Thread: English Mortice Chisels (for Scribbly Gum)

Thanks Kev.
Those are real beauties.
Looks like you have the full range of mortice sizes well and truly covered.
Those pig sticker morticing chisels are very much sought after.
You have done well to make such a fine collection.
Will we see a special chisels shelf or cupboard on the drawing board anytime soon?
Thanks again for posting the photos.
I get a real buzz from seeing other collections.
Regards from Tele Point
SG

Originally Posted by Scribbly Gum

Thanks Kev.
Those are real beauties.
Looks like you have the full range of mortice sizes well and truly covered.
Those pig sticker morticing chisels are very much sought after.
You have done well to make such a fine collection.
Will we see a special chisels shelf or cupboard on the drawing board anytime soon?
Thanks again for posting the photos.
I get a real buzz from seeing other collections.
Regards from Tele Point
SG

If I can get away from restoring tools and using them I may be able to make some thing.

Kev's morticing chisels are works of art. I have never owned one, and have made do with a variety of chisels until some heavy socket types came along.
Mine are mostly Wards and Woodcocks with the odd Marples.
Yes, I know what you're thinking,
How many 1" and 1 1/4" mortices will he cut?
Answer: Up to this point - absolutely none.
Those two chisels round out the set and .... you never know....one day....
Couple of new handles needed as you can see.
That 1" Woodcock has the hardest steel of any chisel I've ever ground - and I've done a few.
I have no idea what the little 1/8" chisel is - It looks very old.
Cheers from Tele Point
SG

Seeing as you collect Woodcocks SG I thought I might post this to make you drool. Woodcock 1/4 inch mortice chisel I picked up for $2. It is in the quue for rehandling now I have a lathe and I think it will end up with a Titan firmer style handle.

Originally Posted by Burnsy

Seeing as you collect Woodcocks SG I thought I might post this to make you drool. Woodcock 1/4 inch mortice chisel I picked up for $2. It is in the quue for rehandling now I have a lathe and I think it will end up with a Titan firmer style handle.

I am green with envy Burnsy.
You will not be disappointed - Woodcocks are great.
Regards from Tele Point
SG

Show and tell time.

Mine are an eclectic set picked up over the years and still waiting for a full clean and sharpen. I actually find my working set seems to be the 1/4" and 1/2" firmer, the 1" and 3/4" bevel edge and a wonderful old 5/8" bevel edge that has been in the tool bag since day 1 (bottom 2nd left) and has done an enormous amount of jobs demolishing and renovating.

The 4 paring chisels (middle right) are a recent acquisition and nice to use, I look forward to giving them some more joinery type work. The rest of that row are mostly odd size gouges and two socket motices (mortii?).

The English mortice chisels top left are a mix of Ward, Sorby and Ibbotson. I found all but one of the 3/8 as a set in an antique mall in Melbourne. The sizes are 5/8 9/16 3/8 3/8 5/16 1/4 1/8. I've actually used a 1/8 bevel edge doing glazing bars in some french doors I made. I'm not sure whether the 1/8 pig sticker would have been too deep to use then, but it's my guess that's the sort of work it would be good for.

BTW this is the new chisel storage system, recently upgraded from the bucket shown in thread

Originally Posted by Scribbly Gum

Kev's morticing chisels are works of art. I have never owned one, and have made do with a variety of chisels until some heavy socket types came along.
Mine are mostly Wards and Woodcocks with the odd Marples.
Yes, I know what you're thinking,
How many 1" and 1 1/4" mortices will he cut?
Answer: Up to this point - absolutely none.
Those two chisels round out the set and .... you never know....one day....
Couple of new handles needed as you can see.
That 1" Woodcock has the hardest steel of any chisel I've ever ground - and I've done a few.
I have no idea what the little 1/8" chisel is - It looks very old.
Cheers from Tele Point
SG

Whoa ,its nice to see such fine chisels SG ,and I like the idea of the chisel caddy as well.
My Titans are on a rack on the wall ,the pommie mortice chisels are in a draw just loose at the moment .
The few Stanleys I have are a mixed bunch three of the black handled bevelled variety 1/4 , 1/2 ,3/4 and four yellow and black butt chisels.
The Black handled Stanleys I bought quite a few years ago when I had no wood working tools at all.
The yellow handled ones I bought to use as gasket scrapers when I was working in the power station , they have now been ressurected and used for what they were intended.
One of these has been reground as marking knife.

Kev.

Fuzzie ,
Nice collection there ,tool cabinet is great , but not as handy to carry about as the bucket.

English (or Oval) bolstered mortice chisels Rock!

I have a few of my own and use them frequently. They all have near- or full length blades but many came without handles or bust handles. I made my own. 1/8" - 1/2". Most used - 1/8", 1/4", 3/8".



Recentky I bought a Ray Iles version in D2 to evaluate how well it last in our hardwoods compared with the vintage HCS. It is still too soon to say how much better they are (I assume they will be .... ?), but the vintage ones are really excellent. I have mostly Ward and Sorby.

Here is the 1/4" Ray Iles (in the centre, with a Ward 1/4" to the right):



Regards from Perth

Derek

Originally Posted by derekcohen

English (or Oval) bolstered mortice chisels Rock!

Derek, beautiful looking chisels there. Are you saying that mortice chisels referred to as "english mortice chisels" are generally the oval type? I read English as being all those made in England. Looks like I may have learnt another new fact

What angle are motice chisels traditionally ground to?

Cheers,
Mike

Hi Mike

Yes, Oval Bolstered Mortice Chisels are also known as English BMC.

This is not the same as a mortice chisel that is simply made in England. It refers to a specific type of mortice chisel. The name comes from the handle shape (oval - which is very helpful in guiding the chisel), and in the tang and bolster design.

Compare with these a set of vintage English-made mortice socket chisels I restored (new handles). These were really nice chisels, but I had too many and so I sold them. I based the handles on the classic Stanley #750/Lie-Nielsen, but made them longer and thicker. They came out really nicely ...



By contrast, the Lie-Nielsen mortice chisels are quite light duty. They are ground with parallel sides (to the blade). The one's above are all trapezoid in shape.

Mortice chisels should have a primary bevel ground at 20 degrees (the low angle aid entry into the wood) with a 30-35 degree secondary bevel (to strengthen the edge).

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thanks Derek, looks like I did learn something

Nice chisels Derek .Your new handles I like very much .Those socketed chisels look very sweet .
Any spares let me know.
I have a few handles to make .I have some 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" Ironwood I'm thinking of using ,I got this from a saw mill just north of here.
Strangely the Sorbys I have have round handles ,but the blades are in the normal style for these chisels , and there is the heavy bolster as well.One nhas a steel bolt through the handle ,I think it was an attempt to stall a split or some thing.
The 5/8" is an absolute monster of a thing ,and is quite a handful .I don't think it will get much use .
The ones I would use the most are the 1/4 , 5/16 and 3/8 ,the rest are just an over kill really.
I've found it takes no time to chop out a mortice with these chisels.
I have been ogling the Ashley Illes mortice chisels for some time .