William Duffield
I would definitely have a few from Joel and Ray Iles if I hadn't already found what I need in a bucket-o-rust at PATINA. All are cast steel, but only the Butcher is oval bolster. The F Colm and the James Swan are socketed. Of course, they all needed to be rehandled and depatinated. One handle is purpleheart, and the other two are "Flying Dragon".

During the recent discussions, one of the old engravings turned on a light bulb. I can't find it now, but it showed a mortise chisel that was considerably thicker where the bevel met the front (narrow) face of the chisel and immediately narrowed again towards the handle. After thinking about it, I realized it made sense if it were hand forged and steel were expensive (an oft heard argument), since it wasn't going to break any easier than one with a thick body all the way back into the handle. The important point is that the thickness of the mortise chisel moves the fulcrum when prying away from the edge, but unlike a bench chisel, not all the way to the top of the mortise. This allows you to rake the sides clean with the sharp edges of the back, even if your mallet blow has driven the chisel in farther than the length of the bevel. It's the long lever arm between the edge and the top of the mortise when you are working down at the bottom of the deep mortise that breaks the bench chisel or even the sash mortise chisel.