Choice of bevel angle is usually determined by what you're doing with the chisel--my paring chisels are between 20-25 degrees; chisels I use for chopping dovetails are ground around 35 degrees. Try chopping dovetails in hard maple with a chisel ground at 20 degrees and it will probably chip (or seriously deform the edge).
If you don't already have Leonard Lee's book on sharpening, I highly recommend it. He talks a lot on bevel angles.
david
the hard layer at the cutting edge of a japanese laminated chisel is
*very* hard and also very brittle. it takes an amazing edge and holds it very well- but chips easily. if you tend to be rough with your tools, these aren't for you.
Okay thank you, I am getting the idea of the brittlness. What I will be doing is learning joinery, box and dovetail on smaller and thinner white pine, box joints first. So I will need a cheap carpenter's bench vice, a gent's saw and a miter box. But there are also those even cheaper Narex chisels made in C-Slovakia, made of chrom- olly steal, beach handles, ferruled and heavy steal hooped on top of the handles. I am wondering about the characteristics of chromolly for chiseling though, anyone know? It may be more of a springy steel that is not as brittle.
Thank you all very much for replying and helping, the good nature of people can be really great, and is as such now. I really appreciate it all, so I feel I owe everyone a good rib BBQ! I would if I could too, I have a great prep for the ribs, makes them awesome.
Alex
I have a set of these inexpensive chisels and i also have about four of the mid range chisels from japan wood worker for the price i think they are worth it especially if you are learning.
the advantages I see are they hold an awesome scary sharp edge a lot longer than a western chisel. I can consistently make paper thin curls on oak endgrain with my 1 inch japanese chisel long after my western ones wont cut butter if your work requires a lot of fine paring of joints such as making hundreds of hand cut dove tails in exotic wood i recommend them.
Whats the difference between the grizzly japanese chisels and other more expensive ones I doubt the grizzly ones are made by hand quality of fit and finish, the quality of the steel and the forging techniques is better. the prestige of owning a hand made tool with a master blacksmiths stamp on it
disadvantages
they are a bit shorter than western chisels they must be sharpened only by hand or a flat stone grinder like the makita, no grinding wheels they can be very very expensive if you get the ones made by master japanese blacksmiths if you abuse them or sharpen them wrong, the steel on the edge will chip
On the other hand, the Narex's may be, and most likely are the common design of bevel edged (semi) firmer types, same as all the stanleys and buck bros. found in any hard- ware store these days. I will try and get a seller to email me a closer shot of a blade, and get back on it.
Alex
Alex, I'd advise to spend just a little more and get the chisels hand made by chiselmaker Matsumura. You'll get great chisels from a renowned chiselmaker at a very good price. The Japanwoodworker brand chisels and the Grizzly chisels come from more obscure makers. You don't know who really made those chisels and their level of skill. You get what you pay for. Cheap Japanese tools are like cheap western tools...they're cheap. Matsumura chisels are a very good deal.
The harder carbon steel is very brittle and prone to chipping if not used properly. The softer, more flexible steel back supports the harder steel edge. The better Japanese chisels forge weld wrought iron to the steel. In even better Japanese chisels the iron comes from ship anchor chains that are over 100 years old. The reasoning is that they don't make chains like they used to, or at least the iron they're made from.
The reason for hollowing the backs is to ease flattening the backs. You don't have to remove as much material to flatten the backs. Eventually if you just honed the bevel yes, you'd run into the hollow. But, if you flatten the backs as you hone you'll wear away the hollow and have a flat section just behind the cutting edge. You can also tap out the hollow (carefully so as not to chip the edge) with a small square hammer designed for this purpose. Don't worry about this stuff too much. Good Japanese chisels need infrequent honing and it'll be a long time before you approach the hollow.
hope this helps,
Layne
Yes. Many of the swordmakers turned to tool making, specifically chisel making after the Shogunate forbade Samurai from carrying swords.
Layne
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