Marples Chisel Box Set

[Richard Hutchings]

I got these from a yard sale a few years ago. They came in a poorly designed but impressive looking box. When you close the box the chisels on top fall onto the bottom chisels so the box has to be closed carefully. I'll eventually put them on the wall and store the box til I'm dead.

I haven't been able to find any information on them and I'm curious about there ranking as good or poor chisels. I think they're fine but I also thought my old plastic handled Stanley's were good also.

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[steven c newman]

Could always build a new box for them?
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This way, they don't fall out of the "lid"...
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This one holds 8...

[Richard Hutchings]

That's the way it should have been built in the first place. I can't imagine some engineers agreeing that this was a good idea. No I probably won't be building a new box. A drawer might be nice but I have those dog holes.

[Tom M King]

I've never seen that particular box. I have two sets of them. One I bought new in the early '70's, and the others are newer, but I'm not sure when they were made. Yours look like my newer ones. The steel is not one of the harder types, but you can get them Really sharp. I use mine all the time. I have a picture of one in the gallery here rolling up ridges on a tenon offcut from a fine toothed backsaw.

The micrometer is on the larger shaving in that picture.

[ken hatch]

I got these from a yard sale a few years ago. They came in a poorly designed but impressive looking box. When you close the box the chisels on top fall onto the bottom chisels so the box has to be closed carefully. I'll eventually put them on the wall and store the box til I'm dead.

I haven't been able to find any information on them and I'm curious about there ranking as good or poor chisels. I think they're fine but I also thought my old plastic handled Stanley's were good also.

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Richard,

The chisels are post WWII chisels. As to the quality of the chisels it kinda depends on how post WWII the chisels are. Older Marple chisels can be top quality as they progress in the years and different companies they have lost value. I do not know enough about post WWII Marples to make a guess.

Wish I could tell you more,

ken

[William Fretwell]

The short brass ferrule and the white plastic washer point to 1995 or a little before apparently. The logo printing is far from simple and the attachment of the brass ferrule with triangular punches through reeks of rather modern.

[Jim Matthews]

Good steel in these.

Easy to sharpen by hand, tolerate moderate bashing, nearly ideal handle shape. I keep mine in a poplar box with a shredded T-shirt at the business end.

If your not carrying them to a jobsite, you needn't baby them.

[Rafael Herrera]

It's kind of hard to tell, but the handles seem to be made of Ash, is that correct? If they were boxwood, that would make them visually attractive from my perspective. I won't speculate about their quality, ease of sharpening means not super duper hard steel, which is not always bad.

[ken hatch]

It's kind of hard to tell, but the handles seem to be made of Ash, is that correct? If they were boxwood, that would make them visually attractive from my perspective. I won't speculate about their quality, ease of sharpening means not super duper hard steel, which is not always bad.

Rafael,

I doubt the handles are Ash. Most likely Boxwood but again I know little about post WWII Marple chisels.

ken

[Richard Hutchings]

I'll post a better picture tonight.

[Rafael Herrera]

I doubt the handles are Ash. Most likely Boxwood but again I know little about post WWII Marple chisels.


I like boxwood more than Ash. I don't quite like the appearance of Ash, it feels coarse, the pores are too visible.

At some point they used a special designation, "Shamrock" to indicate the product was their highest quality version. Towards the end, they and other manufacturers that used this kind of branding reduced the descriptions to just using a single label, like "Marples", and reduced the quality as well.

Perhaps this page has some useful information: https://williammarplesandsons.com/chisels-gouges/chisels/

[Andrew Prandoni]

I had a complete set of these chisels, purchased from Woodcraft in the 1970's they were good quality but then i bought dome of Tom Lie Neilsen's chisels. There is no comparison between the two brands in my opinion. I sold the Marples.

[ken hatch]

I like boxwood more than Ash. I don't quite like the appearance of Ash, it feels coarse, the pores are too visible.

At some point they used a special designation, "Shamrock" to indicate the product was their highest quality version. Towards the end, they and other manufacturers that used this kind of branding reduced the descriptions to just using a single label, like "Marples", and reduced the quality as well.

Perhaps this page has some useful information: https://williammarplesandsons.com/chisels-gouges/chisels/

Rafael,

Pictured are some Marple Chisels: Starting at the bottom and working up is a Pre-WWII firmer chisel with a Carver pattern Box Wood handle. Next up is a Pre-WWII firmer chisel with a London pattern Ash handle. The next is a Post WWII firmer chisel with a London pattern Ash handle. The size difference is apparent and the two chisels have a totally different feel with the Pre-WWII chisel being light and balanced, the Post-WWII chisel not so much. The next two chisels are both Post-WWII the top one is a later chisel.

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Most of my Marple chisels are Pre-WWII with only a few Post-WWII. The Post-WWII chisels live mostly in tool rolls storied in the "tool room". The Pre-WWII chisels live in my chisel racks and are daily users.

ken

[ken hatch]

I had a complete set of these chisels, purchased from Woodcraft in the 1970's they were good quality but then i bought dome of Tom Lie Neilsen's chisels. There is no comparison between the two brands in my opinion. I sold the Marples.

Andrew,

Shows how different folks are, I've a few LN A2 Chisels that are seldom used and mostly gather dust. On the other hand my Pre-WWII Marple chisels along with the Japanese chisels are daily users. Good high carbon steel with a "tanged" handle is hard to beat.

ken

[Richard Hutchings]

Here's some close ups.444091444092444093

[ken hatch]

Here's some close ups.444091444092444093

Richard,

Likely dating, the tapered neck chisels are mid 80"s or newer and the ones with the white washer likely mid 90's. The Ridgeway stamp is from Record.

ken

[Ron Brese]

I've had a set of those for a long time. They've worked quite well as bench chisels. I suspect they're high carbon steel as they hone up to a really sharp edge.

Ron