Japanese (mortice) chisel

[pompon44]

Hi,

I'd like to buy 1 (or a very small set) mortice chisel, in order to first prove myself a) I can do a clean mortice by hand b) I prefer a mortice chisel over something like drill&chisel.
At the same time I'd like to test a Japanese bench chisel (I do own an old set of 6 chisels, Müller brand, look of pretty poor quality). I'm currently reading David C's first book, and this reading has obviously something to do with my willing to test Japanese chisel...
Now, in both instances I'd like to buy something reasonably good quality (as I only plan on 2 for the moment, price can be something like 30-40 £ I guess). The mortice one does not *need* to be Japanese, but well, why not.

Browsing this and other forums, as far as the bench chisel (Oire Nomi) is concerned, Iyoroi seem a good deal, but are there different flavours of them ? Is this one a good pick :

http://www.dick.biz/cgi-bin/dick.storef ... iew/710135 ?

And for mortice, anyone knows this one

http://www.dick.biz/cgi-bin/dick.storef ... iew/710175

Both links from Dick, for I only found Iyoroi chisels on this (european, at least) site. Other providers possible, of course.

Thanks for any help,

Regards,

 

[Anonymous]

anys any mate. I think there all good.

Tell you a handy chisel to get. A cranked necked chisel. The handles raised so the blade back can lie flush off any surface. Very handy. Mines a jap version and its the most used chisel in my shed. Work like little chisel planes.

Handy for almost everything. For carpentry work I'm doing at the moment its always being used to clean up corners and the like.

What I'd like though is one with a smaller handle.....not the long jap ones....something small like a butt chisel handle to fit in my tool belt.

 

[Scott]

Salut Pompon44

Jake is talking about these. I have a couple and I like them too.

They are Iyoroi and Axminster do the Oire Nomi too. Try "Shop by brand" in the "Quick Links" section to find all their Iyoroi products. I have some Kote Nomi too that I like but I'm afraid I don't own Oire Nomi. It looks like the Dick prices might be a bit better though.

Classic Hand Tools have a very nice selection of Japanese chisels including
these recommended by David C (who might be along shortly if your luck is in!). They are a bit more expensive though.

I've no affiliation with either of these companies but if you do choose to use them at any point I can vouch for the fact that they both ship to France at reasonable cost

Cheers

 

[Scott]

...and have you considered Lie-Nielsen mortice chisels??

 

[ByronBlack]

Hi

I have the japanse mortice chisels from axminster:http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Iyoroi-Japanese-Tateguya-Nomi-Mortice-Chisels-23444.htm

They are excellent, really strong beasts, hold a great edge, and are really nice to use.[/url]

 

[pompon44]

Hi all,

Thanks for your answers.

Concerning the LN : actually I have not considered them so far, as I found them too expensive. But now that I see the range of Japanese chisels prices (Hiraide Oire Nomi 9mm is 38 £ ~ 72 $) (and that I at last realize that 40 £ is 75 $... ) I guess I could.
I'm still confused about different prices within the same maker's offers. Like the 2 Iyori at Dick (again, 9mm, one is 25.64 €, the other 35.73 €), or 2 different Matsumura at JapanWoodworker (white and blue steel, 39.25 $ and 47.95$ respectively). I assume more expensive means better quality, but then, do a beginner needs that extra quality ? Will I be able to even notice the difference ?

And concerning the mortice chisel, my trouble is even bigger (or maybe smaller, after all ;-) ) as I find much less choice on the online market. Is there an obvious reason for that ?

Anyway, thanks for your help,

Regards,

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

Hi Pompon

Have you considered Oval Bolstered Mortice chisels ("pigstickers")? Vintage ones are relatively inexpensive. New ones can also be obtained from Ray Iles at http://www.oldtoolstore.co.uk/

I have both the OBM and Japanese types and much prefer the OBM over Japanese mortice chisels. They have greater heft, are generally longer, and overall just feel more powerful. (For the ultimate in powerhouse mortice chisels, however, try some extra long Ibbotson's!).

I guess I am saying that there are alternatives to Japanese mortice chisels that you should consider.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[pompon44]

Hi Derek,

Well, in fact I did have a look at Ray Iles' ones (at http://www.toolsforworkingwood.com/Merc ... _Code=TBMC) (the link you give is well... not exactly what I would call a user friendly web site... at leas for a beginner woodworker ;-) ).
Look nice for sure, but are even more expensive than the LN...

Anyway, thanks for the answer (just added confusion to my mind ;-) )

Regards,

 

[Chris Knight]

Another vote for pigstickers. The depth front to back is a very useful aid in keeping the chisel lined up with where you want it to be when you belt it with a mallet. A chisel with a shallow depth can twist as you hit it if you are a little bit careless and that messes up the walls of the mortice.

Oh, and the bevels (on the pigstickers) are meant to be rounded, they make it easier to lever out the chips.

 

[pompon44]

Hi,

Sorry to jump again on this, but I've still not made up my mind on the non-mortice chisel ;-) FYI for the mortice one I'll either live w/o it for a while or take a Ray Iles' pair.

I contacted TWW and ClassicHandtools and both very kindly and very quickly gave the following advices :

TWW : http://www.toolsforworkingwood.com/Merc ... y_Code=CIY

Classic : http://www.classichandtools.com/acatalo ... eller.html

Any user of one of those ? What's the pro/cons of the dovetail profile of the first (I would assume them to be targeted to more delicate work, is this the case really ?)

Thanks,