Category: Crucible Tool

The first batch of our new dividers are in the store and ready to ship. They are $110 plus domestic shipping.

These dividers are a top-to-bottom redesign of the tool. Lots has changed. They still work great, but they are built with a different aesthetic. Instead of being polished a near-perfect finish, these dividers are finished minimally off the mill. They are matte gray and there are small tool marks in evidence of how they were made. Our goal was to have the tool resemble what you would get from Stanley (or other top-line makers) in the early 20th century – not a custom tool.

But boy do they work well.

A special thanks here to mechanical designer Josh Cook and machinist/mad scientist Craig Jackson for figuring out how to make these just like we intended, and at an affordable price (for a small-batch U.S. manufacturer).

If we sell out, don’t despair, we’re making a lot more.

— Christopher Schwarz

With any luck, our first batch of Crucible Dividers (Type 2) will go up for sale in our store in the coming week for $110 plus domestic shipping.

The dividers are made from an alloy steel (about 28-30 on the Rockwell C scale in hardness). All the components are made in the United States – Kentucky and Tennessee. And the dividers are hand-assembled here in the Bluegrass State. You can adjust the friction on the dividers with a No. 8 screwdriver. This allows you to loosen them for gross adjustments, increase the friction so you can adjust them one-handed, and lock them – hard – in place.

During the last six months, we posted snapshots of these dividers on Instagram as we developed the tool. We received a lot of questions. Here are some of the good ones, with our answers.

Q: How are these dividers different from your Improved Pattern Dividers, which you no longer sell?

A: The Improved Pattern Dividers required a lot of handwork to construct and tune. And we never got the price/profitiability working for us. The Type 2 dividers have the same basic silhouette as the previous model, but they were redesigned from the ground up. Our goal was to make dividers that are attractive, fully functional and affordable. As with everything we make, we insisted they be made in the USA. And we wanted to be able to make a lot of them so they aren’t fetishized.

Q. Surely you had to cut corners to make them $110 (a $75 reduction in price).

A: To be honest, yes. The earlier design was hand finished on a precision belt grinder. They were shiny. The new dividers are finished with a different process that does not require handwork and leaves a gray, matte surface. They are not as flashy and look more like a workaday tool. 

Q: So they are uglier?

A: We don’t think so. It’s just a slightly different aesthetic. The fit of the parts on these new dividers is excellent out of the mill. We completely redesigned the hinge to use a standard driver. Our goal was to have the dividers look like what you would get from Stanley (or the other top-line makers) in the early 20th century – the heyday. Not a custom tool. There are small milling marks on our dividers that show how they were made. Nothing is mirror polished. But boy, do they work well.

Q: Are they stainless steel?

A; No. They are made from alloy steel. They come oiled and in a plastic VCI bag to resist corrosion. When you put them away in your tool chest, we recommend you first wipe them down with an oily rag to prevent rust.

Q: Do I need to sharpen them?

A: The dividers come sharp – sharp enough for general woodwork. If they every become dull, you can rub the tips on some #220-grit sandpaper to refresh the points.

Q: Are you going to make an attachment that will convert the dividers into a compass?

A: That is not our plan. We like to have our tools do one thing and do it well.

Q: Are you going to make other sizes of dividers?

A: A second size is in the works. I can’t say more than that at this point.

Q: Why is the packaging so basic? Wouldn’t it be better to ship them in a custom box?

A: With every item we make, our goal is to use the least amount of packaging. Instead of spending $5 to $7 on packaging that will induce breathless “unboxing videos,” we’d rather keep the price low and put all the money into making the tool. It doesn’t matter if you are left-wing, right-wing or chicken-wing, making elaborate boxes that will be thrown away is wasteful. Plus, we have no interest in feeding the collector market and its creepy affection for original packaging. 

Q: Will your retailers worldwide carry these?

A: Not at first. We need to make a lot of them to recoup our investment in these tools, and to figure out how to make them efficiently. After we can make them reliably, we hope to sell them elsewhere. 

If you aren’t sure if you like them, we’ll have some on display at our Aug. 7 Open Day (10 a.m to 5 p.m.) at the storefront in Covington, Ky. Come try them out. 

— Christopher Schwarz

We began production of our Type 2 Dividers this week, and we hope to begin selling them in June or July.

As long-time customers know, we struggled to produce the first version of these dividers. They were beautiful. They functioned very well. But they were difficult to manufacture in great volume. While we were charging $185 per pair, we probably should have charged $285 or more because of all the hand-fitting and hand-polishing. 

So we took the dividers out of production and have been tinkering with them for some time.

OK, so the next part of this story is what you don’t ever get to read when it comes to tool production. Many toolmakers are loath to credit the designers and machinists who figure out the nitty-gritty stuff. I want to give them their due.

Last year, we began working with Josh Cook, a mechanical designer and woodworker who was really interested in our original dividers. He sent me a pair that he’d made based on photos from our website. And we went from there.

Enter machinist Craig Jackson of Machine Time. You might know Craig as the creator of the EasyWood turning tools, which I love. After the EasyWood business was sold to another party and things went south, Craig went back to high-tolerance part production. But he loves making woodworking tools. So he took pity on me and now works with Crucible on some of our tools.

Together the three of us worked through a bunch of variables to come up with a design for these dividers that is:

1. Functionally perfect from the user’s point of view
2. Easy to make with minimal setups on the mill
3. Relatively inexpensive

The Crucible Type 2 dividers are new from the ground up. I can promise you that they have the same feel in the hand – like a heavy and smooth stone you found on a riverbank. Ever since we finished the first pre-production versions, I have kept a pair at arm’s length.

The hinge is completely redesigned and astonishingly smooth in use. While the pointy legs of the dividers are the most visible aspect of the tool, the hinge might be the most difficult part to design and manufacture. After I-don’t-know-how-many iterations, the current hinge is (here’s a technical term) sweet. Its tension is adjusted with a No. 8 screwdriver – something every woodworker has. You can set the dividers to move stiffly and hold a setting. Or you can lock them down to rabidly maintain the position of the points.

We also wanted to make these as affordable as possible while still making them functionally and aesthetically great. And make them in the U.S. with U.S. materials. The goal was a $100 retail – a little less than you would pay for a Starrett compass.

On Tuesday, Craig called me to let me know that they were cranking out legs for the dividers. In a few weeks, hinges will begin production at another shop. If we have any luck, assembly will begin in June and we will start selling them shortly after.

Thank you for all your patience. It won’t be long now.

— Christopher Schwarz

P.S. I know that some of you are asking: Where is Raney Nelson in this? We parted ways amicably more than two years ago. Raney has evolved the design for the dividers to match his aesthetic. We have promoted his version many times on our blog this year and fully support his efforts at Daed Toolworks. If you are looking for ill will or grudges, you won’t find them here.

The Crucible Bench Square is a handy, lightweight and accurate tool that’s useful for many woodworking operations. Based on an 18th-century square in A.J. Roubo’s book, “l’Art du menuisier,” our version uses modern technology to ensure it is accurate and stays that way.

The square is $28 and is available in our store. 

The Bench Square is great for checking a board’s edge when planing joints for a panel glue-up. The tool’s square end is nice for marking crosscuts (with a pencil or knife). And the built-in angles can be used to check sawn miters for accuracy and even set the tilt of your table saw’s blade. Like Roubo, I keep one hanging right under my benchtop so it’s always handy.

The originals were made from one piece of walnut, so they were fragile and tended to go out of square because of wood movement. Our version has a blade that is made from 1/4” Baltic birch that is laser cut so it’s dead-nuts accurate, immune to wood movement and has no short grain. Then it is joined to a maple stock that is machined for a perfect fit. 

After assembly, the Bench Square is trued up on machinery to ensure the 45° and 90° are perfect enough for woodworking. The tool is supplied without a finish, like most wooden bench tools.

And because we know it’s a handy tool, we’ve added a hang hole so you can keep it close under your workbench. The square measures 4-1/2” x 9” and weighs less than 3 oz.

Yes, you absolutely could make this square for yourself. And if that’s your inclination, please go right ahead. In fact, here are the dimensions on the blade of the square. The handle (also called the “stock”) is 3/4” x 1” x 5” maple with a 1/4” x 1/2” groove plowed on one edge. 

But if you want yours to be perfect (for woodworking) right from the start, our square is a good value. As always, all our tools are made in the U.S.A.

— Christopher Schwarz

P.S. As always, we hope to supply these squares to our retailers outside of the USA that carry Crucible Tools. We are still ramping up production. After we get it up to full speed, we’ll be able to send these to retailers. Thanks for your patience.

We supply a metal wedge with every Crucible Lump Hammer in case the head ever comes loose because of heavy use or extremely dry conditions. 

I’ve rewedged dozens of hammers, sledges and axes since my days on our Arkansas farm. But some of our customers have some trepidation about the process. This morning I noticed the head of my personal hammer was loose after four years of use. So I asked Megan to record the process.

Clamp the handle in handscrews and place the hammer over a leg of your workbench. Position the wedge perpendicular to the hammer’s existing wooden wedge. Drive the metal wedge in with a sledge or heavy hammer. It will take heavy blows. The hickory might crack a bit. That’s OK. 

Sink the wedge as much as you can. If you want to preserve the patina of your hammer, stop here. If you want to tidy things up, file the wedge flush to the wood. To get the surface finish back to the same sheen as the factory, sand the head with #220-grit paper. Then finish the head with a grey 3M woven pad and some wax.

After you see how easy it is, you’ll want to wedge all your other tools. And the neighborhood bully.

— Christopher Schwarz

P.S. If you need steel wedges, go to any half-decent family hardware store. Wedges usually cost 30 cents.