As shown, the lower edge seems to be honed for cutting. The upper edge appears to be simply cut away so the tool isn't too wide at the business end.
One might also use it successfully as a shallow parting tool or for making a groove, with the square notch serving as a depth marker, but I don't think that's it.
 
Last edited:
Looks like a drilling bit for ornamental turning
 
john lucas said:
Before I moved I was doing some task repeatedly and decided it was time to make a tool to make it more efficient. So I made the tool. Now almost a year later I have no earthly idea why I made it. Anyone have any guesses. I do have dovetail jaws and thought it might be for doing rebates but then why would I make the grinds on the right hand side.

View attachment 30502
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I'm glad to hear I'm not the only with tools that I have no clue what they are for!
 
Maybe it has two purposes, one for the grind on the left, and a related step for the grind on the right. What those purposes are eludes me.
 
I'm pretty sure it's got something to do with fitting 2 parts together since I ground the right side to the same angle. I do make a mating dovetail tenon and mortise for my split turned sconce shelves. I'll have to look at one and see if that's it.
 
Any chance it's designed to cut a groove/recess in a specific project? It seems at the wrong angle for peppermills, but maybe something similar.
 
I dont do pepper mills. Its driving me crazy. One of these days ill.probably be building one of my older products and figure out why I made it.
 
So here's a thought, why not chuck up a scrap cylinder and see what kind of cuts it will make? Maybe using it will jog your memory, but at least you'll see what it can do for you now, even if you can't figure out what it did for you then.
 
john lucas said:
I'm pretty sure it's got something to do with fitting 2 parts together since I ground the right side to the same angle. I do make a mating dovetail tenon and mortise for my split turned sconce shelves. I'll have to look at one and see if that's it.
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A While back I made some split turned letter holders with a finial type bottom piece that I fitted together with a straight mortise and tenon, then I fiddled with pocket screws from the back to hold them together,. I don't know if that is what you made the tool for but it seams like an excellent way to fit the two pieces together, so if you don't mind I will try that method.
 
Maybe to make a dovetail groove to hold an inlay like pewter.
Molten pewter can be cast in a dovetail groove. It doesn’t bond to the wood so the dovetail holds it in.
Inlace probably holds better in a dovetail groove.
 
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