Thanks Nick! Thanks Ken!
Fred
[OP]
Contributor
Thanks Nick! Thanks Ken!
Fred
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
Contributor
To me, how a chisel feels in my hand is as important as any other point of comparison. This is why one of my comments about purchasing tools is to try and handle it before handing over any money.with chisels it is about "balance". By balance I mean a chisel that feels "good" in hand,
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It isn't about being the best in this or that but more about being an extension of your hand and not getting in the way of work.
If a tool doesn't feel right in one's hands, it isn't going to feel right when it is in use. If a tool doesn't feel right, it will be a distraction every time it is used.
When one is trying to do good work with sharp tools, the last thing one needs is a distraction.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Member
Derek Cohen has, what I think to be, a well constructed comparison of different chisel steels on his website inthewoodshop.com http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolRev...g-5Steels.html
That being said he doesn't really cover a 'cheap' option. Still, worth a read.
[OP]
Contributor
Thanks Rhys. Welcome to SMC!
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
[OP]
Contributor
I've ordered an LN 1/2" and an Ashley Iles 5/8". I'll let you know what I think. Should be fun to horse around with. Thanks to everyone for their advice.
In the meantime, cut a few more dovetails with my cheapo chisels after dinner with Mom. Up to 75 pairs now. The usually fit right off the saw and look presentable enough.
Fred
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
Contributor
If LN offered their chisels in O1 I probably would not have looked at the Iles. My experiences with the A2 plane blades I have made me think I would not prefer that in a chisel.
Derek Cohen’s findings are interesting. I have been tempted to order a Japanese chisel and try it, but the fact that they are closer to Blue Spruce prices then anything else places them realistically out of the range of what I am going to spend on a hobby, that unfortunately I have less and less time to enjoy.
Member
You don't need to buy a complete set from either of those vendors, plus you got to tailor the chisel style to what you are going to use it for. For me, for dovetailing, I have a liking for the AI roundback chisels. Perfect for close up paring and sneaking up to a line. But these are not chisels for general bench work!Originally Posted by Frederick Skelly
If the thunder don't get you, the lightning will.
Member
Years ago when this was published I tried to duplicate the test with my own chisels. My cast steel chisels outperformed all of the chisels in Deerk's field by a wide margin. I do think technique plays some role in test results.
Member
Define cheap.
Prior to my "Stan" chisels, I got some beaters off E-bay. Since I can't read Japanese, I don't know the makers/steel/etc.
However, they sharpen easily, take a great edge, and hold it well.
I'd encourage you to try getting a few
Member
I had one Japanese chisel. I don't know what I did with it.
I have a leather chisel roll full of Lie Nielsen chisels and I know exactly where they are.
OBTW, sharpen easily on a diamond hone that stays our on the bench. I keep them
scalpel sharp.
[OP]
Contributor
Thanks for the tip Matt.
Cheap (for me) are the Marples and Aldi sets I mentioned in the start of the thread. But you could probably stretch the definition to be "brand chisels you pay $10 or less a piece for." YMMV of course.
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
[OP]
Contributor
Thanks Tony!
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
Member
Fred,
If you poke around the old ad copy floating around on "The Internet" - for a while both Aldi and Marples chisels called out nominally "the same" alloy. That has since been pulled down - probably too specific for the sourcing types out there.... While perhaps you may ultimately get a similar amount of work out of both before they won't cut - the Marples receives a much better heat treatment in my book and retains the sharp, smooth cutting edge longer during the cycle... After using both head to head - I prefer the feel of the Marples - it just cuts more smoothly.....
You wondered why I had so many 1" chisels.... Because I wanted to test them out to see how they worked in my hands.... There is something to getting them in your hands and feeling how they work in real life....
Contributor
What I use all the time...
user chisels.JPG
YMMV, of course....
Contributor
+1000 on that!You wondered why I had so many 1" chisels.... Because I wanted to test them out to see how they worked in my hands.... There is something to getting them in your hands and feeling how they work in real life....
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
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