Recommendations for Mortise Chisels

[Gandalfs Staff]

With a budget of £100/150 can anyone point me in the direction of a semi decent mortise chisel starter set.

Relatively new to woodworking but feel I need to add a set of mortise chisels to my armoury so I can practice correct technique etc.

Thanks

 

[Jacob]

With a budget of £100/150 can anyone point me in the direction of a semi decent mortise chisel starter set.

Relatively new to woodworking but feel I need to add a set of mortise chisels to my armoury so I can practice correct technique etc.

Thanks

Depends what you make but many users only need a few sizes, typically 1/2" 3/8" and 1/4"
I'd start off with just one from ebay. From £5 to £15 perhaps.
The old oval bolster examples are generally superior to any of the new makes.
These look good but pricy and not always available English Mortise Chisels by Ray Iles

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

I used English oval Bolstered mortice chisels for a few decades. Sold them recently as I have come to prefer the Veritas versions. These are beautifully made, but will cost a lot more. In particular, the side edges of the blades are sharp (unlike well-used vintage chisels), which aids in cleaning the sides of the mortice.

I would just purchase a single chisel for now, if you can justify the outlay, and the size will depend on what you are building. A 1/4" will work with most cabinet size frames, and is a generally versatile size. A 3/8" will do for table legs.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[D_W]

With a budget of £100/150 can anyone point me in the direction of a semi decent mortise chisel starter set.

Relatively new to woodworking but feel I need to add a set of mortise chisels to my armoury so I can practice correct technique etc.

Thanks

Buy a 5/16" english firmer with straight sides. If you're doing cabinet sized work, that's probably what was used more than anything else.

The larger mortise chisels with fat tall cross sections are for deeper work.

 

[johna.clements]

I have just purchased two Narex 8112 Mortice Chisel s from Wood Workers Workshop- 8mm and a 4mm. £15.90 each. have no idea how good they are, have cut a few mortises for locks over the years with beveled chisels (I think they may have been from B&Q about twenty years ago) but I would like to try some joints.

 

[Peter Sefton]

I have the Narex in my student tool kits, best value for money new Mortice chisels IMO and well regarded by customers.

https://woodworkersworkshop.co.uk/narex/?sort=featured&page=1
Cheers

Peter

 

[thetyreman]

plenty of old ones on ebay, search for 'pig sticker' if you want an imperial size you should find loads.

 

[Orraloon]

I would have liked to build a set of vintage pig stickers but you usually only find them sold as singles and it would take years to collect a set so I went with the Narex set. Good value and the work OK even on Australian hard woods.
Regards
John

 

[D.Stephenson]

Another vote for the Narex mortice chisels, I bought a set of four and a couple of extras last year for use by students. They have been great, keeping a good edge and survived the odd drop unscathed. Handles are a bit ‘meh’ but for the money they are hard to beat.

I have had a set of LN mortice chisels for 15 years, in comparison these Narex chisels are a bit chunkier than them which would be an advantage for doing larger mortices (traditional door size perhaps) but they are a good size and weight for finer furniture work too.

 

[Spectric]

I know that a chiesel is to woodworking what a hacksaw is to metalworking and yes cutting mortices used to be done with chiesels but if like myself you are not super skilled doing this then what is wrong with just using a router. Yes it is not the cheaper option but having just done two mortices for a door with a trend lock jig and a router it took less than half an hour with a perfect result, had I attacked that job with a chiesel it would have taken far longer and who knows what results I would have got. I must say that I do admire those who can use the chiesel to it's full potential, having seen some hand cut dovetails where no power tools were involved and just saw & chiesels to achieve perfection shows a amazing level of skill.

 

[IWW]

I spent many years making mortises with all sorts of chisels, starting with B.E. chisels, the only type of chisel I owned in my first dozen years of woodworking & really not the best tool for the job by a long shot! My tenons always required 4 shoulders to hide the pinch marks from the backs of the chisels.

Eventually, I discovered good old firmer chisels were common in just about every "antique" store at the time, not at all expensive, and a big improvement for mortising. Around that time I also acquired a couple of "pigstickers" & thought I was about to enter mortising Nirvana. Not so - either from native stupidity or because I was too used to the firmer style, we just didn't get on & I ended up sticking firmly with firmers. Not long before I retired, when my income was at its peak, I splurged on a set of Lie-Nielsen mortising chisels - noice, but the improvement compared with my faithful old Titan firmers is not great. As Derek pointed out, the sharp corners on brand-new chisels are handy for shearing sides clean (but can also do a number on careless hands & fingers!), so they do make life a bit easier.

IMO, chopping straight, clean mortises is one of the more difficult skills to acquire in w'working, no matter what chisels you use. I tell beginners it's easier to cut perfect dovetails than perfect mortises. They don't believe me at first, but do after their first door or two comes out looking like something designed by Escher. The cyber & print world is full of "how tos" & aids to ensure the chisel is being held straight. Follow whichever one appeals to you, but the best method of all is simply practice - if you persist long enough, "muscle-memory" will eventually happen.

And yep, the two sizes that get used far & away the most in typical cabinetry I do are the 3/8" & 1/4" (or 9 & 6mm if you prefer metric sizes). If you set very small mortise locks in small cabinet doors & boxes, you may need a 1/8", and that's about it. One of the few times you'll need a 1/2" or larger is to build your workbench, so unless you are planning to take up heavy timber-framing, just use a firmer for the very occasional large mortise you'll need to make...


Cheers,

 

[Jacob]

I spent many years making mortises with all sorts of chisels, starting with B.E. chisels, the only type of chisel I owned in my first dozen years of woodworking & really not the best tool for the job by a long shot! My tenons always required 4 shoulders to hide the pinch marks from the backs of the chisels.

...

Pinch marks means wrong technique!
Old OBM chisels are very specifically designed for the job and have a specific technique which makes them fast and efficient, but only if you know how to do it. It doesn't involve the often quoted "levering".
All the modern offerings are feeble imitations as far as I can see, and no more use than an ordinary firmer, except English Mortise Chisels by Ray Iles
1/2" are for doors and windows more than anything, or heavy furniture like kitchen tables.
PS I wrote it up here Search results for query: (1/2" Joseph Haywood)
PPS it's a bit contentious that thread - apologies - I was on the defensive! Just checked, I'd forgotten all about it.