recent history help please

[matt braun]

First a bit of history:
On 9/17/2008, Chris Schwarz posted a blog about New Premium Chisels Coming From Stanley in November (2008).
On 6/18/2010, Chris posted a blog about New Stanley Chisels (available in September).

Now for my questions:
1. Did the chisels in 2008 actually come out in November?
2. Were they decent quality (for a $20 chisel)?
3. Do you expect the 2010 chisels to come out in September? (It's already half over and I haven't heard anything.)

Now for the question I'm not asking but most of you will answer anyhow:
4. What are your thoughts about antique Stanley quality, present Stanley quality, modern premium chisels, small manufacturers, Harbor Freight and the status of the American way of life. Please include a short story with your response. [As someone who thoroughly enjoys this forum for both the knowledge that is shared as well as the entertainment value, I ask this question as a lighthearted jab at how posts often evolve.]

[David Weaver]

A slightly different answer for 1-3. I don't think they came out back then, but folks have reported seeing some of the chisel sets at menards.

The pictures chris showed and another one linked on another forum were drastically different grinds, and I think assuming the steel is of reasonable quality in all specimens, would make or break them in terms of whether or not they are worth getting.

In the picture chris showed, the grind left crude sides on the chisel like any hardware store chisel.

In the other picture (which I can't seem to find), the grind looked a lot more like a lie-nielsen chisel with delicate sides.

Until they are available and it's clear all have the second grind, I would hold back on purchasing them unless I could see them first.

I would wonder how they're hardening them, too, though you could probably reharden and temper if they are not consistent.

There is a video on "how it's made" showing buck brothers chisels being made in the US. it looks like all of the chisels are hardened by running them through a coil for the hardening and then once again later for tempering (unless that's a re-do of the hardening). I don't remember enough of the detail from it. It's no wonder some of them are weak at the edge but have properly hardened cores.

[Frank Drew]

Matt,

I don't think that Stanley was ever our premier toolmaker, but they made decent to pretty good, mass-produced stuff. At some point after WWII, however, they made some quality decisions and, IMO, completely degraded their formerly respectable brand. By the time I got into the work in the early Seventies, most of their tools were, in a word, pathetic. Tape measures weren't bad, though.

[Jim Koepke]

+1 on what Frank said.

I like most of my Stanley planes. I have a few Stanley chisels. Most of my chisels are from ebay, flea markets, and yard sales. For a bit of time spent there has been some money saved to put together a good group of old Buck Brothers, Witherby, Swan and a few other makers of fine chisels.

The Stanley chisels are often sought by collectors and demand a premium. Some of the better chisels do not have a large group of collectors to drive up the prices. I have almost complete sets of Buck and Witherby bevel edged bench chisels. I am also working on finishing up a set of butt chisels.

Then there is the drawer full of my second tier chisels that get used for rough work. Actually a couple of those have become my go to chisels for a lot of things.

jtk

[Mark Wyatt]

I stopped by Menard's after work today to pick up a couple of things. I found the Stanley Bailey chisels which they sell and took some pictures with my phone. Attached below. I was not impressed with the fit and finish. They are certainly not sharp.

[Jim gormley]

Of course they arent sharp, it says right on the box "XTRA SHARP", LOL j/k.
They certainly arent anything special, Woodcraft has nicer finished chisels IMO

[lowell holmes]

I have no thoughts on the new Stanleys.

I do have Stanley 750, 720, and Defiance chisels. I also have LN chisels. I use these chisels and really have no preference. I will use one of my 1" 750 chisels in preference to the LN. I like the balance and feel of the 750's. I prefer the LN 1/2" beveled edge chisel. I think the metallurgy on the old Stanleys to be a mixed bag.

The Stanley 60's (1960-1980 vintage) IMO have good metallurgy and can be sharpened to hold an edge. I think they are excellent tool belt chisels. Their balance leaves something to be desired on the bench.

[David Weaver]

I stopped by Menard's after work today to pick up a couple of things. I found the Stanley Bailey chisels which they sell and took some pictures with my phone. Attached below. I was not impressed with the fit and finish. They are certainly not sharp.

wow...those are really coarsely finished. I know they're marketing them as tradesman chisels unlike the other version, but wow.

Looks like they put a microbevel on one side without flattening the back. I suppose at that price, though, you can't ask for too much.