Official Luthiers Forum!

I have a set of the Iles MK II which taper down to a reasonably fine point. I have a few old English bevel edged chisels that are very good, especially early Marples, Stormont etc.

E.A. Berg of course. All tangs.
I do have a nice set of Witherbys and I use one of those for brace carving. Plus a few Japanese chisels, one my dad gave me from a trip to Japan and is a great chisel but also a sentimental favorite.
My new favorite chisel is a crank neck Crown. Short bladed model. Use it more than any other chisel in the shop. Can't believe I never owned a crank neck all these years.
L.

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Cut to size.....Beat to fit.....Paint to match.

I have four of the Ashley Iles, Good
some old Stanley socket chisels with Lie Nielsen replacement handles, OK
some re-handeled Marples. Ok
Blue Spruce 3/4 paring chisel, Great, I want more.

I have a set of E.A. Berg socket chisels.. Their shape is great for everything I do with them and they hold an edge very well. I really like the handle shape much more than anything else I have tried.. Unfortunately, they are usually expensive when you can find them or have been to hell and back and show it..

Peter

I love the chisels I get from old antique stores. I can't pass one of these establishments without going in. Never buy anything that I don't think can be used.

I had held off buying western bench chisels for a long time, having a set of Japanese ones, 3 Henry Taylor parers + a Sorby, and a couple of 1" skew 2 Cherries, and a few older odd maples & stanleys.
But I could not resist a half set of the Ashley Iles Dovetail Chisels about 3 months ago, and I have been well impressed.
Beautiful tools. Consists of 1/8. 1/4, 3/8, and 1 inch, plus 1/4 LH and RH fishtail skews.
Filled in the gaps with a 1/2" A I bevel edge cabinet maker's and a 3/4" Narex to try them out.
Thought I would give the 1/16 dovetail a miss though....

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

Swedish Eskilstuna steel sockets by Jernbolaget, Nooitgedagt, Krona, or E. A. Berg. The Bergs are still somewhat common, the others are really hard to find in N.A.

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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Thanks for the round-up! I've been eyeing a set of Blue Spruce's dovetail chisels. It's good to know that type of chisel is good for guitar work.

always a nice topic. my go to bench chisels are a couple of 1/2" and a 1/4" plain and unimpressive two cherries chisels (hooped) and a 3/4" Koyamaichi japanese chisel (which i really like). for paring, an old vintage 1" Sorby and a 3/8" Matsumura usu nomi. I also bought (really cheap) a sturdy 1 1/2" MHG bench chisel that was a nice surprise.

Todd or Collin: what is the steel on those Ashley Iles?
And what about the Narex, Colin? those are aslo cheap and seem to get good reviews on the UK woodwork forums.

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

These threads always give me TAS.....
Those Ashley Iles Dovetail Chisels look pretty darn sweet.
I recently procured the full set of 0-1 Veritas bench chisels that put a smile on my face every single day....

Veritas is making some really nice PMV11 chisels that i think would fit your request Todd. I love mine! The steel is a dream and chisel shape is perfect.

Todd,
Just curious, what chisels "stick"? More rust resistant alloys?

Kevin Looker

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Very good value for money. Definitely the best of any tool I've bought. Still need tuning of course, like any chisel.
Take and hold a very good edge, and feel good to my hand.
Sides thinner than any other chisel I have (except the Ashley Iles dovetails) - about 1mm (8116 model, not the 8015)
I also bought a set of their mortice chisels (the long handled ones) http://www.workshopheaven.com/tools/Narex_8882_Mortice_Chisels.html as well, because the steel seemed so good.

It's not only the forums talking good things about them. Have a look at an extremely choosy (and outspoken) professional's opinion.
http://www.finefurnituremaker.com/published_articles/2012-articles/carbon-steel-article.htm

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I have about 15 tanged Berg chisels (my favorites), a set of newer Stanley 750s (nice), a set of the older style Narex (clunky but nice), 2 sets of cheaper Japanese chisels (nice - I like only for chopping, not paring) and a set of 19th century English short blade chisels made from W1 steel (these are a close 2nd behind the Bergs). I also have a ton (25+) of ebay bought US-made chisels - Greenlee, Witherby, ect. but haven't gotten around to flattening backs and sharpening. I just have too many chisels. Or just enough - TAS you know.

I use chisels for paring and light chopping, so the Bergs win for their blade design (small bevel shoulders), size, balance and their steel properties. The English chisels take an edge as sharp as the Bergs but have no bevels, so are limited in their usefulness. The rest are all good and beginners can't go wrong with the Narex chisels. I have the older style Narex that have the bigger handles - the newer sleeker style might be better.

I found out a strange thing about the better modern Japanese chisels. The hardened steel that goes on the bottom of the laminate that makes up the chisel doesn't come from Japan. These chisels are made of metal that comes from Sweden - the same as what makes up those old E. A. Bergs. I noticed a good portion of folks prefer Japanese and Swedish chisels - it's funny that it happens to be similar steels.

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John Lewis
Wannabe builder owned by 2 crazy dachshunds

I like to hunt for old steel in flea markets, antique shops and the like, and over here, the "local" brands are E.A Berg, Jernbolaget and Kongsberg, etc. Some are so ground so short, pitted or mistreated that they are beyond saving, others I haven't gotten around to fixing, I have a drawer full. I've rarely found one with an intact handle, so most get a shop made birch one. I also have various others; Sorby and Taylor paring chisles, oldies from Marples, a set of Blue Spruce, some Japanese, a full set of Two Cherries (not pictured), cranks, LMI's etc. They all have their use (at least when they're sharp...) My favourites are probably the Norwegian Kongsberg ones, unfortunately I rarely find them, so I don't have a full set (yet). I think all the good Scandinavian ones have steel from the same area in Sweden.




A while back I tried to analyze what I like in a handle for the work we ususally do, and I tested various shapes. Here's one I like, sort of a mix of Blue Spruce/LMI, but a bit like my previous "bulb" shape. I have enough curly birch to turn up a load, if I can find the time (iron not sharpened...)

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Right now on ebay

Two Eskiltuna chisels.
Going cheap like borscht.

E.A Berg, Jernbolaget, Kongsberg, Stiletto, Shark and Beaver are all the same steel from the same mill in Eskiltuna Sweden. Other than the name stamped on them they are all identical, even right down to the handles. The most famous is the Berg brand... however they are all the same steel.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-of-SWEDISH-CHISELS-LIKE-E-A-BERG-VERY-NICE-/190847155419?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c6f607cdb

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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This Stanley Sweetheart socket chisel is my favorite. The original handle wasn't a good fit for me, but with this longer handle, it is an excellent chisel for contouring braces. I can hold the top down with my left hand and work the chisel over it (bevel down) without hitting my hand with the metal collar found on some other chisels. It sharpens well and holds an edge for quite a while. I have an old set of Marples that are good for the same task but they don't hold an edge for very long. I have an LMI chisel that keeps a very nice edge but the metal collar makes it too painful to use for contouring braces.

Todd, what do you mean by that? Do you want to feel the blade flexing some when you're using it?

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Pat

For fine work I always go for the Veritas® Skew and Detail Chisels. They're just a delight to use and comfortable in the hands.

http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=47806&cat=1,41504

http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=46035&cat=1,41504

I pretty much ignore my larger chisels unless I have some serious stock to remove. Marple, not a happy camper....

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Michael Lloyd

“I was born to ignorance, yes, and lesser poverties ...
I was born to privilege that I did not see ... I didn’t know it, but my way was paved” – John Gorka

These forthcoming chisels from Lie-Nielsen might be interesting...

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151461385093016&set=a.10150092912588016.269980.100708343015&type=1&theater

Never thought about it, but a responsive chisel sounds great. It's been a pleasure for me to use Sorbys,Pfeils ( when not rolling off the table) , Witherby and a 750 (which all seem pretty stiff) after building my first guitar almost entirely with a 1" Craftsman butt chisel.

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Pat

that´s what i keep telling myself, but chisels keep piling up...

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

now we is talking...

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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Based on this thread I ordered one of the round backs in 1" - a size I only had in an old Stanley carpenter's style. It's a nice chisel, I'm going to order several more. I used to do some carving so I've got a pretty complete set of Pfiel's and a fair number of Flexcut's. The Ashley Isles seems to be at least as good and I might decide I like them better after I spend some time with them. I really like the round back - it seems to make the chisel easier to manipulate while I'm working.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I am curious as to why it would be easier to manipulate, in what way does the round back help with that? Or is it just the feel and balance of the chisel in general?

So anyone that owns some of these AI round back chisels, is it true that the backs are actually slightly hollowed to aid in sharpening/flattening the back upon initial set-up? I heard this somewhere (maybe TFWW website) and thought it to be interesting if true, seems like a hard variable to control during heat treatment but I'm not real sure.

As for the honing guide issue, it depends on what style honing guide you use. These chisels will probably not work if you're using a Veritas MKII honing guide. They will probably work fine in an Eclipse style guide, which I use 95% of the time. I used to free hand hone but find it just as easy clamping my blades up in an eclipse style honing guide and maintaining a micro-bevel of around 30deg.

I can't say it enough but I really recommend some people try out the new Veritas PMV11 chisels. They really are a very nice tool and it has been proven time and again that this steel really is lasting longer than A2 and especially 01. It is right up there with a well made Japanese chisel in edge holding and probably lasts a bit longer than most well made Japanese chisels. They are also a very comfortable chisel and their balance is perfect. I still like my LN socket chisels a bit more in terms of comfort but Veritas really has done something right with their new offerings.