Thread: Mortise Chisel basic set

I think that 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2 inch would get you out of trouble most of the time. Remember you will be cutting your tenons to fit your chisel sizes, so think about what thickness of timber you will be tenoning, and roughly take a third of this for the mortise. Cut the mortise with the chisel closest to this, and this will be the thickness of your tenon.
Good luck
SG

I agree with SG. Although there may be an occasion when a 1/8" could be used, I very much doubt you'd need anything larger than 1/2" for cabinets. A 1/2" is more common for table legs. Remember the 1/3 Rule: the mortice is a third the width of the stretcher. So a 1/4" chisel is used on a 3/4" wide edge.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thanks for the prompt replies,
Yeah I guess that one inch chisel isn't going to get used that often - i've got it in my mind now because the legs for this bench are 7cm square so one inch is the right size - I'm not likely to see 7cm square stock again soon. So, only three needed for now - great, I like it when the forcast gets cheaper...

Coxy

I'm not sure you even need three proper mortising chisels - the ordinary firmer ones will likely do a reasonable job for most of your chopping. I would experiment with them to find the one size you use most often, then just buy that size in a mortising chisel.

I chiselled 3/4 mortises into pine recently, and found that I used a 3/4 inch firmer for most digging, a 1/4 inch firmer for getting into the corners and a one inch bevel edge (by hand not with a mallet) to clean and straighten the long edges of the mortise at the end.