Monday, September 23, 2024

Dot-Making Tool

 


I made this tool, used for making dots in a linocut, from a scrap of oak, a bamboo collar, and a 60mm nail. I don't know what its official name is; I just call it a dot maker.

The blade has a flat top, and a pair of angled facets underneath, creating a three-sided spear-point. Fortunately, the grinding doesn't have to be micron-exact, so I just did it by eye. I guess that if you were more worried about accuracy, it wouldn't be difficult to set up a grinding jig.

You just dig it into the surface of the lino and flick out a divot. There is a certain amount of control possible over the size of the resulting dot, but it's not an especially precise tool.

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