# Hand made Beading tool (scratch stock).



## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

I've been looking at Veritas' beading tools but didn't want to drop the coin on one. I looked online and through my magazines at what others have done and decided on a marking gauge type design. I had an old warranted superior saw that was basically shot but the blade is old spring steel from the 30's or 40's. I cut out one blade and am going to cut out several more once I get a metal blade for my bandsaw. I used a hacksaw for the first one and that steel ate up my hacksaw blade. I had to file the crap out of it to get it even remotely square. I need to refine the profile a bit. The wood is Walnut and Spalted maple. I used a wipe on oil/varnish for the finish which is still drying. I'll give it a go and post pics with it's results later after work.


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## Brink (Nov 22, 2010)

Beautiful, I like it. I saw that in a mag, too. Keep meaning to build one, myself. The one I was looking at used a hacksaw blade, seemed to have the correct width.

The brass, especially the inlay looks sharp.

Nice thing with a scratch stock, you can go from either direction if the grain is giving you problems. A 45/55 plane can only go one direction.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Very cool, nice work. I like it. Sawblades are a PITA to cut.










 







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## Billy De (Jul 19, 2009)

ACP first class man brass inlay work can test the patience of a saint, top notch on all of it :thumbsup:.


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## Longknife (Oct 25, 2010)

Nice! Very good job on the brass inlays.

If you are careful, so the steel doesn't overheat, you can use an angle grinder to cut sawblades.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Man, ACP, well done done! I need one. Thanks for adding one more thing I have to build, lol

It's beautiful!... How's it work? Smooth results?

~tom "Ignorance is not a lack of intelligence - it's a lack of know-how"


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## joesbucketorust (Dec 13, 2011)

Nice, shopmade tools are always cool. I wish I had enough spalted/figured wood to use on tools/jigs. :smile: If someone is looking to make one but doesn't have the time/skill/material to make their own cutters then I'd suggest the Lee Valley replacement set of 8 - $23 and you've got most of the regular shapes. I got mine last year when I found a Stanley #66 with no cutters and am quite pleased. They also sell blanks for cheap, but if you're going to grind your own then you might as well track down your own cheap metal stock too.


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## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

Great Job I have a wall of them and shaper knives my Father made and gave me. Custom Profiles from Dad that no one can match. YES THUMBSUP

Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Thanks guys. Yeah, the saw metal is hard to cut, I ended up using my tin snips and cutting a piece out. I am going to have to dig out my grinder I think. I'll let you know how she works tonight. I had to let the finish dry on it overnight. The brass work went well, this is my second attempt actually, the first one was not so good. I had to play with several different locking mechanisms to get it working. The metal circle in the side is a cross dowel like used in knockdown furniture. It had a big brass screw that was supposed to lead through it, but when I cut the screw to length I must have screwed the threads up and it would not go in. I was able to get it out though and then run another, smaller brass machine screw through it. It feeds through a knurled knob on the top which is epoxy'd in place. It locks tight but I really need to order some brass thumb screws and a tap to do it right. I'll give it hell tonight and let you know if this Mk1 Mod1 beader is a go or no go. I have a good feeling though.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Nother question... How's the iron secured?

~tom "Ignorance is not a lack of intelligence - it's a lack of know-how"


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

I used my Ryoba to cut a thin kerf. I then used a screw and nut combo I got at Ace. I don't now what it is called. They have a post that almost looks like a rivet. It's the smooth faced rivet you see on the bar by the cutter. The post of the "rivet" is threaded inside to a matching brass screw which is slotted. They combine to 5/8" when screwed all the way in. I countersunk them to a depth when combined that's greater than 5/8". When they screw together they pinch the wood on each side of the blade securing it. Sorry I don't know what they are called. I will try to find the right name.


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## Billy De (Jul 19, 2009)

ACP would it be a pan head rivit


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## Murphy's Law (Dec 15, 2011)

You're probably talking about a sex bolt.


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Ok, so I've never used one of these before, but the results were not half bad. It certainly followed the profile I made in the red oak piece I used. I can see being very careful making the profile will be of the utmost importance. I think I'll have some fun using this in future projects. Thanks for the kind words everyone!


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## Eric13 (Jan 15, 2012)

Wow very nice one ACP! Do you scratch right from a flat surface, or is this a finishing type of tool used after another? I really like the brass with the dark coloured wood.


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## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

ACP said:


> Ok, so I've never used one of these before, but the results were not half bad. It certainly followed the profile I made in the red oak piece I used. I can see being very careful making the profile will be of the utmost importance. I think I'll have some fun using this in future projects. Thanks for the kind words everyone!


Looks like it does a nice Job. I remember my Dad using one that he gave me to put a Profile on the curved arms of a settee that he built. Sometimes a scratch is one of your only options. Great Thread

Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Wow, and oak don't play nice with scratch blocks and moulding planes! Looks like it works great! Nice job. :thumbsup:

~tom "Ignorance is not a lack of intelligence - it's a lack of know-how"


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Eric13 said:


> Wow very nice one ACP! Do you scratch right from a flat surface, or is this a finishing type of tool used after another? I really like the brass with the dark coloured wood.


This was done off a flat surface. An edge to be exact, I was just playing with it. The oak was pretty straight grained. The videos and articles I read advised how to sharpen the profile and it worked like a charm. File the cutting edge perpendicular to the face of the blade and then hone it on it's side faces. I did this up to 2500 on sandpaper. It was an old saw blade so it did go mirror finish, but it did work well and the shaving it wa pulling off the oak made my scraper blush. I would I learned that when I use this tool on a project I am going to back up the edges of the profile with a block of wood on each side. There isn't blow out but when I got near the edge I think I got shy cause the profile in the middle was deeper and crisper than at the edge. I was hesitating because of the sudden drop off at the end of the board. Working it carefully inward from each edge helped, but I think a backer board would be easier. I also find it's kinda like a plow plane. Start at the end and carefully establish a shallow cut and as it gets deeper then apply pressure and it'll follow the profile groove easily. 

I can tell already that I should have run the brass strip on the arm closer to the edge so I can bring the profile closer to the fence. I can reach deep into a board, but for closer edge profiles I need to lock it down on the bare wood of the arm. That's ok, this is a learning process for me, so I am not too upset. :icon_smile:

Thanks for the attaboys fellas. This was a fun project and a good chance to use some smaller scraps of nice wood.


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## Jim West Pa (Jul 27, 2010)

Now that is jist as sweet as all git out ACP.:thumbsup:
I need a tool to duplicate some trim and molding in my 1830 house and aint got the $'s fer a #45. You've inspired me indeed.:yes:

Have you tried usin a cutoff wheel on the old saw blade ?

MMmmm....so that's spalted maple huh?
I didn't know that and i can't tell ya how much o' that i've been feedin my home fires with this winter :blink:


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Did a lil looking. At $23 for a complete set plus a blank from Lee Valley it's a no brainer for me. I'll build the rest. 

Thanks for bringing this up to the top, I had honestly forgotten about scratch blocks and they're use and I really could have used one several times in the last 2+ yrs.

Man I love this forum! :thumbsup:

~tom "Ignorance is not a lack of intelligence - it's a lack of know-how"


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## Jim West Pa (Jul 27, 2010)

firemedic said:


> Did a lil looking. At $23 for a complete set plus a blank from Lee Valley it's a no brainer for me. I'll build the rest.
> 
> Thanks for bringing this up to the top, I had honestly forgotten about scratch blocks and they're use and I really could have used one several times in the last 2+ yrs.
> 
> ...


Tom, are the period profiles or modern day ?


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Jim West Pa said:


> Tom, are the period profiles or modern day ?


Jim I really couldn't say. Here's the link:

http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=32679&cat=1,230,41182

Depending on just how old the profile you are matching is though I wouldn't plan on anything new being a match... If it was originally done by hand you have to assume it was either shop made or one of the dozen variations on the market at the time. Probably not a problem though if you are not splicing old and new. Is it for that old door the FD tore up? :laughing:

~tom "Ignorance is not a lack of intelligence - it's a lack of know-how"


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## Jim West Pa (Jul 27, 2010)

Thanx Tom. I'll check it out. 
The profile is used many different times throughout the house so i'm 'sposin' it was possibly a #45 .
I went and bot a router bit from WWS that claimed they were "period" profiles jist for my application but nooooooooo..wrong even !!!
As a matter of fact, yes i am splicin old and new together.
You know them firemen,they can be brutal when it comes to a fellas
door jambs/frames.Especialy my 180 y/o front door :laughing:


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Lee Valley sells profiles and blanks. Their beader come with something like one profile and 5 blanks. If you cut a profile in each side it gives you 12 options. I didn't want to order their blanks until I knew I had successfully made it. I have a whole saw blade I can cut up now and I will probably try a cut off wheel or just use my grinder to smooth things out. If you go to the Veritas Beader under planes, scroll down to the price lisst and click the link by it titled Instr. At the bottom of it you'll see it has instructions on sharpening and shaping. It should be really easy to match the molding though if you trace the shape of the molding onto the blank and file it to the line. I love the options available with this thing.


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## Jim West Pa (Jul 27, 2010)

ACP said:


> Lee Valley sells profiles and blanks. Their beader come with something like one profile and 5 blanks. If you cut a profile in each side it gives you 12 options. I didn't want to order their blanks until I knew I had successfully made it. I have a whole saw blade I can cut up now and I will probably try a cut off wheel or just use my grinder to smooth things out. If you go to the Veritas Beader under planes, scroll down to the price lisst and click the link by it titled Instr. At the bottom of it you'll see it has instructions on sharpening and shaping. It should be really easy to match the molding though if you trace the shape of the molding onto the blank and file it to the line. I love the options available with this thing.


Thanx ACP. Yep, i see that in Toms' link he posted.
But $56.00 jist for the tool ?!?!?!:huh: :no:
I know what yer sayin and yes i was plannin on havin to make a mock up to fir the existin profile and then use that as a pattern to make the needed cutter.
Thanx for the heads up on the instructions article.I missed that. I'll go back and check it out.


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## joesbucketorust (Dec 13, 2011)

Jim West Pa said:


> Thanx Tom. I'll check it out.
> The profile is used many different times throughout the house so i'm 'sposin' it was possibly a #45 .


Probably not. There's a list around somewhere of common period profiles. They're numbered. Even 150 years ago it was a common stock item and you could ask for 500' of ### in a certain size or wood and some apprentice would start planing down rough stock for you. 

The #45 wasn't really a production tool. It might have been used by a wood-dorker who wanted to make up a few more feet to replace some profile he already had, but if he was making a houseful he'd be looking at a power tool or a complex molding plane. And also, the 45 didn't exist in 1830. 

If you post a profile pic of your molding, maybe we can help you track down the right tool/cutter for the job.


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## JBSmall (Jul 6, 2012)

*sawblade stock for scratch-beaders*

My first post.... on a topic I am familiar-with.
As far as busting-up an old sawblade to make scrapers and scratch-stocks goes, try using a cold-chisel on an anvil...scoring a line and breaking it that way.
Also, I have put the sawblade in my vise and broke it with a hammer pounding sideways.
Just be careful...it is hardened steel and can fly!


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Welcome to WWT and thanks for the tip. I just came upon some old saw plates and I'll give it a try.


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## Globba (Mar 27, 2012)

This is my first post also. Wish I saw this thread a few months ago before I bought the Veritas beading tool. But I have to say that I love working with it. It is very easy to adjust and it is very well made. Nice job on the beading tool you made ACP.


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## JBSmall (Jul 6, 2012)

Scratch-beaders are great! 
I have always designed pieces and 'worried' about how to make them later, rather than be a slave to router-bits and molding-planes.
Scratch-beading allows for flexibility in molding-design and especially miniature, detailed moldings.
I am sure that the Veritas tool is a joy to use.


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