Stanley Chisel Set

[george wilson]

I used to get paint can openers at the paint store,but they are always lost. I don't think a DECENT large screwdriver is ever hurt by opening paint cans with them. If you use a real cheap screwdriver,they might be bent,and then only good for screwing in old,bent screws around a corner.

[Mike Brady]

To me this is like buying new clothing to wear to paint your house. Hard to believe that you don't already have plenty of old / bad tools to abuse without going out and buying new ones. Heck, I have fairly good chisels that don't see much use just because they sit in a tool box somewhere. For just a few bucks more you could by Aldi chisels that actually work rather well.

Must be a slow news day here in the forums.

[Ray Vivian]

I have a set of chisels (Stanley) like that I bought back in the 90's and they have held up real good. Have hone & re sharpened them numerous times. Used the 3/4 the other day to take bark off some pecan and red elm cookies and short half logs.

[Jim Koepke]

For just a few bucks more you could by Aldi chisels that actually work rather well.

The cost for gas to drive to the nearest store selling them is the deal breaker. When I looked for the one listed in Portland, it turned out to be Portland on the coast of Australia.

Besides $3.25, tax included, is less than my wife spends on a cup of coffee. She is happy because now there are some chisels she can use that won't cause me any worries.

jtk

[Andrew Pitonyak]

I got an old set of these from my Father years ago. I purchased another set new from "discount" rack at Target for a few bucks so that I could practice sharpening (before I had a clue how to do so) without worrying about damaging my nice set. Now that they are wicked sharp, I find that I often use them. They don't hold an edge well, but they are fast to touch up. Everyone needs a set of beater chisels. If I were at Ace and they had them, I would purchase another set for the next person who wants to learn to sharpen.

[Jim Koepke]

Some comments on these chisels after a bit of use.

These sharpened with ease. There seems to be a slight hollow on the backs. It didn't take long to get rid of the factory grind on the back edge up to about 1/32 - 1/16".

They have only had a couple of sharpenings. To soon to say whether they dull overly quick. No folding over was noticed on any of the edges. The chisels were all first sharpened on oil stones. Some of the back flattening was done on a Veritas Mk.ll Power Sharpening System with a 220 grit abrasive.

The comfort level wasn't to my liking with the handles. Many of my chisel handles are custom made to meet my needs due to an old hand injury.

Most of my use was for paring these last few days. These are shorter than my preference for paring work. These do not have steel caps on the ends as do some of my plastic handled chisels. There seemed to be no problem striking them with a mallet. My car ramp project had some short sections of 2X6 left over. I like to split it in two to use as small pieces in our wood stove. Instead of using a hatchet the 1" chisel was used with a mallet. The edge held up well through about 4 pieces. Not an extensive test.

As a set that will be something my wife can use without any worries about damaging one of my good tools, the price is right.

Now if Harbor Freight has one of those Windsor sets next time we are in town...

jtk

[Mike Null]

When I saw Jim's OP I bought a set of these at $3.99. (no ACE card) I've only begun to sharpen one but it seems to be sharpening well and I trimmed some birch without much of an issue. I still have work to do on sharpening but these aren't bad for the price. I would buy the Aldi chisels too but i check every time I go in and they haven't had them at my store.

I have an old set of Craftsman carpenter chisels which sharpen up nicely and hold their edge quite well. Nothing fancy but I am am far from a master woodworker anyway.

[Mike Baker 2]

The Fat Max chisels I have have been good chisels for me. Of course, I haven't done a lot of mortise work, etc., with them, but for what I have used them for, and this includes paring/shaping the top braces on two acoustic guitar tops.
They are heavy(mine have metal butt plates), fairly short for paring, and the balance IMO is wrong, but I think I paid $20 for the 3 I have. They hold an edge decently in soft wood. I haven't used them extensively in hard wood to be able to comment.
But, they sharpen up really quick.
My wife and daughter a both disabled, and I don't have the cash to spend on even a set of the Narex. All of my tools are either vintage, when I can find them at a good price and can restore them, or the lower end of the new stuff.
I prefer vintage, and am always looking for them at a good price. But with edged tools like a chisel, if the edge lasts a little shorter time between sharpenings, but they hone up really fast, to me, I can work with it.
IMO, "It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools" is still relevant today. I think your technique should outperform your tools any day of the week. I don't have a lot of technique right now, so even the cheap stuff out performs me, but I'm learning.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

IMO, "It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools" is still relevant today. I think your technique should outperform your tools any day of the week. I don't have a lot of technique right now, so even the cheap stuff out performs me, but I'm learning.

Well said Mike. I sharpen more often than with the harder steels, but it sharpens well and fast. Note that I own chisels with harder steel, I kind of bounce between the chisels since I own so many (meaning a couple of sets).

[lowell holmes]

Early on, I bought a set of Lie Nielsen chisels. Along the way, I acquired some old Stanleys.
The Stanleys are a mixed bag, the metallurgy varies, some are good and others don't hold an edge.

I hone my chisels sharp and then put a slight compound bevel on them. It works for me.
I needed a 15/16" chisel one time and I was able to grind an old Stanley to 15/16"