Today, let's talk about adze, another common tool of carpentry. Maybe many people who play small-scale woodworking DIY don't know, because this tool is only used by "big Carpenter".
We need to know that in the past there were two main types of carpentry: one was the big carpenter, also known as the external carpenter, who mainly engaged in housing construction. Because its processing is basically large-scale wood, so called big carpenter. Another kind is joiner, mainly engaged in furniture production, also known as interior carpenter. Because the materials it processes are relatively small and require more care, it is called a joiner.
We say that adze is mainly used by large carpenters for the initial processing of large parts such as beams and purlins. For example, we cut round wood into squares and curved wood into straight ones. The adze handle used by the big carpenter is relatively long, about one meter long, with heavy weight. It needs to be used by both hands. There is also a small adze, which is used by one hand, with slightly lower efficiency, but is convenient and flexible.
The main structure of adze is composed of adze head, adze body and adze handle. The galloping head is made of wrought iron, and steel is laid under the blade. The front is thin and wide, which is the main part of processing wood. The back is thick and narrow and has one eye for mounting the body. The body is a 300 mm round wood, slightly curved, with both ends cocked up. The lower part of the front part is connected with a tenon and a long eye in the middle is used to install the handle. To prevent the body from cracking, three iron hoops are used to hoop it. The handle is about one meter long, the lower section is rectangular, connected with the body, the upper section is oval, and the end is often made into a backward bending shape, so as to facilitate hand holding.
Adze's operation method: some woodworking tools are divided into left-handed and right-handed tools, such as axes. Left-handed people can't use right-handed axes, while adze is different, left-handed and left-handed are all in line. If you see someone using any hand one day, you will make adze. Don't think it's surprising, because it's normal. There are two ways to use adze.
Take right-handed as an example [left-handed is opposite], the right foot is in front, the toe is slightly raised, the left foot is in the back, the right hand is in the middle and upper part, the left hand is in the end, and the right hand in the middle and upper part plays an important role in lifting and falling. If the right hand falls slower, the strength of adze will be smaller. If the right hand falls faster, the strength of adze will be smaller and larger. In addition, where the child fell, the right hand has the final say. The movement track of the right hand to complete an action is: the middle part of the body - the front upper part of the body - the middle part of the body. The left hand, along with the right hand movement also follows the small movement. The left hand controls the depth of wood processed by adze. When adze reaches the wood, the left hand is lower, and the left hand is higher.
Adze's landing point is under the right foot. The toe is raised slightly to prevent it from reaching the foot. As long as adze falls to the foot, it will not hurt the foot, which is a safer method. The worker's posture on the right side of the following two pictures is for reference. Because the processed wood is soft, it does not need to be strong, and the distance between the two feet is relatively close. If the processed wood is hard, it needs to be strong and the legs should be split to ensure the body balance.
There is a little difference between this method and the one shown in the figure above. The difference lies in the different placement of adze. Adze's landing point is in front of the back foot. This method is not safe, but it is also used by many people and is suitable for softer wood. The processed wood is relatively soft and does not need to be strong, and the distance between legs is relatively close. There are two ways to prevent this. One is to control the force so that adze can stop before it reaches the ground. Second, step back, so that adze's journey is not in the position of the foot.
Another method is that people stand beside the wood to be processed. It's easier to change hands left and right, and it's safer for them. However, if the force is too large, sometimes adze is easy to fly out. There are two ways to prevent it. One is to hold it tightly. The other is to keep adze away from people.
Adze's actual use: the wood to be processed is lined with ink. If you need to fall too much, first cut the place where you need to fall into several sections, each section is more than 10 cm long. If the wood texture is not smooth, you can cut it shorter. The distance below is 3-5 cm from the ink line. If necessary, you can cut it directly with adze, and pay attention not to cross the line. Then we can use adze to process according to the line. There are the following points to pay attention to: when processing two ends, try to process them from the inside to the two ends, which is more accurate. If it is a wide surface, always check the flatness to prevent the middle depression. Clear away the sawdust on the processing surface in time. In case of hanging on adze, adze will fly out and hurt people.
Of course, for many woodworking enthusiasts, it is actually the "joiner" mentioned above. They like some woodworking works of DIY. None of the above tools are needed, but it's OK to learn more about this field.
