# Chisel help



## 16webb (Sep 8, 2018)

Hi, I’m looking to buy some new chisels for turning but I’m struggling to find good quality ones that aren’t too expensive, any advice?


----------



## Catpower (Jan 11, 2016)

Good isn't cheap


Cheap might make you like turning less, you will spend more time sharpening then turning



I have started using carbide lathe tools, three tools will do just about everything, but I also have some pretty good HSS I use


----------



## 16webb (Sep 8, 2018)

Thanks for the reply, what would you say the most essential chisels are?


----------



## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

I dont do much turning, but the little i do i do with just a 3/8 spindle gouge and a skew chisel. I wouldnt worry about quality too much, just starting out. Avoid absolute bottom-of-the-barrel types, but dont think that you need to spend top-dollar to get something you can use. Theres very little difference between midrange and top of the line, the top of the line will usually have more exotic steels, but that doesnt make them as better as people think. 

Personally, im fond of the shopfox brand. They arent world changing, but they get the job done, a good, solid middle of the road brand. Ive never had any trouble with my spindle gouge from them


----------



## Catpower (Jan 11, 2016)

The Shop Fox chisels are a good mid range, they do sell them in sets with the most popular chisels.


I have a set of East Wood Tools carbide chisels, they only make 4 styles in different sizes, a part off tool, a round nose, a square nose, and a finishing tool point, it is a long diamond shaped cutting edge


If you are careful and don't damage the cutting surface they are pretty easy to sharpen, just take the inset out of the tool and lap it on a flat diamond card/stone, just a few swirls and they are sharp, then mark one side so you will know which sides have been sharpened. The new inserts have numbers so you can use them but when you sharpen them like I do the numbers get erased


----------



## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

16webb said:


> Hi, I’m looking to buy some new chisels for turning but I’m struggling to find good quality ones that aren’t too expensive, any advice?


Do you live near an Aldi grocery store in the US? You can get a "Paul Sellers recommended" set of chisels at Aldi for $6.99. This thread talks about it:

https://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f11/psa-9-9-18-paul-sellers-chisels-aldis-206918/

They just opened an Aldi around the corner from my home. I went there this morning and asked about the chisels. The manager told me that the sale starts Wednesday morning, 12 September 2018, not this morning like the thread above implies.


----------



## Maylar (Sep 3, 2013)

Tool Agnostic said:


> Do you live near an Aldi grocery store in the US? You can get a "Paul Sellers recommended" set of chisels at Aldi for $6.99. This thread talks about it:
> 
> https://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f11/psa-9-9-18-paul-sellers-chisels-aldis-206918/
> 
> They just opened an Aldi around the corner from my home. I went there this morning and asked about the chisels. The manager told me that the sale starts Wednesday morning, 12 September 2018, not this morning like the thread above implies.


Those are flat chisels, the OP is asking about turning tools.

You can buy them one at a time as needed, or spring for a set. The Benjamin's Best brand is high speed steel and gets good reviews for the money.

https://www.pennstateind.com/store/lathe-chisel-sets.html


----------



## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

Maylar said:


> Those are flat chisels, the OP is asking about turning tools. [...]


Doh! My bad. I didn't read the OP's post carefully enough. Apologies to all.


----------



## David Nickell (Jul 6, 2020)

In searching for Shop Fox and Benjamin's Best turning tools I am finding a very large price range for what looks to be the same sets of tools. Do these brands sell different quality tools, or are they actually the same tools?

I remember an old saying that I think applies both to tools and musical instruments (which are also tools, in the proper hands): Buy cheap and you are happy once and unhappy for a long time; buy quality and you are unhappy once, but happy for a lifetime.


----------



## sanchez (Feb 18, 2010)

I have the basic Rockler set. I've been turning for only two years.

I bought them when they were on sale for $100. They sharpen and cut well for the furniture spindles I used them for. The only one I haven't used much is the bedan.

I bought a Sorby bowl gouge too. That seems to have much better steel, but it costs half of what this set does.

https://www.rockler.com/turning-tool-set


----------



## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

I have the Sorby six-piece turning tool set, and three Rockler full-size carbide tools (square-radius, round, and diamond). I am pleased with both. 

The Sorby six piece turning tool set was on closeout at Rockler. It came with a great book and an okay DVD for under $170 (!!). Good luck finding them anywhere near that price.

If you buy high speed steel (HSS) tools, you must be prepared to sharpen them yourself. It doesn't matter whether you have Shop Fox, Benjamin's Best, Sorby, or another brand of HSS turning tools. Frequent sharpening is essential. 

NOT RECOMMENDED: Your common high speed grinder should not be used to sharpen turning tools. You can quickly damage turning tools with it. 

ALSO NOT RECOMMENDED: I have the Grizzly wet sharpener and Tormek jigs. They work, but they are slow, not that easy to set consistently, and the Grizzly grinding wheel does not leave the sharpest edge, even after polishing on the leather wheel.

If I had to do it over again, I would buy a low speed grinder and the Wolverine jigs. For an upgrade, replace the regular abrasive grinding wheel on the low speed grinder with a CBN wheel. 

Frankly, there are better carbide turning tools than the Rockler carbide tools. I chose the Rockler full size carbide tools because I _really_ like the way they feel in my hands. The square radius tool will also accept the square carbide cutter (a close fit), but the square tool will NOT accept the square radius cutter. That may be true for other brands of carbide tools.

If you have carbide tools, you can buy replacement carbide cutters from third-party sources, often at a better price. Shop around. You can also resharpen cutters yourself, but only the ones with flat backs, not the negative rake ones.


----------



## sanchez (Feb 18, 2010)

I would agree with David's comments on sharpening equipment. I have the Rikon slow speed 8" grinder, and the wolverine standard and vari-grind 2 jigs. This makes sharpening a breeze, and it was totally worth the money to me. 

Perhaps this is why I've been satisfied with the Rockler set; I've been able to quickly and easily sharpen them when needed. As we all know, sharp is good.


----------



## NoThankyou (Mar 21, 2018)

I don't turn. It is a vortex I don't wished to be sucked into.

However when considering chisels my advice is to learn to sharpen the chisels correctly. Put your money into the sharpening tools rather than the chisels. I have a nice set of the original Marples but my go to chisels are a $8 set from Harbor Freight. Before your tell me that I am up in my nightie, I sharpen the chisels to the appropriate bevel angle and hone to sharpness. Maybe the HF chisels won't keep their edge as long as the Marples but what the hey, I'll re-sharpen.


----------



## Onefreetexan (May 3, 2018)

Rikon set of three carbide chisels, interchangeable heads, solid handles, goof heft to them...very satisfied, good price.


----------



## holtzdreher (Jul 20, 2016)

It depends a great deal on what type of turning. Bowls are substantially easier with more expensive bowl gouges. Most spindle turning can be done with a parting tool, skew chisel and a old fashioned gouge. (Back 60 years ago, there was just a gouge, not a roughing gouge, spindle gouge and bowl gouge)


----------



## John Smith_inFL (Jul 4, 2018)

since the OP hasn't here posted since Sept. of 2018, I guess he found his way.

just to add a little to the discussion, I personally am not hung up on name brands
or top dollar tools. so, in my opinion, a person can develop his/her own set of skills 
with practicing in the style they want to pursue.
I have not turned a bowl since the '60s. a few wooden mallets here and there.
but, if you don't have the passion or desire to learn the skill, it will be a struggle all the way.
I turned all of these metal head mallets with the cheap set of gouges from Harbor Freight on the Harbor Freight wood lathe.
all the best to everyone - just be safe in everything.









.


----------



## Dave Mills (Dec 4, 2019)

NoThankyou said:


> I have a nice set of the original Marples but my go to chisels are a $8 set from Harbor Freight. Before your tell me that I am up in my nightie, I sharpen the chisels to the appropriate bevel angle and hone to sharpness. Maybe the HF chisels won't keep their edge as long as the Marples but what the hey, I'll re-sharpen.


Hey Rich, I'm missing something here... are you not using the Marples because they don't hold an edge? What is making the HF ones better for you?


----------



## holtzdreher (Jul 20, 2016)

When I started turning in high school, I got the 4 piece Craftsman bare bones set sold by Sears. I was away from turning for amost 45 years, but hung on to the old set. I have picked up other Craftsman sets, and they are HSS and have enough heft to work well and sharpen easy. I was given the cheap $18 dollar HF set and use of of the tools. I can sharpen my old Craftsman skew with a few passes of a diamond card and turn for an hour. No fancy jig needed Such a jig is required for the new fancy gouges. There are some fair quality and some out standing quality. I just can't justify spending $200 for a bowl gouge when I have yet to figure out hos to sharpen one.


----------



## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

Dave Mills said:


> Hey Rich, I'm missing something here... are you not using the Marples because they don't hold an edge? What is making the HF ones better for you?


Maybe he does like me. One set of bench chisels for rough "I don't care" work, and another set for careful, precision woodworking.

I have a set of "beater" chisels: WorkZone chisels from Aldi. The set of four chisels sells for $8.95. They get high praise from Paul Sellers, who is a well-respected hand tool woodworker. Despite Paul's endorsement, I am not impressed at all. Like Rich's Harbor Freight chisels, I keep them sharp, but they get the "chisel abuse" jobs. For example, I chose one of the Aldi WorkZone chisels when I wanted to try out this old-school dowel-making jig for myself: 
https://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f12/machine-making-round-wooden-stick-221633/#post2125691

I also have two sets of Crown chisels, made in Sheffield, England. One is standard, the other metric. They are much better quality than the Harbor Freight or Aldi WorkZone chisels. I use them for careful, precision woodworking tasks. (I will save "Why two sets of Crown chisels?" for another day.)


----------



## Dave Mills (Dec 4, 2019)

Tool Agnostic said:


> Maybe he does like me. One set of bench chisels for rough "I don't care" work, and another set for careful, precision woodworking.


Gotcha, that makes sense. I have a set of clear yellow Stanley chisels that get used for everything short of opening a can of paint, too. The Veritas ones don't even *see* paint 

Dave


----------



## Quickstep (Apr 10, 2012)

The apprentice line from Craft Supply USA are decent tools and the prices aren’t too too crazy.


----------

