15 Minute Project

I know, I know.  I usually post about the projects I do with hand tools from my tiny shop.

Well, I needed a split nut driver for some saw handles.  There are a couple commercial ones out there - Lie Nielsen and Gramercy come to mind - but I didn't want to wait for shipping and my local Dictum store doesn't carry one.

So, I decided to make one.  I saw on the internet that someone else had made one from an old 1/2" spade bit.  It turned out beautiful, and didn't look too hard.

So, on my way home from work the other night, I stopped in the Army woodshop on my post and came up with this in the 15 minutes I had available to me.

My 15 minute wonder.

How did I make this in 15 minutes with hand tools, you ask?

I didn't.

I ground the tip off of a 12mm spade bit with an electric grinder, shaped the tip on the small belt sander attached to said grinder (until it fit the split nut that I had), ground the notch with a dremel tool, chopped a bit of scrap maple to length with the electric chop saw, drilled the hole in the handle with a drill press, inserted the bit with a friction fit, and shaped the handle freehand with the monster belt sander.

Then I hopped in the car and drove home.

All I did by hand in my shop was my latest favorite finish:  burnish with a polissoir, dunk in the boiled linseed oil, wait a day and follow with a coat of Dick wax.

Now I can get on with some hand-tool work.