The stone dressing toolkit
The core hand tools for dressing stone, what each one does, and how the set fits together in a working sequence.
Dressing stone by hand takes a small set of tools, and each one does a different job. A point knocks off the waste, a claw chisel evens the face, a tooth chisel refines it, and a bolster and pitching tool handle lines and thicker layers. The set is worth learning as a whole, because each tool prepares the surface for the next.
The main tools
- Point
- A steel tool with a pointed working end, struck with a hammer to break the stone into small pieces. It leaves a pitted surface that is rough but quick to make.
- Claw chisel
- A chisel whose working end has a row of short teeth, called claws. It leaves a fine ridged texture and brings a rough face closer to flat.
- Tooth chisel
- A chisel with finer teeth than a claw chisel. It removes the ridges a claw leaves and gives a smoother, more even face.
- Bolster
- A heavy chisel with a broad, wide edge. It is set on a line and used to score the stone or to take off a thick layer, struck with care.
- Pitching tool
- A broad blade set along a marked line and struck to remove the waste from the edge of a block.
What the hammer adds
The hammer matters as much as the chisel. A heavier steel hammer goes with the point, the bolster and the pitching tool, and a lighter hammer suits the claw and tooth work. Strike with the head square to the end of the tool. A glancing blow skids off the chisel and can throw a chip toward the hand or the face.
A set to start with
- A point chisel
- A claw chisel
- A tooth chisel
- A bolster
- A heavy hammer and a lighter one
- A straightedge for checking faces
- Eye protection and gloves with a firm grip
How the set fits together
The tools are used in a sequence, not at random. The point comes first to take the bulk off, the claw levels the face and the tooth finishes it. The bolster and pitching tool work on lines and edges at any stage. The full order is set out in roughing out a block, and the signs of a finished face are covered in reading the dressed surface.
Start with few tools. A small set used well teaches more than a rack of tools used at random. Keep each edge sharp, since a dull tool glides instead of biting and tires the hand. Choosing a point is its own question, and choosing a point chisel goes through the checks in order.