Delacour Piano Guillotine

The blade is made from a cabinet scraper, ground and polished at the bottom to razor sharpness. The blade slides in two upright supports in walnut, braced across the back with the same walnut. These are provided with sailcloth hinges that screw into the base and can be raised or lowered to bring the fulcrum exactly level with the top surface of the cutting bed, which may be of various suitable materials such as wood, polyurethane etc.

The frame can be fixed at any angle to the vertical and an adjustable guide rail is provided on the base to guide the work at a certain horizontal angle.

A spring is fitted to the cross-member acting in a groove under the blade handle to raise the blade after the cut has been made in order to allow the piece to be removed more easily.

The blade can be sharpened on a flat water stone, the handle serving to keep the blade at the proper angle on the stone. The final edge can be produced either with a razor strop or using a buffing wheel.