Chisels

[Brian Trout]

Hi Rob,

I've had a set (of six) of the 'Blue Marples' chisels for a while now.
They're readily available, and the set is maybe $50 or so.  (I think you can
buy a set of 4 for about $30.)

The steel is a little softer than I'd like, which means I have to sharpen
them a bit more often than I'd like when they're under heavy use such as
carving hard maple, but for the most part, they've treated me ok.  Some
people like a short stubby chisel.  I personally like a long chisel, and the
Blue Marples were among the longer of the ones readily available when I was
looking.

It will be in your own best interest to spend a bit of money on tools to
keep your tools sharp.  There's another area where you'll have a number of
options and will probably have to try and see what might work for you.
There's always Japanese water stones, there's diamond stones, there's honing
straps, there's big stones, and little stones, etc...  There are also a few
jigs you can make that will help to achieve the angles you desire for the
bevel(s), or you might find that you'll want to do some 'custom' shaping to
your chisel.

You'll even find a pretty wide variety of methods of using the chisel for
making that notch.  Some will put the flat side of the chisel down, some
will put the flat side up, and some go both ways.  What's right is what
works for you and gives you the results you desire.

Good luck in your search for the perfect tool.  :-)

Brian Trout
Quarryville, PA
btrout@desupernet.net