Positive way to identify Pre-Irwin Marples Blue handled chisels?

I think he was talking about chisels actually marked “Irwin”. but advertised with a picture where they were marked just “Marples”. I did post there as well. I’m still not sure of how many are members of just one site or the other but not both.

There’s a chance both of these are “genuine Marples” but I was using one today and found the edge wore off very quickly even in soft wood. It got me thinking.

I’ve run into a few other people looking but no answers turned up yet. I think I’ll switch and use the other set and see what happens.

Greg you’re right. The ring is white and the label isn’t gold, it’s white or silver, hard to tell. I was catching a reflection off the lampshade earlier.

In another post I detailed my troubles cutting mortices in extra soft wood. Tonight I was frequently checking to make sure the chisels were razor sharp. they weren’t when I started so I sharpened it and it easily shaved my arm when I finished. I cut a mortise before I checked again and it wouldn’t shave. Again, I touched up the blade, stropped it, and it cut hair like a barber. I checked it against end grain wood and it easily cut curls. I cut less than half of the next mortise and was putting tools up when I looked at the edge and saw a little glint of life coming off of it. I checked and it wouldn’t shave and would cut end grain but no easy curls like before.

This really wasn’t much use in very soft wood. Think industrial strength balsa.

Now I haven’t used wood working chisels this sharp before. Perhaps this is normal. I certainly hope not.

John

Not sure I have the nerve to take a file to one of my chisels yet. Like I said, I have two sets. One looks older but apparently the other set was purchased and put on a shelf by the seller’s father. The story I got on both says they’re about the same age but clearly they’re different.

I’ll switch and use the newer looking set and see how the edge holds up on that one.

And I’ve got a couple of Narex chisels coming from Lee Valley. If I like them I’ll start saving up for the 7 piece set.

John

Well there is definitely two kinds of steel in my two “Marples” chisel sets. The one with the icon of the guy in safety glasses but no unit measurements on the steel showed a white line on the edge after chopping less than 1/4 of a mortise. At that point it would no longer shave hair from my arm. This chisel was sharpened with Paul’s method and the bevel was very close to 30 degrees according to my bevel gauge. Right before I started it would cleanly and smoothly shave hair from my arm.

The second set of chisels which are about 1/2″ longer than the first, have no little iconic guy in safety goggles but they do have the width of the chisel in English and Metric units on the steel along with the phrases “Hand Forged” and “Sheffield England” on the steel. These chisels were last sharpened back when I was still using a jig so they are flat ground to 25 degrees so they SHOULD be a bit more prone to wear. After chopping the other 3/4 of the mortise this chisel still easily shaves hair, just like it did when I started. No white lines on the edge either.