Hi, I am new here. This is my first post. You’ll quickly see I am a noob.
I am converting the second floor in my barn to a traditional woodshop. Over the past 30 years I have accumulated all kinds of hand tools. I have a whole bunch of chisles and planes. I’m not as good with them as I wish I were. I’m going to fix that.
In my reading, and in watching precision woodworking videos, I noticed that Witherby chisles have a loyal following.
At a local antique center, a vendor has a complete set of Witherby chisels ( from 1/8 to 2″) in a wooden case. The case has a label in the top of the lid that shows each chisle, and its size. Like a catalogue page, but glued into the top of the box. I guess the set is about 20 pieces, most of which have never been used, but a handful do have replacement handles on them.
There is also a swans neck for clearing the bottons of mortices, and a pair of 1/4 ” mortising chicles.
He wants $200.00 for the whole group. About 25 chisles.
Since he’s the informed seller, and I am the relatively uninformed buyer, is a set like this worth bringing into my shop? Or, is it over priced because of current popularity? I’ll jump on it if warranted. I am kind of tired of using low end chisles for stuff, and these do seem pretty nicely made. I really liked their length, and their socketed handles.
Any experts care to fill me in?
Replies
hi greg,
so, let's see, that's about 8 bucks per, right? more than likely, he COULD get many times what you're being asked. google witherby chisels and drool. ah, the luck o' the noob...
eef
Sounds like a bargain to me
Greg:
$200 is cheap given the number of chisels in the set and the condition you have described. Most good old chisels sell for $25 or more per chisel. Sets like this are hard to come by. I'm sure if you don't want them there are several Knoters who would be happy to have you act as a purchasing agent and acquire the chisels for them.
gdblake
gd,
does this mean you're in line ahead of me...?
eef
Unfortunately, no!
Hi Eef:
Tool buying is on hold until I can find profitable employment (my thanks to all of you Ivy League MBAs and attorneys for destroying the nations economy). Instead of buying I am selling off anything I don't absolutely need. It's a good thing really, my wife has been wanting me to scale down my number of tools for years. By selling my vintage Stanley's I'm making room for a few more of my own planes.
gdblake
gd,
were it not for the teaching gig i too would be hard pressed for work. one other friend also teaches and he does so with adults. his hours were cut way back and he needs to rely on subbing to make the ends meet. all of my other carpenter/cabinetmaker buddies are struggling to stay in work. here in los angeles the rich abound and they seem to be willing to spend it on improvements and landscaping. i mean the rich are looking mighty good around here, never better.
eef
Thanks guys!
You know, even the blind pig finds an acorn every so often.
I'll try to post a pic after I go get them.
Those chisels are much more than an "acorn"
They are the whole darned oak tree. People spend years trying toassemble sets like that. If you have the dough, and really plan to use hand tools, herre is no choice but to buy.
Joe
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