Everyone who’s been reading Chris’ blog for a while knows he’s a funny guy, but he’s also a talented and knowledgeable woodworker, and above all, a professional journalist. So I gave it a second though and realized I wanted to see what that joke of a tool was all about.

A quick Google search and there it was, right on the first page and being sold on Amazon, the Nicholson WoodChuck Chisel Rasp Set! And it looks freaking odd, like someone decided to play with the tool’s DNA and the result wasn’t quite what they expected.

A few questions cross my mind:

• How do you flatten the back of the chisel on your precious stones?
• How to you do a paring cut without denting the surface around?
• Do you hold the tip of the tool while using the rasp? Watch out, it’s the cutting edge!!

The more I think about it the more I want to go to my shop and take some paring shavings with my Japanese chisels and maybe smooth some curves with my Auriou rasp.

You can no longer say that if you want a good western style chisel you need to get yourself a used Stanley n.750 and restore it to good working condition.

You have manufacturers like Lie-Nielsen that offer a set chisels based on the 750’s and through the use of better raw materials and manufacturing techniques produce a tool that’s even better that the original.

But how much are some people willing to pay for these tools?

Recently I was watching a few items on eBay and when the auctions ended I was quite impressed! But maybe not for the right reasons.

One Lie-Nielsen 102 (bronze low angle block plane) sold for $100.99. That is over the retail price and well over the $87 that is advertised in the Fine Tools Journal website. I wonder why would anyone pay over retail price for a used tool….

Two other interesting auctions were for vintage Stanley n.750 chisels which sold for $47 and $51 each, quite close to the retail price of a brand new Lie-Nielsen which sells for $50.

Would you rather buy a rusty vintage tool than a brand new one that happens to be even better. Let me know what you think in the comments section….

Another interesting fact is that Wenzloff & Sons are no longer taking orders for custom made saws as of August 4, 2008. According to Mike Wenzloff the waiting list for direct orders is well over 4000 saws.

They may resume taking direct orders in the future once they manage to clear the waiting list and there will be a revision of the prices. As it is right now, a custom made dovetail saw would cost you the same as one sold through Lee Valley and when you order directly from Mike you can specify all the details, from the wood species of the handle to how you’d like the teeth sharpened.

I am on that waiting list since February for two handsaws and it looks like it’s getting close to my place on the list. How close? Mike said 2-3 weeks some 3 weeks ago. I guess he’s probably shaping the handles on my saws right now…. I’ll post some photos when they arrive.

A last note on the subject of quality tools is the recent announcement that Stanley will be offering a line of handplanes that will be able to compete with the likes of Lie-Nielsen and Veritas, although the prices published by The Schwarz on his blog are quite lower that the competition.

Further reading:

• Lie-Nielsen Chisels: Better Than Vintage – by The Schwarz
• Premium Dovetail Saws – by The Schwarz
• Wenzloff & Sons – Custom Made Saws

Like with western chisels, the back of the blade must be flattened and polished to a mirror finish and it has to be sharpened to a very fine edge.

With Japanese chisels however, the tool is not ready to be used, the hoop on the top of the handle must be permanently set.

Here’s how:

• http://www2.woodcraft.com/pdf/77B66.pdf
• http://www.imcclains.com[...]JapaneseChisels.pdf
• http://japanwoodworker.[...]instructions.pdf

This may seem like a lot of extra work, but I guarantee you that it will be quite rewarding. There is nothing more satisfying than working with a sharp tool that is properly tuned.

What the heck is a dovetail chisel or fishtail chisel? What’s the difference between Western bevel and Japanese bevel? And where do you recommend to buy them?

As I wrote before, Japanese chisels are forged with two types of steel that are welded together during the forging process. One thin layer of very hard steel and a thicker layer of softer steel that will support it. The hard steel will become the back of the chisel and the cutting edge and this is the reason Japanese chisels will keep a sharp edge for a longer time than a western chisel.

Some tests like the Bench-Chisel Review published by Fine Woodworking Magazine will give you a clear evidence of this.

All Japanese chisels that I know of have a hollow (or more than one in wider chisels – see top photo) in the back which makes it easier and faster to flatten the back. Otherwise it would require a lot of work to flatten a large surface of very hard steel.

Usually Japanese chisels are somewhat shorter than western chisels, and I like this feature since my hand is closer to the work and I find it easier to control. Other than these I would say there aren’t any more differences between Japanese and western bevel edged chisels.

As far as the shape of the blade goes, you can find chisels in many different shapes and some are best suited for certain tasks. Bevel edge chisels are the most common since they are the workhorse of a cabinet shop and useful for most tasks.

A timber framing chisel, often used for more heavy duty tasks, won’t have bevels on the sides of the blade and while these can be very good tools for chopping large mortises in a 4×4″ or for paring tasks, for smaller projects you’ll find that the lack of bevels will usually become a problem when reaching the tight corners of a small mortise.

A dovetail chisel on the other hand has a triangular section, which means that it will get into the tight pin socket between two tails (provided that you’re cutting thin tails like our friend Kaleo Kala enjoys – the photo on the homepage of his website is a good example of this) and this is the task where they really excel.

You should avoid to use these for more general tasks as they’re not as strong as a bevel edge chisel.

Currently you can find western type dovetail chisels, i.e. made with just O1 or A2 steel like the ones made by Ashley Iles or Blue Spruce Toolworks.

Fishtail chisels are yet another specialty chisel. The cutting edge is shaped in a way that it will get into the tail sockets of half-blind dovetails and you can use them to clean the left and right side of the sockets. An alternative is to use skew chisels (usually sold in pairs – right and left skew angles) but this will require two tools instead of one.

Again, like the dovetail chisels, you can get western type fishtail chisels. It’s just a question of preference. I tend to favor the Japanese ones.

As far as where to buy them, I would recommend you to check out the online stores (these will often have a wide range of brands and prices to choose from) and then see what’s available locally.

In Europe I would recommend you check out:

• Dieter Schmid
• Dick

In the US you will have more choices but these are my favorites:

• Tools For Working Wood
• The Japan Woodworker
• Garrett Wade

In the end you can’t go wrong with either a good quality western or Japanese chisel, some will prefer the western tools while others will favor the Japanese ones.

Chisels

If you are on a budget, a set of three bevel edge chisels (1/4″, 1/2″ and 3/4″) will get most of the job done. It’s nice to have a few more sizes, but I’d rather have only these three and have quality chisels than have all the sizes available from 1/8″ to 2″ of lower quality steel.

A lower quality chisel will be a rather disappointing tool. It wont keep a good edge for long, it may chip or get blunt easily and even when properly sharpened they won’t cut through wood effortlessly.

There’s nothing worse than cutting wood with a blunt tool. It tears the wood fibers instead of slicing them and your exposed joinery won’t look very good.

These days Lie-Nielsen chisels are rated very high, these are expensive tools but you get what you pay for.

In my shop I have some western style bevel edge chisels but the ones I wouldn’t live without are my Japanese chisels. These are easy to sharpen and hone and will take a very sharp edge that will last for a long time.

Japanese chisels are somewhat different than the western ones. They are forged with two different types of steel, one that his very thin and hard and will become the back and the cutting edge, and on top of this is a softer steel that will support it.

Furthermore there is a hollow in the back of the chisel so it is easier to flatten the back that is made of very hard steel. Some of the better chisels will have multiple hollows in the back for extra support. A good feature on larger chisels.

Due to their construction, the Japanese chisels can’t be hollow ground and must be sharpened on a waterstone or oilstone. And if you want to keep your chisels for a long time, never lever chips of wood if you’re cutting mortises with them. Take it easy on these and get a mortise chisel for the job.

So, what is on my set of chisels? Here’s what:

• 3mm (1/8″) Japanese dovetail
• 6mm (1/4″) Japanese dovetail and western bevel edge
• 12mm (1/2″) Japanese fishtail and western bevel edge
• 19mm (3/4″) Japanese bevel edge (multiple hollows)
• 25mm (1″) Japanese bevel edge (multiple hollows)

As you can see, I managed to get all the sizes from 3mm to 25mm but instead of just buying a set I built my set based on my needs. For small sizes I chose dovetail chisels, these are quite useful for working in small joinery, and for larger sizes I chose standard bevel edge chisels which can take a little more abuse.

The western chisels are somewhat redundant but I’ll use them for more coarse work and will save the edges of the Japanese chisels for the finishing work.

The fishtail chisel is what I’d consider a specially tool, it has a very thin blade and excels at cleaning the pins on half-blind dovetails.

My next purchase will be a long paring chisel around 36mm, but this one will have to wait.

Next installment: Handplanes