mortise chisels in LeeValley

[Jack Gray]

'bout to buy a couple mortise chisels for chopping some deep mortises and don't know what to buy. Seems like i've heard some bad poop on Sorby but don't know anything about the Hirsch. I like ordering from LV but i want good chisels.

All recomendations are appreciated.

thanks jack

[Robin Lee]

Jack -

Hirsch is the same as "Two Cherries".... so that gives you twice as many options for searching/soliciting reviews....

Cheers -

Rob

[Hax Planx]

I like my Sorby chisels better than any other I have tried so far. They are nearly ready to go out of the package. Not so for Hirsch or Two Cherries. They have an annoying plastic coating that I remove with paint stripper and require some serious honing time to get them in top shape. Especially frustrating were backs that were far from flat, possibly from the high polish they are given at the factory. I have no idea why they do this. If anybody knows, I would be glad to hear it. I like the way they cut now that they are up to speed, and the edge holding seems fine, but I didn't like how much work it took to get there. I'm planning on trying a few of the more sane priced Japanese chisels next and see if I like them.

I never heard what the knock on Sorby chisels was, just some vague comments to the effect that they aren't what they used to be. All three of mine were nearly flat out of the package and had nice, crisp machining.

[Swingman]

Good to hear, and timely. I own one Sorby, a corner chisel, and had budgeted funds as late as last week to purchase more Sorby's, two at a time, until I had a full set.

[AAvK]

I bought this Henry Taylor set, great price:

had read that the Sorby steel is loaded with too much "silicon" or some such, which makes it softer and more shock absorbing, this was from an old chisel review in a magazine from about '95, in which the steel of all the chisels was chemically tested for content. One would need to sharpen more often. These HTs have thick steel ferrules and hoops on beech handles.

I have not used them yet so I cannot report on their edge holding qualities, Andy Dingly said: "Henry Taylors are what Robert Sorby should be"... that was the final straw and I bought 'em.

But If you get them, tell them to make sure the blades are straight inline with the handles, I have had two replaced.

However, despite the over polished backs of the Two Cherries and Hirsch, they are famous for being the best steel in chisels from anywhere in Europe, the rockwell "C" test for hardness is 62 which is excellent. You'd sharpen less often and because of that they take a very fine edge much easier and faster than cheaper gummy steels. So even if you have to do a lot of work to flatten the backs it might be better in the long run for quality of use.

[arw01]

I bought a Japan woodworker 1/2 Matasushima (sp) chisel last week. I've not honed it up yet, and will be my first mortise chisel. On the

10th I head for Cosman's class in Canada with a woodworking friend. He bought a full set of Hirsh for the class.

The Hirsh are a bit large for my taste in just holding them, I have not used them yet. After the class I hope to have tried a few different mortise chisels and see which I prefer.

I can tell you the Japan woodworker bench chisels definetely get sharper and hold their edge better than my vintage 720's do for dovetail work. The Japan chisel honed on 1000 grit Shapton by hand is sharper than my 720 up to 8000 with a jig.

Alan

[lgb]

I can't compare brands, but I've got two Sorby mortise chisels and I have no complaints. At the time I got mine (a few years ago) the best price I could find was at:

You can either put the URL together or start at the base address and work your way to the "Heavy Duty" Sorby chisels.

[Australopithecus scobis]

I have a Hirsch from LV. As another poster pointed out, the Hirsch comes with a coating. That's lacquer, to prevent rusting during shipment and storage. It comes right off with acetone. Some of the ugly yellow paint comes off along with the lacquer. Mine did take a lot of work to flatten the back. Perhaps someone who has owned both Two Cherries and Hirsch can comment--maybe they're not exactly the same.

I found that a secondary bevel of 35 deg was adequate for hard maple. At any more acute angle the tip bent.

That huge handle is really nice when whacking a deep mortise.

[Jack Gray]

thanks for the input. I think i'll try a couple of the Sorby's. i'll post a review on them after i use them some.

happy trails jack

[Hax Planx]

I have one of each and they appear to be exactly the same to me.

[Australopithecus scobis]

[charlie b]

Jim Wilson was making some very nice beefy mortising chisels that he sold through Steve Knight's site. RC 62, backs flat, sides square and flat and thick. The bevel to sides edge is sharp enough to siice the sides of the mortise. It will also slice your finger - DAMHIKT.

Though Jim's site says he's quit making them I recall a post that he's started making them again. Go to his site and drop him a line.

b

ps. If you get a mortising chisel stuck in a mortise, when you're tugging and pulling - keep your chin out of the exit path. If not, you WILL literally see stars. DAMHIKT..