I just took a weekend class with Peter Ross on making Compass hinge and dividers. It is an investment I recommend. First Peter is an exceptional blacksmith and what you think you know he will give you a new way to look at it. The others that attended the class made it warm and friendly. Great other smiths some on this site. Nice to put a face with the name. The process is a lot of fun and a challenge to all I have a little more filing to do but I am pleased with how they came out and look forward to practicing the skills I learned. No matter how much you think you know to be in the forge with a smith of Peters caliber will set a new level for you to strive for.

I just saw Peter do this demo at the CBA Oktoberfest a couple of weeks ago. took a lot of notes and photos but haven't gotten around to
trying out the divider project just yet. You look like you're off to a good start. Peter said he'd only done this particular joint/divider 35 or 40 times, and asked the questioner ('how many of these HAVE you made?') if he would feel better if he (Peter) had made 300 of them?

Popular Woodworking's most recent issue has a spread on him and his pre industrial methods as well.

Great smith to take a class from.

I was using a set of dividers to lay out feet on a trivet lately. Very handy for some jobs and a lot easier to work on hot surfaces than a measuring tape.

Been wanting to take that class myself. Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Your dividers look great! Here's a pair I made. They are not even in the same class as yours or Peter's but I find them to be quite useful. They are special to me because they are forged from two large square cut nails that a friend gave me. They came from the now defunct Wheeling LaBelle nail factory in Wheeling, West Virginia.

Peter Ross did a great demo at Octoberfest. You can learn alot from him

wolf those are nice. they will get the job done. Peter class focused on making the compass hinge it is a great process. I am working on a set from old wrought iron from a building here

wolf those are nice. they will get the job done. Peter class focused on making the compass hinge it is a great process. I am working on a set from old wrought iron from a building here

Thanks. I really like forging things from steel with a "history". One of the cool things about blacksmithing, I think. bart

As soon as i saw the thread title Peter Ross name came to mind instantly..His hand tools are some of the finest Ive ever seen, bar none beautiful..

had a few extra minutes in the shop today so I made the curved dividers

Wolf,
Do the dividers you made just have the flat of one leg of the divider held by a rivet against the flat of the other divider ?
As an FYI, the dividers Peter makes have two flats on one leg and a single flat on the opposite leg that fits between the two flats or leaves. Very cool design and a challenging forging project. There is a lot on the internet re Peter's dividers which are beautiful.

Chichi the ones I made hare a 3 leaf compass hinge Peter is a great blacksmith.

had a few extra minutes in the shop today so I made the curved dividers

Dividers? Are they not calipers ?

Actually the hinge area of both legs are set down half the thickness of the legs. This keeps both legs in the same plane when riveted together. I have used basically the same joint to make nut crackers. I want to try Peter Ross style dividers.

John B in the book "the Victorian catalog of tools for trades and crafts" they refer to them as dividers, compass and calipers all on the same page.

I think the name deals more with how you use them then what they are. Many trades have different names for the same tool. I made a pair of dividers after a quick look at some of those that came back from that class and some small conversations with smiths that were there. Here is my first pair. Hopefully the next pair will be more complicated with the wing and a thumb screw. Latine got me thinking about that with his pair that he brought to our guild conference last september.

Stephen,
Your dividers are beautiful. You know your way around a file. What size stock did you use on this pair.?
I have made the 5 leaf style with the wing and thumb screw but it was not as fancy as yours above.Tom Latane is equally inspiring as Peter Ross.

Thank you chichi. Some file work and a lot of chisel work with engraving chisels I made. I think it might have been 1/2 inch square to begin with? I would have to check in the garage. They are about 5 1/2 inches long. I have not gotten the chance to take a class from Peter Ross but I have heard good things. Taken at least one from Tom Latane.

John B in the book "the Victorian catalog of tools for trades and crafts" they refer to them as dividers, compass and calipers all on the same page.

Thanks for that Francis,

Stephen great set of dividers nice file and chisel work.

Thanks Francis.

As part of the class going to Peter Ross's and learning how to make a three leaf compass hinge I had to write a class on the process and publish in the monthly news letter. Then demo it to the local chapter. these are the dividers I made during the demo
making a compass hinge page 3 with photo.pdf

making a compass hinge pages 1 and 20001.pdf