Chisel information wanted

[Adam Johan Bergren]

I bought a chisel at an antique mall a couple weeks back for $5. I was looking for a 1/2" mortise chisel, and I wasn't sure if this was exactly what I was looking for, but it did look like a mortise chisel of some sort, and was marked 5/8. The alternative is a new Hirsch 1/2" for ~$50, so I am hoping this will work.

It has Samuel Newbould 5/8 stamped on the side, and is tapered from side to side (gets thinner toward the top), and appears also to be slightly tapered from front to back.

Anyway, I was just generally wondering about this chisel, since it appears to be old, but well made. I've never had an antique tool (besides my Grandfathers block plane), and it is pretty cool! It does appear to be a mortise chisel of some kind to me (comparing to my Hirsch 1/4 and 3/8), and I hope to get some use out of it!

Please excuse my ignorance, I have not figured out the vast array of chisel types yet.

Thanks!!!

[Wayne Hendrix]

I am definitely no expert but a quick google search shows that Samuel Newbould and Co originated in the late 1700's and merged with another company in 1900, which I would think makes your chisel at least 100 years old, unless it is another company altogether or the second company, Sanderson Brothers and Co, continued to manufacture under the Samuel Newbould name.

[David Gendron]

It look like a mortising chisel... other than the handle, that IMO wont last long bitting on like we do to cut mortises... That said for 5 dollars, you can always make an other one!!

[Jim Koepke]

I have an old 3/8 Newbould mortise chisel. This one now has a new handle, but it also has a bolster and a ring to help prevent the splitting of the handle. I think from the looks of the two, yours may be of newer manufacture than mine.

Newbould Mortise Chisel.jpg

When you make a handle for yours, you may want to select a piece of wood that is a bit heftier than the average chisel handle.

For mortise work, a lot of force is transfered through the handle to the metal. Some will put a leather washer between the bolster and the wood to cushion the mallet blows.

The bolster on mine is piece of steel about 1/8 inch thick.

Here is the write up the seller listed with it:

The chisel has a cutting edge of 3/8" and is stamped NEWBOULD, a mark used by Samuel Newbould. He is listed as an "edgetool maker" on Sheffield Moor in the Directory of Sheffield for 1787. This example has two early features. The bolster where the blade enters the handle is not the integral, faceted one that is usual; instead, there is a disk that the blade passes through and a very heavy, hand forged ferrule behind it (see photo). The disk is like that on a Samurai sword. The other early feature is that the chisel has a steel edge welded to an iron backbone, much like early axes. The steel will hold an edge much longer than iron, but wrought iron is tougher and less brittle for the body of a tool. The line between the steel and iron can be seen along the edge of the NEWBOULD blade (see photo). The chisel is about 9½ inches in length. The length from the tip to the beginning of the exposed wood in the handle is about 7 inches.


jim

[Harlan Barnhart]

I think your new handle should extend down far enough to rest on the "shoulders" of the blade.