pidgeonpost
Established Member
A week ago I decided to buy myself some new bevel-edged chisels - either individuals or as a set of 5 or 6. Fairly simple I thought.
I began by browsing the Axminster catalog, and homed in on two possibilities:-
1. The Kirschen boxed set at around £66. I have since refined this as I would prefer the unpolished ones.
2. Japanese alloy steel jobbies at around £111, this being at the thick end of my budget.
(http://www.axminster.co.uk/recno/2/prod ... -19680.htm)
I knew nowt about the Japanese ones having heard only anecdotal references to their qualities - but were they worth twice the price of the German ones?
A bit more web-browsing revealed that the Axminster Japanese set were actually at the budget end of the range, with other Jap makers costing a great deal more. There were also a couple of references to the alloy-steel being harder to sharpen, more likely to chip, and less able to take a fine edge - in fact being somewhere closer to HSS in composition. Further reading on these forums has introduced Ashley Iles into the equation (I had originally looked at their web-site but like other contributors I saw only carving and turning tools). They too look attractive at around £115. Again, are they worth twice the price of the Kirschens (maybe I should support an English maker rather than German or Japanese, and yes, I know the handles look much nicer on the AI ones)!
All this has served only to further confuse me to the point where I need to remove my brain, give it a rinse in cold water, and start again.
Lots has been written on the Kirschen and AI chisels on the forum, but does anyone have any experience of the Axminster Japanese set mentioned above please?
I began by browsing the Axminster catalog, and homed in on two possibilities:-
1. The Kirschen boxed set at around £66. I have since refined this as I would prefer the unpolished ones.
2. Japanese alloy steel jobbies at around £111, this being at the thick end of my budget.
(http://www.axminster.co.uk/recno/2/prod ... -19680.htm)
I knew nowt about the Japanese ones having heard only anecdotal references to their qualities - but were they worth twice the price of the German ones?
A bit more web-browsing revealed that the Axminster Japanese set were actually at the budget end of the range, with other Jap makers costing a great deal more. There were also a couple of references to the alloy-steel being harder to sharpen, more likely to chip, and less able to take a fine edge - in fact being somewhere closer to HSS in composition. Further reading on these forums has introduced Ashley Iles into the equation (I had originally looked at their web-site but like other contributors I saw only carving and turning tools). They too look attractive at around £115. Again, are they worth twice the price of the Kirschens (maybe I should support an English maker rather than German or Japanese, and yes, I know the handles look much nicer on the AI ones)!
All this has served only to further confuse me to the point where I need to remove my brain, give it a rinse in cold water, and start again.
Lots has been written on the Kirschen and AI chisels on the forum, but does anyone have any experience of the Axminster Japanese set mentioned above please?
