There's even another way to make a box. It's not quite as precise,
but it's a lot faster and works well if done properly. Mark the
lines with a scriber, as all have said here. Then use a small,
sharp cold chisel and stamp carefully and evenly along each line.
OK, well, if you’re going to go into quick alternative methods…
you can lay the scribed line against the edge of a steel block and
tap from the other side with a hammer, making a right-angle groove
much like the above method, with perhaps a little less likelihood of
straying from a straight line. It does kinda beat up the outside of
the metal, so the time you saved goes into sanding out hammer marks.
Personally, I like a separating disc then a file.
Noel
I have the Groovy Tool set and find it easy to use. You draw a line
where you want the groove and then clamp the metal down in the brake
part, look to make sure the tooth in the bit is all lined up with
your line and then groove it. Mine is 3 years old and it looks like
there have been a few changes. The tooth is adjustable so that you
can change the depth according to the thickness of the metal.
Donna in VA
I have read the interesting ideas re box scoring and edge forming. I
have contacted Beth and sent her a drawing of a scoring tool which is
used by craftsmen box and framemakers over here in the UK. This
scoring tool was one of the first tools I had to make myself when I
became a goldsmithing apprentice some 46 years ago. I made this draw
scorer from a length of quarter inch square silver steel, the end is
heated to red hot and bent to shape, when cool it is ground to shape
and then re heated, quenched when red hot, then tempered to a light
straw colour. the same temper as I do my gravers. Finally the
cutting edge is sharpened on an oilstone. The finished tool resembles
a large bent graver and is drawn or pulled towards you across the
metal, to achieve a 90 degree scored line, which is perfect for box
or picture frame making. I have included a sketch of this tool as an
attachment, I just hope that Hanuman copies the attachment and makes
it available to anyone who wants to view it. My appologies if he does
not add the file containing my sketch of this tool to the Ganoksin
website. If it is not added and anyone wants to see this tool just
email me and I will send you the sketch direct.
Peace to all James Miller
I have redrawn the scorer sketch to show more detail.
I have used this tool successfully for over forty years now. I was
taught to cut the scored line to a depth when it was faintly visible
on the reverse side of the metal being scored, this was the perfect
depth for a clean crisp bend.
I have been told that the term silver steel is only used in the UK,
it is a term for a steel that can be hardened and tempered.
If you cannot obtain silver steel try using an old file.The tangs of
old files can be heated,bent and ground to make a scorer, grind it
roughly to the shape of my design, then re hardened and temper the
cutting point to a straw colour. I have made some scorer variants
this way, I vary the cutting point angles for different scoring
purposes such as a 60 degree point for hexagonal boxes, I see that
Richard Whitehouse mentioned this method of making a scorer from a
file tang on a previous orchid digest.
Regards James Miller
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I have been told that the term silver steel is only used in the UK,
it is a term for a steel that can be hardened and tempered.
Here in the States we call that Tool Steel. Personally I like
http://www.onlinemetals.com for small quantities of all sorts of
metals, but there are others…
