Warren in Lancaster, PA
An enduring mystery (to me) is why so many vintage chisels are just not that hard

I think we can stand a pretty good range of hardness.

I am getting very fine results with English chisels from the first half of the 19th century. They sharpen very easily.

A few years ago I made end grain cuts half an inch deep in jarrah using one of these chisels. I made 200 cuts (so 100 inches of endgrain) without damage to the edge. The chisel still shaved hair; I stopped only because it is so boring.