Mortising bits

[Nagai Rajendran]

I have a vintage Wysong and Miles hollow chisel mortiser. Can any one direct me as to where I can the mortising chisels and bits for this wonderful machine.. Thanks

[Lee Schierer]

Many mortising attachments and machines use the same size bits. Measure the diameter of the opening that holds the chisel and see what dimension you get. You will also need to know how the drill bit is held up inside the machine.

[Gary Radice]

Which chisel and bit set you need depends somewhat on which model W&M mortiser you have. The chisels themselves are fairly universal, as Lee wrote. Old ones by Greenlee or Forest City usually work, or Rockwell, Craftsman, or modern Japanese sets. You can get them from online auction sites, or if you want to go retail Lee Valley is one source for Japanese chisel and bit sets. I can also recommend Woodworkers Toolworks (no affiliation but I have purchased hollow chisels from them). The drill bits either fit in matched size collets, or some W&M mortisers were modified to have a Jacob's style chuck to hold the bit.

I have a model #272, made in 1922. A fun machine to have and use.

[Darcy Warner]

My 284 has destroyed the cheap Asian sets I tried. Been tracking down old sets for it now. Mine is a fairly late one, collet to hold chisel, chuck to hold bits.