Cocobolo Marking Gauge

I made this marking gauge for my brother-in-law. I’ve always liked the dragonfly form and I’ve been wanting to make a marking gauge, so thought why not make one in the form of a dragonfly.

I cut the cocobolo to size (as well as the dado for the blade arm) on my table saw. The slot in the blade arm was done with overlapping holes on my drill press then cleaned up with files. I cut the dragonfly shape using my brand new Knew Concepts coping saw (which I bought for this project, but hopefully will use for many more projects – I really like that saw!). It took me several hours to cut the shape out of the 7/8” thick cocobolo.

I used files to smooth out the marks left from the coping saw, then increasingly fine grits of sandpaper. Then used a Scotch-Brite pad which really put a nice sheen/polish on the cocobolo. I didn’t really put a finish on it; just a little paste-wax. This was the first time I’ve worked with cocobolo and was really pleased with how nicely it shaped with files and sandpaper.

I made the blade from a 9/16” spade drill bit. I cut the rough shape with a hack saw, used a file for final shaping, cut the hole with my drill press (actually four overlapping holes then cleaned up with a file), a diamond stone to shape the point and smooth all the edges, and water stones for final sharpening.

The knob was purchased from Bridge City Tools during their clearance sale.

I made a prototype out of plywood to make sure it felt ok in the hand. I’ve included pictures of the prototype, my rough sketches, and the final patterns (cut from manila folders).

-- "Inferior tools corrode the spirit." -- Lewis Allen