How to choose an adze: Other Considerations
How to choose an adze: Other considerations
The first thing you need to consider when looking to buy an adze is what type of adze you need. Over the years the development in adze technology has led to a range of different adzes being created for their own specific purposes.
When looking at the product description of the adze then you will normally see what type of adze the tool is. Examples of different types of adze include carpenters adze, bowl makers adze and mask carvers adze to name a few.
By looking for this information you will find out what the manufacturer intended the adze to be used for. You should always try and pick an adze model that is built for the task you need it to do!
Saying this, some adzes may be suitable for a slightly different job. For example, a mask-carver’s adze could be used equally well to carve a small bowl.
Materials and Coatings
The second thing that you need to consider is what the adze is manufactured from. Traditional adzes have a wooden handle with a metal head, although much newer version are made from a variety of different materials. Some adzes are all metal and are built to be robust and powerful. Whilst other adzes are built with rubber handles to absorb the shock upon impact.
When looking at what adze to buy you should definitely look at what materials are used to manufacture the adze to make sure it is the right tool for you.
Other Information and Features
The product description may provide you with other useful information such as the angle between the handle and the blade edge. An angle between 45° and 60° is optimal.
Any less than 45° and it becomes easy to miss the wood with your adze swing. Any more than 60° and there’s an increased risk of your adze becoming stuck in the wood! It may also indicate that the blade is drooped (curved downwards).
