Forging a Woodworking Holdfast

[Niels Provos]

I made these for a woodworking friend and decided to capture the process in video - @Alan Longmire gets a shoutout, too 

 

 

[Joshua States]

I saw this on your channel earlier. These are also great tools to use at the anvil with a pritchel hole. They hold a piece down so you can use two hand tools on it.

[Niels Provos]

Completely agreed @Joshua States - I was surprised how easy and quick they are to make. I was considering making a few more for my own use.

[John Page]

Good stuff! I've used these with the anvil too and in the right circumstances do a decent job if you don't have someone else to hold/strike for you.

[billyO]

9 hours ago, John Page said:

I've used these with the anvil too...

I'll add for future reference that getting the size of the bend right is more important for use with an anvil compared to wood bench. When using on an anvil, you need some spring in the arm to allow the holdfast to wedge against the pritchel hole, whereas when using on a wood bench, the holes and softness of the wood bench is what wedges them tight moreso than the spring of the arm.

[Niels Provos]

On 5/1/2022 at 7:15 AM, billyO said:

I'll add for future reference that getting the size of the bend right is more important for use with an anvil compared to wood bench. When using on an anvil, you need some spring in the arm to allow the holdfast to wedge against the pritchel hole, whereas when using on a wood bench, the holes and softness of the wood bench is what wedges them tight moreso than the spring of the arm.

 

You are completely right ;-)

 

I did not try these on an anvil and the angle may be too steep. I managed to break one in the pritchel hole though. I had accidentally hardened it.