Any experience with Fujihiro chisels?

[AHill]

I think some guys I've seen are too hard on their chisels.  I think expectations for chisels (including and especially mine) are unrealistically high. I think the survival of some edged tools suggests pro woodworkers of the past used techniques that led to the longevity of their tools. I guess I better shut up there.

Adam

Good points.  I'll throw in that one factor creating disappointment is using chisels for tasks without appropriate edge / bevel geometry.  If you're doing a lot of heavy chopping, 25 deg isn't going to bring you much joy.  Secondary bevels of 30 deg will greatly enhance edge durability in heavy chopping.  Different steels prefer different bevels for different tasks.  It's kind of rare to see secondary bevels on Japanese chisels as well, but at least consider what tasks you need to accomplish with your chisels before you start prepping them for use.

[Hank Knight]

Adding to what's already been said, I'm surprised to hear that the OP has had problems with his Matsumura chisels. My Matsumura cabinet chisels have been my favorite chisels for fine work for over 15 years. They get incredibly sharp, keep and edge for a long time and I've never chipped one. I have other more substantial chisels for everyday miscellaneous tasks. I keep my Matsumuras for dovetails and other detailed joinery. Never had a problem with them. I don't think they would survive heavy chopping and grunt work; they are fairly delicate tools.

[Aram]

Adding to what's already been said, I'm surprised to hear that the OP has had problems with his Matsumura chisels. My Matsumura cabinet chisels have been my favorite chisels for fine work for over 15 years. They get incredibly sharp, keep and edge for a long time and I've never chipped one. I have other more substantial chisels for everyday miscellaneous tasks. I keep my Matsumuras for dovetails and other detailed joinery. Never had a problem with them. I don't think they would survive heavy chopping and grunt work; they are fairly delicate tools.

This is a fairly common topic when we talk about Matsumuras. I have no idea why experiences vary so much. Mine chipped frequently, even from very light use. Others have reported the same. Also lots of people whose experience mimics yours. Why? No clue. Maybe it's a batch-to-batch heat treatment thing. Who knows.

[Wilbur Pan]

I have and use the Fujihiro chisels sold by Hida Tool. Every so often I get a question about comparing Japanese chisels, and my usual response is that I probably will never do a comparison between Japanese toolmakers, because I just don't have the time or the energy for that sort of thing. 


I do add, however, that it’s probably better to understand my reasoning on why I decided to buy these chisels. At the time I was looking for my first Japanese chisels, most people seemed to have great things to say about the particular brand of Japanese chisels that they used. Occasionally, someone would complain about the chisel chipping too much, cracking, or failing in some way. But no one ever made those sorts of comments about Fujihiro chisels, so that made me feel good. 

In addition, the Fujihiro chisels were price-competitive with Lie-Nielsen chisels, which were the other chisels I was considering. Now they seem to be about $20 more than an equivalent Lie-Nielsen bench chisel, which is really nothing when you consider that this can easily be a lifetime tool purchase.

One other thing I liked about the Fujihiro chisels was that Imai also made a premium line of chisels — the sword steel chisels that Hank has. (Those are also still available at Hida Tool by special order.) These were out of my price range, but I felt good that the chisels I was considering were made by a blacksmith that had the capability of making a premium chisel. This told me that he knew what he was doing.

So I ordered a few chisels to see how they worked, and never looked back. I've been very happy with my chisels. Easy to sharpen, great edge retention, and they hold up in hard woods. 

[Wilbur Pan]

Sorry no experience with any of these chisels, but I just wanted to throw this out: And apologies in advance for my ignorance of your specifics: Any chance the chisels you have will improve over time?  How long have you had them?  How many grinds have they experienced?

I made my own chisels and thought about making them to sell.  WW customers want out of the box performance, which is especially difficult to obtain from a chisel in my experience. I've heard stories about Japanese craftsmen leaving tools like yours outside on a sunny day.  The heat of grinding can change them and removing the decarb layer can change them. Ability to take a keen edge is a super important attribute in an edged tool.  I'd be reluctant to replace a chipping chisel. Dare I say, I'd start with technique/usage/edge profiles before I bought a tool to replace a tool I felt was letting me down.

I think some guys I've seen are too hard on their chisels.  I think expectations for chisels (including and especially mine) are unrealistically high. I think the survival of some edged tools suggests pro woodworkers of the past used techniques that led to the longevity of their tools. I guess I better shut up there.

Good luck - seriously, sorry if I wasted your time.

Adam

Hi Adam. Hope you're doing well. 

I've experienced the "the chisel improves over time" thing with Japanese chisels and plane blades. It's not a major thing. In my hands, what I see is that the edge retention seems to get better over time. I've had minimal issues with chipping with a new Japanese chisel/plane blade out of the box, but those issues go away over time as well.

I agree with your observation on guys being too hard on their chisels. Over the years I've learned that chopping a mortise is a finesse operation, not a brute force one, and if I pay attention to that, my mortise chopping goes faster and better when I use less brute force.

A relatively common statement is something like, "I want my chisels to stand up to my abuse." Why would you want to abuse your tools in the first place?

[hbmcc]

A lot of the names we see for Japanese chisels, and forged tools in general, are "licensed" in a sense by the original maker and passed to another--usually, younger--smith. 

Keep in mind the famous names are likely a craftsman dead several years or decades, or; who is too old or ill to continue working after 60 or more years of labor. Our sense of 'brand name'--possibly, smith name (even, stage name)--is something given to a product by an individual smith who may prefer to remain obscure and only hammer away in his shed shop attached to the house. The broker spins the magic of the tool, or not, depending on his interest and the numbers of product to be supplied to him. Some of these spin doctors can attach sickeningly magical traits to a chunk of metal.

My chisels (see, above comment) were made by two individual smiths, supporting the professional craftsmen who use the tools. The youngest is currently 80. They laminate the two steels by the traditional methods, where most modern smiths order already laminated steel from the manufacturer. The laminating skill is pretty much lost now. 

I already had a nearly complete 'set' of oire nomi, likely sold through Highland, and various samples from stu. There are definitely variations in the workmanship, finish, and durability/toughness within the pre-Covington pieces. I dreaded setting up and sharpening the "Highland" chisels. I am not sure how many owners touched them before me. My new Covington set is white oak to differentiate the two. I don't expect to "abuse" any of the tools, but do trust the Covington chisels to bear up to use better than the older pieces in my collection.

I think, at this time in the life of Japanese forged tools a name or smith on a tool is a misnomer. It has always been a situation that makes me nervous about blindly accepting assurances of consistency and quality. China has no honor to authenticity. And, they are delighted to team up with unscrupulous shills. 

So, if you want to compare or confirm the provenance of a japanese made tool buy a Chinese copycat from Grizzly; not to belittle my favorite tailed tool supplier.

[Timberwolf]

Good points.  I'll throw in that one factor creating disappointment is using chisels for tasks without appropriate edge / bevel geometry.  If you're doing a lot of heavy chopping, 25 deg isn't going to bring you much joy.  Secondary bevels of 30 deg will greatly enhance edge durability in heavy chopping.  Different steels prefer different bevels for different tasks.  It's kind of rare to see secondary bevels on Japanese chisels as well, but at least consider what tasks you need to accomplish with your chisels before you start prepping them for use.

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using chisels for tasks without appropriate edge / bevel geometry. If you're doing a lot of heavy chopping, 25 deg isn't going to bring you much joy.

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Bingo !!!!