Carving chisel set advice

[Sawdust=manglitter]

I already have a decent set of Henry Taylor palm carving chisels for smaller stuff which I've enjoyed using so far, but would like to try my hand at some larger carvings. So long story short, funds are currently low and I have the opportunity to buy a set of 12 Rutlands/Dakota carving chisels probably half the price sold new at the below link...

http://www.rutlands.co.uk/sp+woodworkin ... nds+dk6716

I know Rutlands don't have the best of reputation for quality etc, but I don't know if it's worth taking a punt on this set, cheap or not.

Has anyone bought a set? Any thoughts?

 

[AndyT]

Every book I have read about carving says not to buy a set of tools.
It depends on what sort of work you plan, but most carving is done with gouges. In that set, less than half are gouges. The rest are flat chisels and some odd profiles I think you would never use.

A common fault with cheap carving tools is that the thickness of the steel is not consistent across the tool. This is impossible to judge from a stock photo.

I think you should look for some good older tools, second hand.

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Having a close look at them, although the handles are different, the steel parts closely resemble a set I was given, but mine were branded Silverline.

If I need continue ... I also have some old gouges by Marples and Addis. They are very different. Long, slender, light and keep a good edge. The Silverline ones are short, chunky and dull quickly. And as Andy notes, there are a lot of peculiar shapes in there. Never figured out what some of them were for - a few look like shrunken turning tools. I used them when I want to regrind a custom shape for a particular job.

 

[banjerbill]

I bought a set of these before I knew any better. They are absolute rubbish, as already said some are not even carving profiles. I now use Pfeil almost exclusively, they are not cheap but if you buy one as you need it you can soon build up a decent set. GS Timber in the Lake District is a good source.

Please don't buy the Rutland set, you will be wasting your money and it could put you off persuing a very enjoyable hobby.

Bill

 

[Lons]

Don't do it, you'll wish you hadn't and waste your hard earned. With the palm chisels you've established you like carving so don't let poor quality chisels spoil that.

Andy is right about advice on sets, you'll find in reality that you'll use only 2 or 3 regularly and much better to buy single chisels as you need them. The contradiction to that is if you can find a decent s/h set cheap it's probably worth getting, there are plenty of good makes around. I have probably 60 or 70 chisels left having sold quite a few ( don't ask why I had them ) and use no more than half a dozen for most of my carving my favourites being a couple of Pfeil fishtails.

Every woodcarver will have different opinions and you need to find your own preferences over time.

Bob

PS: Almost all my carvings are in the round and slightly different requirements are in order for relief work and lettering.

 

[Sawdust=manglitter]

Thank you all for the advice, you've reaffirmed my doubts! I now know why the Rutlands set was being sold s/h so cheap and looking pretty new.

If I were to start by buying individual chisels, what would people recommend as the first three 'essential' chisels to get me going? I don't really understand the numbering of the sizes/types