Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 31

Thread: 1/8" chisel

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    New Jersey
    Posts
    13,721

    1/8" chisel

    I am in the market for a narrow dovetail chisel for paring the waste between tails.

    I am debating between these bench chisels: Veritas PMV11 and Lie Nielsen.

    I have never owned either brand in a chisel. I have only Narex chisels which are passable, but I've done dt's now that i want to step up.

    Any reviews or alternate opinions?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Gibsons British Columbia Canada ( near Vancouver )
    Posts
    693
    Prashun:

    I have the LNs in A2 - I really like them, but after using PM-V11 in my LV Block plane, I can't imagine them being as good.

    FWIW, I like narrow(er) pins, and have a 1.5mm Japanese chisel ( brand unknown ) and a 3/16'' LN in A2 that I find indispensable. I imagine the Blue Spruce offerings would be superb as well.

    Good Luck!

    Dave B

  3. #3
    Prashun,

    I have a set of PMV-11 chisels, do not have the LN 750 clones.

    Here is a thought on chisels for paring dovetail waste. Wider is better if you can get into the socket at an angle or sometimes a slew will work. What tends to be more important than how wide is how thick the iron is and the shape of the lands. Pictured from top to bottom are a LV PMV-11, a new Stanley 750, a Japanese thin blade paring chisel, and one of my favorites for working dovetail waste, a Union Hardware chisel. Notice how thin the Union Hardware chisel is and how the lands are also very thin.

    Of these chisels, I will usually reach for one of the Japanese paring chisels, if it will fit in the socket, because of the length of the handle and how sharp the edge is but sometimes only the Union Hardware can get in without bruising the pin or tail.

    The LN chisel will cost about $70 USD, a Japanese #2 White steel paring chisel from Stu less than $60 USD, the Union Hardware when you can find them probably less than $30 USD, and the PMV-11 less than $80 USD. Other than the Union Hardware all within a few bucks of each other.




    Hope the photo helps,

    ken

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Dickinson, Texas
    Posts
    7,655
    Blog Entries
    1
    I have a 1/8" chisel that is a caning chisel. Chisels that small don't have to take a lot of abuse. I have chopped mortises with it.

    I also have the LV Narex mortise chisel that does good with chopping mortises. It could be used to pare mortises.
    Also I have the Veritas Detail Chisels that I use a lot. They are expensive, worth the price in my estimation.


    I still have a preference for LN bench chisels, though Stanley 750's are not far behind.
    Last edited by lowell holmes; 01-15-2015 at 10:08 AM. Reason: sp

  5. #5
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    Johannesburg, South Africa
    Posts
    1,076
    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Beauchesne View Post
    I have the LNs in A2 - I really like them, but after using PM-V11 in my LV Block plane, I can't imagine them being as good.
    Dave, are you saying you don't expect the Veritas V11 chisel to be as good after your experience with the Block Plane or the other way round?

    Prashun:
    Lee Valley also sells another Veritas product that you may want to look at.

    Dovetail-Style Chisel, 1/8" 05K04.52

    05k0452s1b.jpg
    "If you have all your fingers, you can convert to Metric"

  6. #6
    I would suggest that for a chisel of that size, you find a vintage inexpensive (or new inexpensive) chisel and stone or grind the sides to a profile you need.

    I don't have a picture handy, but there is so little to grind on a chisel of that size (presuming it's a benefit chisel) that five minutes on a diamond hone would do what you need to do (it doesn't need to be precise, either, just out of the way) - and you only need to stone the first inch or so of the chisel.

    The dovetail section chisels of that width are very thin and fragile, and it's nicer to work with something inexpensive that is full strength up from the lands you grind on it.

  7. #7
    One more vote for PMV-11, that stuff seems to stay sharp forever.

    However, I do love my LN chisels.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Perth, Australia
    Posts
    9,467
    Hi Prashun

    I own several 1/8" chisels, almost all for dovetailing. These include 1/8" (vintage) Stanley 750 (which is O1), an O1 Veritas I shaped out of a 1/4" pre-production sample before they were made in this size, a recently purchased PM-V11 1/8", a Blue Spruce (which is A2), and a Koyamaichi (which is white steel). Why so many? Just filling out sets. Anyway, they all get used.

    The point is, in a 1/8" chisel with zero lands, they are all much-of-a-muchness. There is so little resistance as the steel enters the wood. The white steel does hold an edge a little longer than the PM-V11, which is more durable than the A2 ... but in reality, they all last a long time. Even O1 lasts a reasonable time.

    What is more important than the steel at this size is the comfort of the handle and the balance of the chisel. A Japanese chisel is tapped with a gennou, which creates precision; a Western chisel can be tapped in the same manner or be pushed.

    My preference for handles for pushing are the Blue Spruce and the Veritas. I did not care for the Stanley 750 (same as LN) handles as I prefer something longer, and replaced them with handles similar to the Blue Spruce. The BS are similar in feel and balance to the Veritas.

    Here are a selection ..

    Koyamaichi, Stanley 750, and custom handle ...



    Veritas (the O1 version) and Lie-Nielsen ...



    Blue Spruce and Stanley 750 ...



    Hope this helps.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    22,492
    Blog Entries
    1
    This will go the way of most LV / LN discussion I imagine ;-). My 1/8" and 3/16" chisels are both LV PM-V11 and I am very happy with them. Of course my previous 1/8" chisel was an old Marples that performed as chisels of this level do; usable, require frequent touch-ups and nothing much to get excited about. I still use my Marples for a lot of daily tasks but, with the edge retention proven in my own hands, more and more PM-V11 chisels seem to be finding their way to my tool cabinet.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Princeton, NJ
    Posts
    7,254
    Blog Entries
    7
    I have chisels from Blue Spruce, Lie Nielsen and Koyamaichi if you want to check them out and see the differences first hand.

    All of my new purchases will be Koyamaichi going forward, I really like how well they keep an edge, especially in blue steel. I pared literally all day with the blue steel chisels I have, and all day the day prior and the chisel is still like a razor with no issue pushing through hard maple and cutting a super clean cut.

    LN are fine, I have both O1 and A2, I prefer O1 to A2. I cut the bevels at around 30 degrees on O1 and around 35 on A2. They're good workhorses, but they are all at the sharpening stone at the end of the day, same with Blue Spruce (A2). Blue spruce are fantastic paring chisels, they have a bit of flex in the blade which is useful in many scenarios. but I've cut a 30 degree bevel on all of them to retain the edge slightly longer.
    Last edited by Brian Holcombe; 01-15-2015 at 11:40 AM.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Lake Gaston, Henrico, NC
    Posts
    8,973
    I bought a couple of blue handled Marples off ebay for a few dollars, and a few more dollars for shipping. I just ground the extra bevel on one side of each, and put a skew on the cutting edges too. You can get them plenty sharp enough, and the edge is so small anyway, that it only takes a few swipes to hone, so time between honings is a non-issue.

    I use the sides of the stones, so I don't have to worry about the large faces.
    Last edited by Tom M King; 01-15-2015 at 1:26 PM.

  12. #12
    I have the LN 1/8", the LV 1/8" and an antique (Molson Brothers?) 1/8". All are good. The LV probably keeps an edge longer than the others but I often use the antique just because it's an antique.

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Dickinson, Texas
    Posts
    7,655
    Blog Entries
    1
    Woodcraft has 1/8" Blue Handle Marples chisel in a catalog that came today. I started with Blue Handle Marples and they were decent chisels. If I needed a particular chisel and didn't want to spend a lot of money, I wouldn't hesitate to order it from Woodcraft.

    Having said that, am I the only one with LV Detail Chisel set?

  14. #14
    I bought the Narex 1/8" from Highland HW. Seems to work just fine, thought it obviously wont hold an edge like PMV-11.
    "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

    “If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Burlington, Vermont
    Posts
    2,443
    At sizes this small, I've used a sharpened jewelers screwdriver. (With a fine stone nearby for lapping as needed). Unless you're using this all day long, a small chisel like this is a great place to go cheap. I really agree with Dave's suggestion.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •