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Thread: Ugly chisel handle

  1. #16
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
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    Perth, Australia
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    Hi John

    The handle looks good to me. The hoop looks hand formed rather than machined. Boxwood is a desirable and expensive option. A hooped Japanese bench chisel handle will look odd to those who use it the first time. Also, they are designed to be used with a steel hammer (genno) and not pushed - indeed, they are uncomfortable in the hand. For pushing get a slick - long handles and wonderully balanced. Japanese chisels are all about the steel.

    Regards from Perth (currently Sarasota)

    Derek

  2. #17
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    Feb 2010
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    Derek with an H,

    Any chance you could post your thoughts/reviews on your Japanese paring chisels, either here or your blog? I may dip another toe in the Japanese pond and pick up a paring chisel to play with, but know less than nothing about them.

  3. #18
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    Oct 2012
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    Peterlee, County Durham, England
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    Use the chisel on a few projects and the colour will calm down in much the same way as you'd find with a box wood rule.

  4. #19
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    Apr 2010
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    As I understand it, gumi has been a material traditionally used for chisel handles in the Kansai area (including Hyogo Prefecture and Miki, of course) for a long long time, because oak was not as readily available. The wood is not large in diameter, so that frequently chisel handles are turned with the core of the limb located at the center. Small knots where limbs connected are also common.

    The reputation of gumi here in the Kanto area is not good. In comparison to oak, it is seen as brittle and likely to separate from the metal parts of the chisel too easily because it does not compress as well as oak. Also, it tend to develop drying cracks radiating from the core.

    Gumi is also used for hammer handles. Gumi has always been a bit more expensive than oak, but nowadays it is 9 times the price, making it more unpopular.

    On the positive side, gumi has a very pleasant texture and feels good in the hand, so it makes a great wood for chisels not intended to be struck with a hammer.

    A lot of Japanese craftsmen like the color. I don't, but nobody asked me. In any case, some of the tool retailers in Tokyo I deal with have gumi handled chisels purchased many years ago from Miki growing dusty on back shelves, but no one wants to buy them.

    Stan

  5. #20
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    Apr 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stanley Covington View Post
    In the Kansai area (including Hyogo Prefecture and Miki, of course) for a long long time, because oak was not as readily available.
    I know it's not that relevant to the original post, but I just wanted to point out that I think the choice to use gumi was deliberate, because Kasi (so called Japanese live oak) generally grow south of the Kanto area, a lot of quality harvest come from the southern and western Japan actually. If anything, they should be using more Kashi than blacksmith in the Kanto area if supply was to determine the specie of the wood for handles. I can say that I rarely see gumi handled chisels sold in the open, I think it's more of acquired taste than anything else, I'm sure there is a strong following for it. I would think the maker would know enough and have sense to replace gumi handle with something else if it was prone to split, crack or possess otherwise undesirable quality for heavy use. Blacksmith being someone who deals with steel and iron, I would still question his skills and reputation if his chisels come with a handle that is prone to defect such as that. I think there is a lot of prejudice for things that is not being used or familiar, probably a lot of it is undeserved.

  6. #21
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    Dec 2006
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    Corcoran, MN
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    I think the handle end, a beige color, is the real wood. The yellow would look good on a Lamborghini but not a chisel.

  7. #22
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    Apr 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bruce Mack View Post
    I think the handle end, a beige color, is the real wood. The yellow would look good on a Lamborghini but not a chisel.
    Most boxwood handles look like that. Here's a 1" Marples paring chisel with boxwood handle. You are right that that paler, grey-ish color is more natural color than the rest, but varnished handles often look much like that. It's not painted, though. You can see knots and grains pretty clearly, and it's pretty yellow. From the ferule side, you can see a bit of unvarnished wood that is grey-ish yellow. It's just that varnish accentuates the natural color a bit. Shades of yellow differ according to the natural color of the material used, so I think sometimes you get more white-ish or grew-ish yellow than yellow-yellow and so on. In the end, you are dealing with natural wood here, if yellow is not your thing, just don't choose boxwood. I personally love boxwood handled chisels, but yellow-yellow on Japanese chisel might be a bit too much, if it was little paler, I would be fine with it.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by Sam Takeuchi; 12-25-2012 at 10:00 AM. Reason: bad typo corrected

  8. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bruce Mack View Post
    The yellow would look good on a Lamborghini but not a chisel.
    My next Lamborghini WILL be yellow. How did you know?

  9. #24
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    Apr 2008
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    My Japanese chisels are my favorites, by far, and I don't mind the hoops and they certainly keep the struck end of the chisels intact when using a metal hammer, as I prefer. If I had one change I might like to try out, I'd like to see how they felt if the handles were just a bit fatter (bigger around), and I don't have particularly big hands.

    I agree with Derek: the chisel pictured has a classic Japanese handle, with a nice hand-worked hoop. And, as Sam's photo shows, boxwood can be quite yellow. I, too, would be shocked if there's any paint on that handle.
    Last edited by Frank Drew; 12-26-2012 at 10:35 AM.

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