Received a Garrett Wade Catalog yesterday and saw their sale on their chisels. Anyone have/use them? Would you rec. or unrec. them?
[OP]
Member
Received a Garrett Wade Catalog yesterday and saw their sale on their chisels. Anyone have/use them? Would you rec. or unrec. them?
Possumpoint
Member
They sell some different brands. The $70.00 (ish) chisels look like NAREX brand. These may be rebadged,and sold for much more than you can buy them for elsewhere. Narex chisels are an excellent buy. Google them,and you can get them cheaper elsewhere.
Member
What happened to Garrett Wade? Used to be a very cool catalog filled with high end and unique tools. Now half of it is gardening and another quarter is drill bits. Sorry to get off topic.
Guest
That seems to be the way things go when the market changes, especially for old-line mail order businesses who used to make their money by putting ads in the back of a magazine and offering a catalog and stuff that is harder to find locally.
Too many other mail order type businesses with no or lower overhead and no legacy, I'd guess, and I don't think people appreciate the whole loyalty to a retailer any longer. If you don't offer the low price on something, people will just google to find it elsewhere.
I used to go to mcfeely's almost exclusively for screws because you could get made in the US screws. Now, you have no idea where the screws will be made, and the back half of the catalog looks interchangable with anyone else's catalog, and you can find everything except the festool stuff cheaper elsewhere. It maybe doesn't make a difference where the screws are made, but I can get them cheaper elsewhere if I'm just buying import.
Last edited by David Weaver; 06-02-2010 at 10:49 AM.
Member
The ones made in Czech Republic are rebranded Narexes. I have about half a dozen of them and they're excellent chisels, no complaints at all. Nice handles, too. If they're putting other ones on sale I have no idea.
Member
Brookstone once sold mostly woodworking tools.
I could cry for the time I've wasted, but thats a waste of time and tears.
Member
Brookstone and Garrett Wade both went yuppy. I have a tap and die set I bought from Brookstone in 1970. My Swiss made workbench at my old job was Garrett Wade,but from 1986.
Member
Narex chisels are an excellent buy. Google them,and you can get them cheaper elsewhere. gw
I have a set of the Narex chisels that I bought a couple years ago as beaters. Truth is: I use these all the time. The Narex chisels do have these ugly black handles but the chisels hold an edge very well. I can't imagine a set of chisels in this price range that out perform the ones I have. I strongly recommend them to anyone wanting/needing a set of chisels for everyday use. They have a nice feel and balance. The price is right.
[OP]
Member
I opened the catalog with great anticipation only to find, as others have pointed out, that it no longer lists a large number of hand woodworking tools. I am however interested in the chisels listed in that I've grown tired of my Marples folding their edges when chopping dovetails. I don't have the serious coin for a set of Two Cherries, what I'd really like to have.
The chisels listed are shown having their steel run continuously through the handle almost to the strike point. Just wondering how well they hold their edge?
Possumpoint
Guest
Lee Valley sells a nice set of reasonably priced bevel edge chisels, and given the price, I don't know why folk don't just buy them. Got a pretty good review in FWW a while back, and if you get a dud Rob Lee stands by his goods. For utility chisels, you can't do much better. YMMV.....
Member
The folding chisel edge is a new safety feature invented by the Saw Stop people.
Member
I tried to go yuppie but I'm to old and fat, so I went fuppy.
Rick
Member
For me the barrier is the plastic handles. I'm sure they're fine, but....Originally Posted by Richard Niemiec
Member
I work in the Technical Dept at Garrett Wade, and was the lead technician on the development of the steel thru-shank chisels. It was one of the more interesting projects that I’ve worked on. As it turned out, the blades were not an issue – they’re excellent – but the resin handles, shank and tang configuration captured our focus for months. We took a good look at what was on the market in this price range, and tested the ones we liked best. We sheared through the handles of nearly a dozen chisels in order to inspect the tang and shank at the impact point. We learned quite quickly not to trust our eyes. Peering through the resin handle under a strong light, I thought I found the perfect sample, with a solid, perfectly aligned shank and a resin buffer of no more than 2mm. Then I cut it open and found that the gap between the shank and tang was about 15mm and it was filled with something that looked like rolled up cat hair and dust. Looks can definitely be deceiving.
Anyway, I think in the end, we got it just right. The chisels are a pleasure to use. I keep them handy in the shop for everyday jobs, and I would not hesitate to use them for cutting dovetails or mortises. I invite you to give them a try, and I’ll be really surprised if you don’t like them as much as we do. As with all our tools, you can try them out for 90 days and if you’re not happy with them, we’ll take them back and even pay the shipping.
If you’d like to hear more about any of our chisel sets, please email me anytime at tech@garrettwade.com
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