Chisel angle for dovetail work?

[Christof Grohs]

I am having a heck of a time keeping an edge on my chisels. I'm wondering, at what angle do you guys prefer to sharpen your chisels when you intend to cut dovetails? I was cutting some half blinds in walnut yesterday and my chisels (Pfiel @ 25deg) made it through about 2 sockets before the edge was noticeably dull. Should I be sharpening at 30*
thanks
c.

[Sean Hughto]

25 degrees is a mite shallow. Were you chopping or just paring? If chopping, this is way too shallow. If paring, a good chisel in walnut shouldn't dull at this pace even though 30 is likely a better bet.

[John Keeton]

Christof, I am surprised at the Pfeil edge breaking down that quickly. I have owned a set of Pfeil bench chisels, and they held an edge very well, particularly in walnut. As I recall, I had mine honed at 25*. However, I think Sean is correct in that 30* is better for chopping, though I still have my paring chisels at 25*.

[Ken Werner]

Christof, you can grind the primary bevel at 25 and hone a micro bevel at 30. Generally for 1/2 blinds, there has to be some chopping. So going with a steeper bevel makes sense.

Mr. Keeton, as usual is correct.

Ken

[Graham Hughes (CA)]

That's unusual. I have heard of poor heat treating practices causing the outer layer of chisels to be soft steel, so regrinding might help; but that shouldn't happen in reputable chisels.

[lowell holmes]

I keep a water stone (8000) on my bench. You can use it with water spray rather than soaking in water.
When my edged tools seem a little dull, a few swipes across the stone takes care of it.
It is a break from what I'm doing and helps me.

I use Mike Dunbar's technique of working across the body, free hand. You can even keep a micro bevel on the edge using this technique. The technique is also shown on the incredibly dull video from Norton.

(I have a difficult time staying awake for a whole video.)

My chisels are ground to 25 degrees with a 30 degree microbevel. I experience the edges dulling and showing roughness, but a few swipes on the stone makes it go away.