methods of cutting these holes was to use a device variously known as an ice spud or ice chisel. Many chisel variations exist, including jagged teeth, skewed edges, and different grind angles and chisel widths. Early ice spuds (before about 1925) often had wooden handles and a steel chisel fixed with a tang and collar or socket, similar to a carpenter's chisel. Ice spuds are still carried by many ice fishermen as a means to test ice thickness and safety; a single forceful thrust of the ice spud will often penetrate unsafe ice. Lining bar A lining bar is used to shift the alignment of railroad tracks, to manipulate some types of railroad track jacks, to "nip up" or lift ties and rails, and as a digging tool. Lining bars have a tapered form. They often have a square cross section between one and 1-1/2 inches at one end. They may have a pyramidal, wedge, or pinch point. They transition to a tapered round cross section 12 to 18 inches from the point. The handle end may terminate in a ball or may be cut off squarely at 5/8 to 3/4 inch diameter. They are made of forged steel and may be from five to six feet long. Lining bars may also be called jack bars, jack handles, or crowbars in North American railroad jargon. Spud bar A spud bar has a chisel at one end that is intended for removing material through a chipping or shaving action. In the British Isles these typically have a narrow, unsharpened chisel point at one end and a point at the other end, with diameters up to about . Some have plastic grips on the shaft and some have wider chisel ends, or "rakes", for specific jobs such as removing old shingles and tar paper. References Mechanical hand tools