Teensy chisel

[bugbear]

Just bought (from a dealer, for once) the narrowest chisel I've ever seen.

It's in the fairly familiar semi-mortise style, of which I have several examples, all at around the 1/8" size. They're very handy.

But the new one mike's at 0.072", or near enough 1/16". :shock:

I'm planning to use a wide based jig to restore and sharpen it.

The brand is Frost of Norwich, which was a large (indeed, dominant) tool retailer. I don't therefore know who made it.

BugBear

 

[AndyT]

Interesting! I'm sure you will be showing us some pictures but I'd like to see if it's that thickness (or should I say thinness) all the way up?
This is my thinnest which I inherited from a friend. The first inch or so is about 3/64" but it's hard to tell if it was made like that or ground down by a user. It's about 3/32" at the rather unclear marks which are on either side so must presumably be the original thickness at that point.

 

[MIGNAL]

I have one at 2 mm's but that's a specialist luthiers chisel, not that there's anything special about it. I've made a few from old needle files that are much thinner than that. Mostly I use them as a kind of scratch stock for inlay.

 

[bugbear]

A re-check with the micrometer shows a pretty much gradual increase over the length of the blade, from 0.072" to 0.085", 13 thou in all, or about 1/100".

So I think the small size is as "manufactured"

BugBear

 

[AndyT]

Any pics on the way? I've not needed to use my chisel yet, but I did try sharpening it and getting a straight end on such a small surface is not as easy as I thought it ought to be, so I'd like to see your method.

 

[bugbear]

Any pics on the way?

(wanders into "studio")

BugBear

 

[JohnPW]

The narrowest manufactured chisel I've got is 2.2mm, I think. I've got quite a few at 3mm and 3.5mm. Eg:

My narrowest are ones I made myself, 1.5mm from ground flat stock and 1mm from a jigsaw blade.

And I do use them, eg for making thumb planes, mortices for linings on a violin.

 

[Corneel]

The narrowest I've got is only 1 mm. But it really is a sweep 1 carving chisel, so I don't know if that counts?

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

The small chisel on the right is a 1/16" Iyoroi. The others are Koyamaichi dovetail chisels.

It was used ...

... to build a small box with small dovetails ...

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[bugbear]

but I did try sharpening it and getting a straight end on such a small surface is not as easy as I thought it ought to be, so I'd like to see your method.

Well, the back was a bit more sensuous than I like, especially near the tip. To remove the curves and convexity I held the chisel vertically by the sides of the blade, and rubbed it on a DMT diamond stone. EDIT; the red one, 25 micron, 50p from a car boot sale, only diamond stone I own.

You didn't expect me to try that by hand did you?! :shock: The key piece of kit here, apart from my monster jig, was a toolmaker's clamp.

This created a back that was flat, straight and polished, in around 10 minutes. It's a small area.

The bevel tool rather less time - I just used an Eclipse #36 jig in side clamping mode; the wheel was easily wide enough to hold the tip in a stable position for the 60 careful seconds it took; I used an Arkansas stone for this, deeming stone hardness and fine texture to be crucial for such a small working area.

I'm going to re-use the jig setup with coarser abrasive for a 1/8" Sorby OBM chisel I've been putting off restoring; it's quite rusty and pitted including the back.

BugBear

 

[Carl P]

Fantastic jig - wonderfully OTT in appearance, also somehow menacing in a low tech SF dystopian world kind of way, main thing is it works!

Cheerio,

Carl

 

[bugbear]

Fantastic jig - wonderfully OTT in appearance, also somehow menacing in a low tech SF dystopian world kind of way, main thing is it works!

It comes in handy sometimes

http://www.woodworkinfo.site88.net/tour ... pening_jig

It's really more like a graver sharpener

Or a ornamental turner's sharpener:

or even a diamond faceting "tang"

BugBear

 

[David C]

Great job, wonderful devices.

Kell no 1 with big wheels also does excellent job on bevel side, for sq edges.

best wishes,
David

 

[matthewwh]

Ashley Iles still make a 1/16" chisel.

They would be difficult to machine, but for a skilled hand grinder they're no trouble.

Link

If you want to go really small, how about a curved 1/32" V Tool.

Link

 

[Corneel]

I used mine for dovetails too. I accidentily made the dovetails a bit too narrow.
I can't remember the need for sharpening contraptions though. They sharpen up easilly enough freehand. Just a few swipes on an oilstone to raise a wire edge. They're probably not 90 degrees though, might be 89, or even 88

 

[bugbear]

I used mine for dovetails too. I accidentily made the dovetails a bit too narrow.
I can't remember the need for sharpening contraptions though. They sharpen up easilly enough freehand. Just a few swipes on an oilstone to raise a wire edge. They're probably not 90 degrees though, might be 89, or even 88

Yeah - eventual sharpening was easy and quick. Working the back - not so much.

The back was irregular enough that it wouldn't seat securely on the stone, even allowing for the small size.

It seats very nicely now - removing the burr using the arkansas was a positive pleasure.

BugBear

 

[David C]

I am sure the jigging for the back was worthwhile.

I have never seen a flat back on an old one of these chisels. The tendency to rock is almost impossible to avoid.

David

 

[Corneel]

Then we are back to the question, how flat should it be? But that's allready extensively covered elsewhere.

 

[David C]

And the answer is........

Flat near the tip is very desirable.

It allows the wire edge to be properly honed away.

No subsequent messing about with strops required.

David

 

[Jacob]

Then we are back to the question, how flat should it be? But that's allready extensively covered elsewhere.

Depends what you are doing with it.
BBs chisel is strictly a mortice chisel - the wide blade could make it difficult for DTs - a fine bevel edged chisel would be better.
As a mortice chisel a fairly straight face is handy for an inch or so. For DTs and other processes it might not matter at all.