Re: How about a working comparison
Todd Stock
>LN says they are A-2 steel, and that the blades are RC 60-61. From the initial prep (flatten back, grind, hone), I'd say they are harder than the Double Cherries and much harder than the 750s, which says that LN probably is about right.
While I was prepping the LNs, I rehabbed an older 750 and did weekly touchup on a steel cap Stanley carpenters chisel I keep in my bags; I could really feel the difference in hardness - the LNs almost sang on the paper, while the 750 was duller feeling; the soft Stanley were 'dead.'
I'll write up a usage test when I can spend some time chopping out dovetails in some of my 'devil wood' stack - till then, here's what I see:
- All machining/grinding appears to be to around 600 grit, with no evidence of rounded over edges or buffing.
- Sides are square and tapered to around a 1/16" - nice for cleaning out dovetails without reaching for the skew. These edges are narrower than those on my super flexible patternmaker's chisels, and about three or four times narrower than either the DCs or the 750s I've owned. If you have had a chisel that tends to tear out at the corners, it's likely because of rounded over arrises between back and sides - not the case here.
- Unlike the 750 and my DCs, the sides and all bevel work are finished as well as the primary surfaces.
- Unlike the 750s, the LN chisels are scaled in thickness - the 1/8" is lightly built - about half the thickness of a Stanley, while the 3/4" is actually a bit beefier than the prototype.
- I like traditional methods, and I prefer English Engineering System units for woodworking. The LNs are literally a few thou narrower than the nominal EES dimension, which is just right.
- Fist impressions are that LN got the balance about right for a bench chisel that would be used for both paring and chopping.
On the general topic of cost:
- The tool roll is very nice; figure that Woodcraft would charge about $50 if they could locate someone who could actually do the work to this standard. If you've seen LN's other leather work (I have the low angle block holder on my Oxys), this roll is nicer.
- Given credit for the tool roll, cost is more like $40 each, although I doubt I'd have ordered the roll if it were an option (I hang everything on tool boards in the shop, and travel with a set of Blue Chips).
- LN's pricing is not really out of line with other premium hand-made Western chisels - both Barr and Sorby charge at or near the $40-$50 each mark for their premium products. Sorby Cabinetmaker's octagonal handled chisels are about $43 each in sizes between 1/8" and 3/4", and the Sorbys won't hold an edge worth a darn. The Barrs are nice, but don't hold an edge any better than a DC.
- The LN chisels appear to do what almost all other LN tools do - improve on the historical prototype. As much as I've bitched about soft steel in Blue Chips, Sorbys, and some of the 750s I've owned, if these LNs hold an edge, they will be well worth the money.
- I could have spent a lot more money on getting harder chisels. While I have owned some nice japanese blades, they never fit my hand in the same way that a 750 or other well-shaped western tool does.
- No self respecting bottom feeder would ever part with $40-$50 for a chisel...and I'm cool with that.
