Thread: A bit of self indulgence.....(tool )

Very nice he says with an understanding nod.

I've only got one ........at the moment

Cheers
Mike

Nice one Ian.

I doubt you'll be regretting that acquisition any time soon.

Cheers,
sCORCH

... all over the forum, L-N users are knodding sagely!
nice one Ian,
fletty

Nice one, Ian. I bought a set in the US a couple of years ago. (insert contented sighs here, why is there no contented sigh smilie?)

You will enjoy them, and eventually the pain of the cost will fade to a distant memory (like that awful teacher in year 3) and all you'll be left with is the value.

Enjoy!

Tex

I, for one, am envious.

Half your luck Ian!

Good on you Ian! we all deserve a treat now and then.. and they look like a lot fun.

Nice Ian. Are you going to bring them along in October?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Originally Posted by derekcohen

Nice Ian. Are you going to bring them along in October?

Regards from Perth

Derek

I think, Derek, these will be living under lock & key when I'm not actually using them. At least til I get over the shock of lashing out like that. But I intend to bring along a conversation starter, or two..........

Still feeling slightly guilty about spending the kids' inheritance, but who knows, maybe one of them will take up the noble pursuit one day & be pleased to give these another life? (Though I fully intend using up some of that metal before I hand them on to anyone. )

Cheers,

Damn you Ian. I have been steadfastly holding to the belief that blokes such as yourself can summon good results from run-of-the-mill tools and thereby consoling myself that the rubbish I've got in my chisel drawer can be made to work with the right attitude. Then you go and do this. I will personally never forgive you for crossing the floor.

Nice work Ian,

Couple of questions;

Could you post a picture of the thickness (depth) of the chisels. Are they relatively thin?

Do you find the handles a bit small?

Thanks,
Harlan

Originally Posted by silentC

Damn you Ian. I have been steadfastly holding to the belief that blokes such as yourself can summon good results from run-of-the-mill tools and thereby consoling myself that the rubbish I've got in my chisel drawer can be made to work with the right attitude. Then you go and do this. I will personally never forgive you for crossing the floor.

And I've been clinging to that philosophy for years too, Silent! I've paid my dues & made a lot of things, a few of which I'm reasonably proud of, with that motley crew. I don't for one second imagine I'm going to make anything better because I was rash enough to splash cash on some expensive tools.

But I am hoping that I'll get to enjoy what I do a little more - besides their edge-holding, these things really are good to hold - they suit my smallish hands much better than the clod-hopping carpenters' tools they fob off on us as bevel-edge chisels. And look at it another way - now I have NO excuses for even a hint of a gap in my dovetails.

But you have hit me in a sensitive spot, you so & so - I was feeling guilty enough as it was, & now you declare I've let the side down, too. I'm going to have to go & open the dawer as soon as I get home tonight & just stare at them & fondle a couple to make me feel better..............

Cheers,

Originally Posted by Wooden Mechanic

Nice work Ian,

Couple of questions;

Could you post a picture of the thickness (depth) of the chisels. Are they relatively thin?

Do you find the handles a bit small?

Thanks,
Harlan

Hi Harlan - will try to photograph the sides for you tonight.

The chisels themselves aren't thin, in fact they are quite thick compared to my low-pedigree breeds. But the bevels are ground to within < 1mm of the back - not a sharp edge like a knife, but quite thin. They are also very neatly done, and consistent from size to size. This is their big attraction to me - you can get them cleanly into the corner without marking the wood on the tail. For comparison, I have a couple of Two Cherries, which have both thick & crude bevels - they vary from side to side & from chisel to chisel. The steel in them is good - they take & hold an edge very well, but it was the crude, thick edges on the 6mm one that was really bugging me a couple of weekends ago when I was trying to cut some fine dovetails for a showpiece.

The handles are definitely not everyone's cup of tea - they are indeed quite small. However, it depends how you hold a chisel for various operations - I tend to hold them by the end for dovetailing, so I can place them accurately in the cut line. The small overall size & light handle make this so much easier. If you have a big fist & like to clutch a chisel by the wood (as I do with a mortising chisel, for eg) these are certainly a bit on the small side, though they feel good when paring with them. P'raps it seems a bit drastic to pay this much & fit new handles, but if you did get some & didn't like the handles, they are dead easy to replace. A bit more of a problem if you don't have a lathe & have no turning experience, of course!

In fact, I may well end up replacing my handles - not for the size, but because the Hornbeam, much as it is a good handle wood, is as bland as bat poo - we have so many nicer woods to choose from than Mr. Lie-Nielsen...
(Now I really am turning into a tool wanker - but these things are superbly made compared with anything else I've seen, or likely to own, so a bit of customising is called for). Silent

,
Cheers

Harlan – here you go. Came home early to mark exam papers, so got some pics in the daylight.

First pic, top to bottom: A trio of 3/8 chisels. LN, Two Cherries, and a New Haven Edge Tool Co. The LN is the runt of the litter.
Next pic is a close-up of the side view. It’s pretty obvious that the LN is the clear winner in thinness of the edge. It’s hard to measure accurately, but something like 0.6mm on this size (3/8). The TC is something like 4x that, but also rough & inconsistent, so even harder to measure. However, the LN actually has the thicker blade of the two. The NH is a thing of rare beauty – starts off thin at the tip (though not quite as thin as the LN) & both the blade thickness & the bevel sweep elegantly up to the socket. It's as neat as a pin from tip to socket.

A friend gave me an incomplete set of these New Haven Edge Tool socket chisels about 25 years ago. Yep, that’s right GAVE them to me. I protested (very weakly) and then scuttled off home with them as fast as I could, before he changed his mind! Actually, they didn’t look all that beguiling at first blush, there were 5 very grotty tools floating around in an old wooden box with some other junk, and 40 years worth of dirt. They were all badly ground, burred & chipped, two had handles missing, and some clown had hammered the daylights out of the top of the empty socket of the 1”. He said he got them for a few dollars at an auction, along with some garden tools, which is what he was really bidding for. But he saw my jaw drop & the lustful, coveting stare..........

They had a few rust pits on the backs of the blades, & a couple took quite a while to get clean & polished again. I don’t know for sure what the handles are (if anyone knows what wood was favoured by that company, I would like to hear), but anyway, Applewood isn’t a bad match, so they all have handles again, and most wouldn’t spot the ring-ins until they looked very closely. They are just beautiful paring instruments – note the way the socket follows the sweep of the back, which allows you to lay the full blade flat on the work. They have all been used-up a bit – I estimate most would have been at least 25mm longer when new (by comparing against the least used of the batch). The sad bit is that there was no ¾ size, & I use ½”, ¾” and 1” the most when paring. I looked around a bit while still living in Canada, but never saw any others like it – have seen the odd one come up on epay, but not a ¾. So I have put a Henry Taylor socket in its place (pic 3). It’s a nice, sturdy tool, but totally without the finesse of the NHs, and with a straight socket (meant to be bashed, not pushed). The edge is not only thick on this one, it’s as rough as guts (Pics 4).

Maybe some day, someone will give me the missing NH ¾”, but I’m not holding my breath!

So there, Silent - most of my really nice tools have been acquired in ways you'd approve of, with time, a sharp eye, & lots of patience, over many years (50 plus).

Avagoodweekend