Vent: Used a brand new chisel on some old oak and it chipped on the third strike

I figured that $65 chisel would handle anything but that knot was like hitting a rock, guess I'm sticking to softer woods from now on or am I just expecting too much?

3 comments

3 Comments

victor7791mo ago

65 bucks for a chisel and it chips on the third hit? man, that is brutal. I've got a couple of old Stanley chisels that I picked up at a flea market for like 10 bucks each and they've taken way more abuse than that. That knot in the oak was probably super dense, but still, a brand new tool should hold up better than that. Maybe the heat treat on that one was off or something, but I'd be seriously ticked off if I spent that kind of cash and it failed that fast. You're not expecting too much, that's just bad luck or bad QC.

blair_taylor321mo agoMost Upvoted

Did you see that article on Fine Woodworking about how some new chisels aren't getting the heat treatment right because they're rushed out? Sounds like that might be what happened here. I'd push for a replacement or a refund for sure.

the_alice1mo ago

Wait, THREE strikes and it chipped on OAK? That's absolutely ridiculous for a sixty five dollar tool.