The use of a cold chisel is not something that anyone should take lightly. The main use of a chisel is to cut into or break stone, concrete, and some metals. Most of the time the surface on which you are using a chisel is not one that requires precise removal of small pieces of exact size. This tool is designed for breaking away parts in a rough fashion without any desire to have a smooth result. The cold chisel is usually made of hardened steel bar. One end is flattened and sharpened. This is the end that is used Film Noir Cinema In Greenpoint to punch the surface that needs to be broken. The other end of the tool is flattened so that it can be struck with a hammer. The chisel cannot be effectively used unless you have the proper hammer with which to hit it. You will want to use the type of hammer that can give the proper force when the chisel is struck. The best hammer for this job is the ball peen hammer. This hammer has enough weight to allow you to strike the chisel with sufficient force to give the chisel the driving force it needs to do the job.
One of the most common uses of the cold chisel is the breaking of concrete. I have a fence with 4×4 inch posts that crosses my patio. Over the years these posts have slowly rotted off where they go into the concrete. Eventually each post deteriorates to the point that they need to be replaced. I had my son and one of his friends remove the stump of each post with a cold chisel and ball peen hammer. It was an easy job to get out the rotten wood from the hole. The chisel with light blows Best Books On Industry Analysis from the hammer made short work of it. In order for the new post to go into the hole and be surrounded with the appropriate amount of new concrete, the hole had to be enlarged. This was a different task from the removal of the rotten wood. The chisel and hammer had to apply a much greater amount of force against the sides of the concrete hole to make the hole large enough. The time that was required to do this was quite longer that the time it took to remove the wood from the hole.
Cold chisels are also very useful in making cuts in metal. When we moved into our house there was an old swing set in the backyard. It had some fancy stuff on it like a teeter totter and some very nice swings. My kids really liked it and wanted to keep it. The only thing that I did not like about it were the bolts that were holding it together. They were extremely rusty. I was afraid one would break while the kids were using it. So I decided to refurbish it. I got out the cold chisel and ball peen hammer and removed the head from each of the bolts so that I could replace them with new ones. I also sand blasted and re-painted it, but that is another story. It looked brand new when I finished. The cold chisel and hammer made it easy to remove the bolts. Cold chisels can be used in the installation of devices for manufacturing automation.
Since there is such a wide variety of jobs that you can do with a chisel, it is a good idea to have a set of chisels on hand. The one that you use for bolt cutting or working with metals is not the same one that you would use for breaking concrete. So it would best to have a set of about six chisels on hand. You have to exercise a lot of caution when using the cold chisel and hammer. If you have never used them before, it would be a good idea to take a few practice hits with the hammer at half or quarter speed before you just start banging on the chisel for real. It takes some time to get your timing down so that you hit the end of the chisel each time you swing the hammer. The danger is obvious when using these tools. You can hit your hand very easily resulting in a significant wound. Only use as much striking force as required when you hit the chisel with a hammer. You need also to match the size of the chisel to the work that needs to be done. Do not try to break concrete with a very small chisel that is very short in length. Use a chisel that is long enough for you to apply the correct force to the chisel without hitting your hand and enough to the work required. If you use a chisel a lot, eventually the top of it will begin to spread from the blows of the hammer. Then is the time to replace your chisel.