Types of Chisel

Bevel Edge Chisels

When we talk about bevel-edged chisels in that group we can include both the bench chisels and firmer chisels, as long as they have beveled edges. Bench chisels are shorter versions, usually fitted with a socket type of handle that features a hoop at the top end to resist chipping. Bench chisel is a term to describe a typical woodworking chisel used by cabinet makers, furniture makers and others. It is of full size with a 5” blade and 5” handle and is usually a tang type but older ones do come with sockets. Firmer chisels usually have a tang-style wooden handle with hoops at the top and bottom ends to reduce splitting. For your basic toolkit, a good set of bevel edge bench chisels is the basic requirement.


When buying a set of bevel edge wood chisels, consider the length of the handle, shape of the handle, shape and length of the blade, steel composition, durability, the feel in your hand and, of course, price. But beware that quality comes with the price, paying extra for a high quality product from a respected manufacturer is always a good investment. The most important criteria are that they should be comfortable in the hand, hold a good edge, and be easy to sharpen. The backs of the chisel should be flat or very slightly hollow for ease of sharpening. They are beveled on the sides for allowing maximum access to dovetails. They are the most important first set of chisels for any shop with the widest array of sizes available.



Mortise Chisels

Mortise chisels are heavy chisels, thicker than they are wide, with giant forged bolsters and oval beech or oak handles to take pounding. However, you will find them very easy to handle and a joy to use. You will basically need just one mortise chisel ( 1/4″ or 3/8″ being the most common) and size all your mortises accordingly. Mortise strength is determined by total glue surface and not width of the tenon.


A mortise chisel is designed to do exactly what it says on the tin. It is used with a percussion instrument and is bashed into the wood and then levered out to remove waste. Normal chisels just don’t have the thickness to withstand the levering out. The bevel on a mortise chisel is also less acute an angle for the same reason. The chisels are also longer to aid in the levering out of waste material.



Paring Chisels  

Paring chisels are a long thin, usually side beveled, chisels used for fine smoothing and finish work. The long thin blades are flexible and the cutting edge is sharpened to the low 15º angle to provide the smoothest of cuts. These tools almost always have tang handles and are never struck with a mallet. The length and suppleness of these chisels are favored by pattern makers and are delightful to use.


Paring chisels are commonly used for shaving off thin amounts of wood when fitting joints, and, again, should never be hit with a mallet. The blades on paring chisels are thin enough to be almost flexible. They have a long length to give maximum control. One hand pushes the chisel with the handle while the other holds the blade and guides the cut.  There is also a fishtail paring chisel, with the shaft of the chisel being narrower than the blade, allowing paring in the most awkward places. Paring chisels also come in the cranked variety. That means that the angle of the handle is offset against the line of the blade. This stops your hands fouling on the work piece when pushing forward in a paring stroke.



Corner Chisels

These specialist and very high end tools are not really for a starter’s toolkit, but are worth knowing about if you develop your woodworking skills in a particular direction. This corner chisels are popular with cabinet makers.


Corner chisels are used for cleaning up deep corners of mortises or other grooves. Each face is sharpened individually using an oil stone.

what is the most used chisel???

firmer chisel- has a blade with a thick rectangular cross section, making them stronger for use on tougher and heavier work.
skew chisel - has a 60 degree cutting angle and is used for trimming and finishing across the grain.
dove tail chisel- made specifically for cutting dove tail joints.
carving chisel- used for intricate designs and sculpting ; cutting edges are many; such as gouge, skew, parting, straight, paring and V- groove

the gouge (one type of chisel) serves to carve small pieces from the material, particularly in woodworking, wood turning and sculpture. Gouges most frequently produce concave surfaces. A gouge typically has a 'U'-shaped cross-section.

what type of chisel is commonly used?

when was the chisel invent?

"Corner chisels are used for cleaning up deep corners of mortises or other grooves. Each face is sharpened individually using an oil stone." then? is often used to cut?

there is also a type of chisel who uses hammer to gain more force and increase it's characteristics.

Nice forum. All of this information helped me

Any brand suggestions?

Grant Tarine wrote:Nice  forum. All of this information helped me

Thank you for your good reaction. I'm happy to know that

Grant Tarine wrote:Any brand suggestions?

Veritas is also one of the best brands of hand planes. They have a steel patented PM-V11, one of the hardest and most innovative on the market (Rc61-63). Like Veritas, the American brand Lie-Nielsen offers excellent hand planes and woodworking chisels.

Peter Shaquelle Daling wrote:"Corner chisels are used for cleaning up deep corners of mortises or other grooves. Each face is sharpened individually using an oil stone." then? is often used to cut?

It means it is used for cutting deep corners for them to be clean

Can you post a new topic on how to repair a chisel

If i want to carve a Hardwood. What type of chisel should i use?

Is it necessary to use chisel?

What is the most basic chisel?

This informations are helpful, thank you.

What are the diffenrent types of chisel?

A brief history for a wood chisels based on my research:

Chisels were among the earliest tools. They have been employed (in their most basic form) since Stone Age man learned to break stones into a roughly flat shape with a sharp edge.



Stones such as flint were used by Neolithic man and there are many archaeological discoveries that prove this. Flint was favoured as it is dense, hard and easily flaked, and when flaked produces razor sharp edges.



As people learned to smelt ore (extract metal from rock by heating it), flint tools were succeeded by those made from copper and, later, bronze (an alloy of copper and tin). Bronze tools were much easier to work with and could be reshaped and resharpened with greater precision.



Ancient Egyptian carpenters and masons were known to use bronze chisels in the construction of the pyramids.



With the invention of hotter furnaces and the ability to smelt iron ore, the softer bronze chisels were, in turn, replaced by ones made from iron.



As technology advanced in the modern age, and people learned how to mix carbon with iron to create steel, the iron chisel was succeeded by harder, steel versions.

Firmer chisel
has a blade with a thick rectangular cross section, making them stronger for use on tougher and heavier work.
Bevel edge chisel
can get into acute angles with its bevelled edges.
Mortise chisel
thick, rigid blade with straight cutting edge and deep, slightly tapered sides to make mortises and similar joints.
Paring chisel
has a long blade ideal for cleaning grooves and accessing tight spaces.
Skew chisel
has a 60 degree cutting angle and is used for trimming and finishing across the grain.
Dovetail chisel
made specifically for cutting dovetail joints. The difference being the thickness of the body of the chisel, as well as the angle of the edges, permitting easier access to the joint.
Butt chisel
short chisel with beveled sides and straight edge for creating joints.
Carving chisels
used for intricate designs and sculpting; cutting edges are many; such as gouge, skew, parting, straight, paring, and V-groove.
Corner chisel
resembles a punch and has an L-shaped cutting edge. Cleans out square holes, mortises and corners with 90 degree angles.
Flooring chisel
cuts and lifts flooring materials for removal and repair; ideal for tongue-and-groove flooring.
Framing chisel
usually used with mallet; similar to a butt chisel, except it has a longer, slightly flexible blade.
Slick
a very large chisel driven by manual pressure, never struck.

denden wrote:what is the most used chisel???

FIRMER chisels have a blade with a rectangular cross-section. This means that they are stronger and can be used for tougher/heavier work. A PARING chisel is a longer, thinner chisel which can be pushed into long joints such as housing joints. It is used for cleaning up the joint and to make it an accurate fit.

shiela_tined wrote:What is the most basic chisel?

Here are the basic three types of wood chisels: BENCH CHISELS. Bench chisels are multi-purpose woodworking chisels that are used so often that they usually “sit on the bench” and are used for chopping and paring the wood. MORTISE CHISELS. PARING CHISELS.

shiela_tined wrote:Is it necessary to use chisel?

it depends on what you will be doing

Grant Tarine wrote:Can you post a new topic  on how  to repair a chisel

for me, if your chisel is broken i prefer buying a new one rather than fixing it.