Intermediate priced chisels

[Christian Castillo]

I agree with the comments about hunting for vintage tools. I was in your shoes a really short time ago, learn to tune your tools, hunt vintage ones down and sell any extras you come across. If you do well enough selling off desirable extras, you could actually pay off the cost of your own tools and end up getting your tools together for free.

[dan sherman]

I have both sets, and I use the Stanley's for general work, and I use the narex set for paring. The Stanley's are shorter and lighter, and I find them easier to handle one handed.

[Chris Vandiver]

I agree with the comments about hunting for vintage tools. I was in your shoes a really short time ago, learn to tune your tools, hunt vintage ones down and sell any extras you come across. If you do well enough selling off desirable extras, you could actually pay off the cost of your own tools and end up getting your tools together for free.

Hah hah hah! For free, really? It's an awfully slippery slope. And then there is the time involved. Still, I think it's a good way to go(vintage) but there is something to be said about being able to use a new tool without having to go through the whole rehab process. And that doesn't take into account the whole learning process if you're just starting out.

[Graham Haydon]

I just purchased a set of 8105 Narex bevel edge as I was very pleased with 1/2" mortice chisel. An interesting write up on how they make their steel can be foun on the fan site (for want of a better description) http://www.narexchisels.com/Narex_Ch...-Mn_Steel.html and some company history too http://www.narexchisels.com/Narex_Ch..._Bystrice.html

[Christian Castillo]

Hah hah hah! For free, really? It's an awfully slippery slope. And then there is the time involved. Still, I think it's a good way to go(vintage) but there is something to be said about being able to use a new tool without having to go through the whole rehab process. And that doesn't take into account the whole learning process if you're just starting out.

Yeah I made myself laugh a little too, I think I painted too rosy of a picture, let me rephrase what I said:

If you don't mind searching craigslist/auctions/ebay constantly and lining up at estate sales at 7 am for the chance, not a guarantee, to acquire old tools, then spend your free time cleaning, de-rusting, lapping out pitting, sharpening everything up, and then taking whatever tools you don't need and finding out what they're worth, listing them for sale, shipping them out, and praying nothing goes wrong in shipping... Then hunting down vintage tools and using the spares to pay for your own is like getting your own tools for free . I guess I never sweated it too much cause I always saw sharpening so many chisels/saws/planes for sale as an apprenticeship, total slave work but heck, I'm not afraid to sharpen anything anymore.

[Dave Cav]

I'd go with the Narex. I have the mortise and bench set in inch sizes from LV and they are a great deal for the money.

[Ryan Baker]

Narex chisels are a great value. They perform well and will do the job. They aren't very pretty to look at, and I don't really care much for the way they feel, but that is not very important if you just need an affordable tool to do the job.

I have a few of the Stanley Sweetheart chisels and I really like them. You won't find much love for them in this forum though. They are a great size and balance, and are one of my favorite chisles to grab (even though I have "better" ones). Yes, they will not hold an edge as long as some other chisels. The price is not bad, but considerably more than the Narex and approaching what you would have to spend for "better" chisels. Consider buying less than a full set, since most of us don't really use all the sizes. This line does have some of the odd sizes that are missing from other lines.

Vintage chisels are a mixed bag. Some are great, and some are not. I have nothing against vintage chisels, but you will have to invest a lot of time and energy to locate them and bring them back to a useable state. While the New England/East coast folks keep touting how cheap and plentiful vintage chisels are, that isn't so true in many other parts of the country. Tool dealers and collectors have decided that vintage chisels should sell for triple digit prices, so you will need time and luck to scrounge them up from estate sales and flea markets. It could take a long time to build up a working set. You are better off getting a working set now and look for additions to your vintage collection over time.

[Chris Friesen]

I'm up in the Canadian prairies, and around here there are basically zero decent used tools available on a day-to-day basis. Even on Ebay there aren't many tools available in Canada, and for the ones from the USA shipping and duty is killer. I've looked but have had very little luck.

On the other hand, I have a Lee Valley store that is a 5-minute drive away tempting me with impeccably-machined new tools.

You can imagine where I ended up getting most of my chisels and planes...

[Alfred Kraemer]

I whole-heartedly support the suggestion made by others here regarding vintage chisels. It took me about one summer and 4 flea markets to get my basic set, and then the refurbishing. All in all, it wasn't that bad. Automotive sandpaper, the type you can use with water helped a lot in reestablishing a good edge.
The approach using vintage chisels may not work for everyone, but wherever you get your chisels, make sure you get a set that meets your needs. In my case no pre-assembled set was right - usually too many chisels I wouldn't need.

Alfred

[Chris Hachet]

I have both sets, and I use the Stanley's for general work, and I use the narex set for paring. The Stanley's are shorter and lighter, and I find them easier to handle one handed.

This would be my experience also. I use mostly Lie Nielson and Japanese chisels, but I have on hand both Narex and Stanley Sweetheart. I find the Stanley nominally easier to sharpen, and much more balanced for fine work. the Narex are great for heavy stock removalm, and they hold their edge really well. The Blue Handled Irwin Marples Chisels work great however, and are dirt cheap.

Be careful on the slipperly slope of chisels, I keep buying more and like clamps I find myself using a huge nubmer of them any time I build anything.

Regards,


Chris

[Mike Holbrook]

The whole metric vs imperial sizing thing is smokey at best. Lee Valley just lists Narex imperial sizes whereas Highland Woodworking lists the imperial and metric size for each chisel. My guess is they are all made the same. LV and HLW both appear to order slightly different chisel sets in an attempt to at least appear different. The big difference I see is Highland offers a "Premium" set of 6 Narex Bench Chisels with a leather tool roll for $129. The handles on these chisels do not have the metal hoops on the ends, which may make them more comfortable for paring and may or may not make them more or less durable.

Since we made it up to $130 I think it is appropriate to mention Ashley Iles Chisels at Tools for Working Wood. Two sets of 6 (narrow and standard) are available with 1/8" increments about $150. The other option worth considering is purchasing a lesser quantity of "premium" chisels. Some people say they actually do 90% or more of their actual work with just two or three chisels. Some claim they could get along with just 1-3 sizes for everything. Now we could start considering Koyamaichi Japanese chisels from Tools From Japan, Lie Nielsen's......I think I would go this route if I were starting over on chisels, as less is sometimes more. Still the first chisels I bought serve well as backups/seconds...

[Earl Sullivan]

Yeah I made myself laugh a little too, I think I painted too rosy of a picture, let me rephrase what I said:

If you don't mind searching craigslist/auctions/ebay constantly and lining up at estate sales at 7 am for the chance, not a guarantee, to acquire old tools, then spend your free time cleaning, de-rusting, lapping out pitting, sharpening everything up, and then taking whatever tools you don't need and finding out what they're worth, listing them for sale, shipping them out, and praying nothing goes wrong in shipping... Then hunting down vintage tools and using the spares to pay for your own is like getting your own tools for free . I guess I never sweated it too much cause I always saw sharpening so many chisels/saws/planes for sale as an apprenticeship, total slave work but heck, I'm not afraid to sharpen anything anymore.

What if I want my hobby to be puttering around the workshop pretending to make things, instead of shopping?

(Y'all are more than welcome to hunt down tools like that...I'll just buy stuff online and spend the morning making sawdust and shavings instead)

[Chris Friesen]

The whole metric vs imperial sizing thing is smokey at best. Lee Valley just lists Narex imperial sizes whereas Highland Woodworking lists the imperial and metric size for each chisel. My guess is they are all made the same.

Rob Lee has previously said that Lee Valley's Narex chisels are "true" imperial sizes whereas the regular ones are metric.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Rob Lee has previously said that Lee Valley's Narex chisels are "true" imperial sizes whereas the regular ones are metric.

This has held true with the Narex I've purchased from Lee Valley - if it comes sold/marked in inches, it's pretty dead-on nuts accurate, not "next nearest metric equivalent".

[Jim Koepke]

... Some people say they actually do 90% or more of their actual work with just two or three chisels. Some claim they could get along with just 1-3 sizes for everything. ...

Please remember Mike is saying, "some people say... " This is not a negative comment on Mike's sound reasoning of how taking the minimalist approach would allow one to buy higher value chisels. A common consensus among professionals in many fields is to "buy the best quality you can afford." The minimalist approach allows one to concentrate their budget on a smaller target.

My experience has been over time my accumulation of chisels has grown. My guess would be that only a few of the people here have limited themselves to less than five chisels. With the "Show us your chisels" thread, it appears some have more than one set.

My latest project has me cleaning up some half laps on 2X4 construction material. There is also a couple of 3/4" mortises. The mortises were done two ways. One was drilled out with a 3/4" forestner bit and the other was just done with chisels and mallet. Drilling was faster though not much faster. The chopped mortise came out looking better though not a lot better. BTW, the chopping was done mostly with a 3/4" square sided Buck Brothers socket chisel. A 1-1/2" Union Hardware bevel edged chisel was used for some of the clean up.

So, if this was all my work consisted of I could get by with just a 3/4" and 1-1/2" chisel. Though come to think of it my 1" paring chisel and my two 1/2" skew chisels were very handy to have at times on this project.

If one wants to pursue a minimalist accumulation of tools, they may find they also have a minimalist ability to produce a wide variety of work.

Maybe my 3/4" mortice could have been done using only a 1/4" chisel, but there are too many other things to be done to limit myself to such an extent.

For someone just starting a full set may be better than trying to figure out how to do everything with a limited set with no idea what should be included in the starting set to do the work they envision.

Planes may be an area that is better served with a minimalist approach. Though each and everyone of my planes is enjoyed and they do get used, it doesn't change the fact that many of them fall into the category of redundancy and my work wouldn't be more difficult if some of them were not in my shop.

For my way of working it is nice to have a selection of chisels to choose from between paring, chopping, cleaning out dados or any other odd need that comes along.

jtk