Czeck Edge — Sandal Woods

October 15, 2009 By Al Navas

The Czeck Edge tools on display at Woodworking in America at Valley Forge

Layout tools are critical in the shop, as they make it possible to mark a work piece accurately and clearly. And this is the sole reason for the existence of Czeck Edge Hand Tool.

Bob Zajicek, Owner of Czeck Edge, sold out his new dovetail chisels at Valley Forge, as he had only a limited number from the first production run. Notice the nice taper, which will allow the chisel to get into tight spaces, such as when paring, to get perfect joint fit:

Please read this earlier article I wrote about the pre-production version of this chisel after the Woodworking in America conference in St Charles, Ill., and Bob’s comments about it.

Update: I just received word from Bob that he is expecting the next batch of blades in three sizes, 3/16″, 1/4″ and 5/16″. Be sure to contact Bob through his web site, to add your name to the waiting list for the new chisels.

How about some eye candy? The Czeck Edge marking knives, awls, and burnishers – and barely seen on the left of this photo, Andrew Lunn, saw maker extraordinaire, who was immediately to the left of the Czeck Edge display position:

The awl display is colorful and warm, both for the beautiful woods used, as well as the workmanship:

The burnishers, too, just about sold out. I own one, and it will probably be the last I ever need — the popular brand burnisher I bought many years ago went out in the trash some time earlier this year:

Do yourself a favor, and try out one of the Czeck Edge tools; you will be glad you did. And, in the interest of full disclosure, Czeck Edge is one of the sponsors of this blog. I use Bob’s tools in my shop, and can recommend them without reservation!

August 21, 2009 By Al Navas

Eye candy at the WIA Marketplace

Christopher Schwarz, Editor of Popular Woodworking and Woodworking magazines, has written at least two reviews of the Czeck Edge Hand Tool layout tools. His most recent review, on the marking knives and bird cage awls, appeared in the August 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking.

The Czeck Edge (Bob Zajicek, Owner) display at Woodworking in America in St Charles, Ill., was colorful, and inviting. Bob “Zee” got help from Benchcrafted on the tool displays. Father John Abraham (Jameel Abraham’s brother) designed the marking knife holder, Bob designed the rest, and Jameel made them all; of course, Bob made all the tools:

I bought one of these burnishers during the Lie-Nielsen event in Cincinnati – there is no going back to less than the quality of this tool:

The display of marking knives:

The following is the arrangement of the bird cage awls:

Bob Zajicek stayed busy (Bob is on the right in the photo below):

As I have mentioned several times before, the quality of today’s tools is terrific. And, as others have pointed out correctly, the popularity of hand tools seems to be on the increase primarily due to the quality, pricing, and appeal of the new tools appearing almost every day.

Maybe The Schwarz has put it best (from the review I quoted above):

If you’re ready to put your Boy Scout knife away, the Czeck Edge tools will make it easier to scribe fine lines, and let you do it with class.

I would add only the following: My scrapers thank me, too, for I can now burnish their edges beautifully!

March 20, 2009 By Al Navas

The Pattern Pilot marking knife in the shop

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Edit, to add the following new links related to the Pattern Pilot:

The Pilot Kit Knife Marking Knife class that Bob will be conducting at WoodworkersZone.com (a new woodworking forum, with emphasis on mentoring/tutoring, and woodworking education), and
A link to the Pattern Pilot kits now available from Czeck Edge.

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Earlier this year I posted an image as a footer to a blog post, announcing the Pattern Pilot from Czeck Edge Hand Tool (Bob Zajicek is the Owner). What I did not state then was that Bob sent me my own Pilot, for use in the shop. I have been putting it through the paces, doing real work on real work pieces.

The bottom line: The Pattern Pilot is great.

Here is the Pattern Pilot upon arrival:

And I have been putting through its paces. Here I am marking an offset for a table leg:

Every now and then I take a break, and so does the Pattern Pilot – but I use it for just about all my layouts:

The Pattern Pilot has a beefy blade; whether right- or left-handed, you can use the Pattern Pilot just as easily. The double bevel on the blade ends in a very sharp point, and it cuts beautifully – with zero tearout. Layout lines are crisp, thin, and visible, even in darker woods such as walnut. To help my aging eyes I tried a little chalk at the intersection of two lines; the result has to be seen to appreciate it: The thin lines fill beautifully; as a result, the work piece can be positioned extremely accurately in jigs such as the Leigh FMT:

I like the marking knives and other layout tools from Czeck Edge – they are terrific! In fact, the following shows my growing collection of Czeck Edge layout tools:

Disclosure: You may have noticed I have a Czeck Edge banner on the right-hand Sidebar of the blog. Bob is one of my blog sponsors. We spent time together at the Woodworking in America hand tool conference in Berea, in November 2008, talking tools, blogs, friends, beer, etc.

Just yesterday I learned that Czeck Edge offers the Pattern Pilot in kit form! I was reading Jameel Abraham’s Khalaf Oud Luthiery blog. I had missed this altogether! With apologies to Czeck Edge – sorry, Bob! NOW the rest of the world should know it.

World, hurry and place your orders for these wonderful marking knives. Just click on the Czeck Edge banner on the Sidebar, to go to Bob’s Zajicek’s web site. Or click on the image below: