Hamlet Craft Chisels?

[jonathan snyder]

Hi Folks,

Anyone have any or know anything about them. The Robert Larson company has an internet store with closeouts and discontinued items. (not sure if I can post the link - Google Robert larson internet store) They have some butt chisels which look to be at a good price. I called and asked who made them. The answer was Hamlet Craft. Anyone have any thoughts on quality?

Thanks
Jonathan

[Kevin Blunt]

I have an 6-piece set of turning tools for my lathe. They're made by Hamlet. They're very good quality and hold an edge quite well.

[Mike Wenzloff]

Craftsman Studio also sell them:
http://www.craftsmanstudio.com/html_p/hamletchisels.htm

Hamlet's homepage:
http://www.hamlet-crafttools.com/

Larson homepage:
http://www.rlarson.com/

Take care, Mike

[Mike Henderson]

I have a couple of Hamlet chisels and find them to be very high quality. The ones I have a full length and all the Hamlet chisels I've seen recently have been the stubby ones - which I don't like. If I could find a good sale on the full length ones, I'd buy some more (I'm too cheap to pay full price).

Mike

[Peter Gavin]

I just bought two Hamlet 1/2 inch skew paring chisels at Amazon.com yesterday. Theay are made by Diefenbacher. THe price seemed right and I'll know more baout their quality this weekend assuming they get delivered tomorrow like they say.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_seeall_3/102-6049325-5998558?ie=UTF8&keywords=paring%20chisel&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Aparing%20chisel%2Ci%3Atools

Peter

[Horst Hohoff]

Just to get it straight: your chisels are either Diefenbachers or Hamlets but by no means Hamlets made by Diefenbacher.
Horst

[Ian Gillis]

Just to get it straight: your chisels are either Diefenbachers or Hamlets but by no means Hamlets made by Diefenbacher.
Horst
I had a look at the Diefenbacher Tools site. They sell Hamlet skew chisels. They don't mention it in the description, but you can see the mark in the photos.

Cheers

[Horst Hohoff]

Ian, you're right: Diefenbacher sell Hamlet chisels. But they don't make them. Hamlets are made in good old Sheffield/England.
Cheers
Horst

[Peter Gavin]

Perhaps you are right that Diefenbacher doesn't make them, but when I ordered from Amazon Diefenbacher was the company that shipped them.

Peter

[Peter Gavin]

Just an update. I haven't used them yet, but I recieved my Hamlet 1/2 inch skew chisels (13mm) today and I'm thinking they are alright. My first impression is that they don't seem too polished (i.e. the handles aren't finely finished, but I don't see any improvement by giving multiple coats of varnish) but they seen to be well designed for what they are intended for. Someone took the time to finish the back of the chisel more than I've normally seen- there seems to be a flat spot where they were polished extending about 1/4 inch below the edge. Actually, looking again, that seems to be true on only on of the two chisels so I wonder if I've recieved a return. The bevels appear to be honed at 20* which would be right for a paring chisel if the steel can take it. The beveled edges are sharper (crisper & narrower) then the bevel edge chisels I've seen on my Marples and other bevel edges I've seen which should help in getting into the corners of dovetails which is why I bought them.The ferrule looks like copper instead of the more common brass ( I guess it wold be softer but that doesn't effect what it is supposed to do) and is merely a tube instead of having a closed end but that shouldn't effect the usage. Both the back and the top have been polished beyond the rough grinding of the beveled sides. Both of the skews seem to be fitted to the handle such that they actually angle down a very slight amount which is pretty much the opposite of how a crank neck chisel would operate. I'll give the steel a test this weekend and let you know if I have any problems with the steel rolling over or chipping.

The actual package arrived with a Robert Larson display tag on it so I wonder if Hamlet and Robert Larson might be having a contractual dispute. It is definitly a 2006 purchase when a Hamlet Craft product bought through Amazon.com gets shipped by Diefenbacher tools and has a Robert Larson Quality Woodworking tag on it.

Peter