Thursday, August 2, 2012

First Through Mortise

Sheldon, my oldest son (7), is in the process of making some of his tools more accessible. He made his first through mortise to hold his float.


We won't get into how long this took him. He has a better strategy for his second.

4 comments:

  1. What pray tell is that metal tool called?

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  2. Well Done! What did he use to chop it out? I have not let my 7 yr old use a proper chisel yet. He has made one by sharpening a small screwdriver, and recently hammered out a nail then ground an edge to make a crude (but fully functional) chisel. Maybe it is time to give him one. He often works in the shop with me, although on his own projects.
    I'm curious what other parents do and allow in the shop. Both my kids have hammers and saws, spokeshaves and the older has a #3 Stanley and a brace and bits. Of course, safety is a concern, and I guide them as best I can. But of even more concern is my desire to provide a creative forum and the tools and materials with which to express themselves, or find themselves.
    Any thoughts?

    Looking forward to your book.
    Jason

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  3. Jason,
    The first sharp tool I let the kids use was a spoke shave. They won't get into trouble with one because it takes two hands. This quickly evolved into a block plane. When it came time to using things like chisels I started with carving gouges. I think that they're much easier for a child to control simply because the corners won't bite.

    The biggest challenge that we face is work holding. This is always the issue that leads to potentially bad situations. They still struggle with the best way and even being able to tighten the clamps to the proper degree.

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