Thanks again, everyone, for the excellent and prolific advice and tips given in response to my recent post titled, "Advice, please." Over the holidays, I had a chance to implement more of the advice I received, so it seemed worthwhile to follow up with some of my findings. I followed up on multiple fronts over the break: water stones (variety and technique), paring chisels, and mortise chisels. After the wall of words associated with my advice-seeking post, I'll keep this short(er).
1. Water stones: first, based on advice received I added a 3000 grit stone (5 microns) between my DMT extra-fine diamond stone (12 micron) and my 8K stone (2 microns). This helped speed things up. Second, I was definitely underestimating the importance and usefulness of the slurry. I'm starting to understand the statement that diamond stones have no feel to them.
2. Paring chisels: I picked up a 36mm Koyamaichi white steel "Japanese paring push chisel" during Lee Valley's recent clearance event. In retrospect, I should have purchased at least two sizes. I have a few years of experience (evenings and weekends) using my 1 inch Narex bevel-edge bench chisel from Lee Valley, so I am quite familiar with how it feels in use. I realize that it's not an apples-to-apples comparison to pit a bench chisel used in paring tasks against a dedicated paring chisel. Short version: in the words of George Takei, "Oh, my!" Perhaps it's a psychological attempt at justifying the purchase decision, but after a weekend of use it seems that the off-the-stone sharpness, edge retention, feedback in use, and achievable precision are all a significant step up. Maybe I'll change my opinion after I have some real experience with it and not just a couple days of use.
3. Mortise chisel: I also picked up a 5/16 mortise chisel in the same purchase. I have yet to do more than set it up and chop a quick test mortise with it in pine and another in red oak, so I don't have more than bare first impressions at this point. So far, I'm pleased with the purchase. Perhaps I'll report back after I actually build a few things with it.
Thanks again and best regards,
Michael Bulatowicz
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