Craftsmanship in Wood

what is the best angle to hone your japanese chisels ?

It depends.

My Tsuki's are 25 degrees, oire nomi are 30-ish degrees and Mukoumachi-nomi are about 35 degrees.

I'm painting broad strokes but for my work, as the gennou gets larger, so does the angle.

if i am correct this is the same as western chissels ?
paring chisels at 25,bench chisels at 30 and mortice at 35/40 degrees.

Pretty much, some of my bench chisels are probably 32~ I don't really bother to keep them very shallow as they are subjected to hard work on a regular occasion.

I actually microbevel the mortise chisels in order to raise the bevel to a point where it doesn't get crumbly after some use. The reason for that is that raising the full bevel to a point where the chisel will hold up in hardwoods will cause it to make a very shallow cut.

Not sure if you are aware, but unlike western mortise chisels you would not 'lever out' with a Japanese mortise chisel. So, be mindful of that if you get a set.

Thank you Brian, any brand recommedations ?
I would like some good chisels but they have to be shipped to Holland so i think the premium ones are a no go because i would have to pay them almost twice before i get them.

Kikuhiromaru are my go to brand. Super sturdy, easy to sharpen with natural stones and medium pricing.

I very much enjoy my Konobu Tsuki's as well, but they're a little more expensive, a fairly long wait and the ultimate performance is similar. Konobu's finishing is spectacular, but Kikuhirimaru are quite nice in that regard as well, especially recent models.

My main chisels are Matsumura blue steel, and Ouchi white steel #2. Both are widely available and on the lower end of the price scale. The Ouchi's are "beefier" and stout. The Matsumura's are more svelt, but good for my smaller hands and general cabinetry work. I do have other chisels for heavier work.

I purchased my Matsumura's used on eBay quite inexpensively. They were initially a little prone to chipping, but after a few sharpenings, and resetting the bevels closer to 30 degress, they have performed fine.

what do you guys think about David Charlesworth's way of sharpening ?
Is his way possible on japanese chisels and plane blades or is this way of sharpening not recommended for japanese tools ?

jury wrote:what do you guys think about David Charlesworth's way of sharpening ?
Is his way possible on japanese chisels and plane blades or is this way of sharpening not recommended for japanese tools ?

This is best moved to a new thread as a separate topic, and i may split it off later on if there is sufficient reason to do so.

By, "David Charlesworth's way of sharpening", are you referring to his 'ruler trick', or something besides that?

I was also curious is this was 'ruler trick' or something else.

I won't use any method of cheating the backs of Japanese chisels or planes (or anything else) the hollow does that work for you by alleviating all of the issues associated with a completely flat back.

In my experience experimenting with the ruler trick on western plane blades, it makes it easier in the moment and much much more difficult in the long run. You can see the burr on a flat back, but once the ruler trick is deployed you no longer have this ability.

Unfortunately with western blades their method of construction makes them difficult in and of themselves, especially its heavily alloyed steels.