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Iyoroi Blue Steel Umeki-Oire Nomi Cabinet Makers' Chisels

read 7 reviews
Found in Departments: Bench Chisels
  Iyoroi
  Japanese Chisels
Iyoroi Blue Steel Umeki-Oire Nomi Cabinet Makers’ ChiselsIyoroi Blue Steel Umeki-Oire Nomi Cabinet Makers’ Chiselscancelleft arrowright arrow
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Code: MS-JACHC73.XX
 12mm ($66.95) Sold Out
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 42mm ($92.95) Sold Out
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MS-JACHC73.XX
The Iyoroi Blue Steel Umeki Oire Nomi Cabinet Makers’ chisels have an exceptional capacity for sharpness and edge retention. The blades are a hand forged lamination of blue steel and wrought iron, tempered to Rockwell C64 degrees.

"Blue-steel" or "Aogami-Hagane" is specially made by Hitachi Metal Co. and is a more complex steel than "Shiro-Gami" or "White-Steel." Because it's so difficult to forge and temper, only a few chisel makers have sufficient skill to successfully work with this material. The advantage is a tougher blade that takes the finest edge. The specific shape is a form of dovetail chisel or "Umeki-Oire" designed for Western cabinetry. The thin edges are perfect for dovetailing and fine joinery.

These chisels have hand forged hoops for hammering, so they can be used for general joinery. Except for the narrowest widths, which are simply tapered, the side edges of these chisels are narrower than even most Western chisels, so you can have total access to the joint. In recognition of the fact that these are for the highest quality of workmanship, even the narrow 1/2" chisel has multiple hollows for greater control..

Blue-Steel #2 Laminated Edge, with hand forged, black hooped Boxwood Handle, Multiple scoops. The backs of the 3mm. to 9mm. sizes have a single hollow. The 12mm. to 18mm. sizes have two hollows. The 24mm. to 42mm. sizes have triple hollows. The overall length is 9 inches and the blade length is 2-1/4 inches.

We are hoping to get a full range soon. One step at a time!

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Customer Reviews:for an average rating of:
Awesome chisels
By: David (Jul, 2021)
Fabulous chisels, I have had the 6, 9, l2 mm for several years. They are not as pretty as some other boutique chisels, but tru beauty is in form/function. In that regard, I've found no peer to these chisels. They get sharper and stay sharper than anything I've ever worked with, O-1, A-2, pmv, cryo, blah blah. They sharpen easily on waterstone, ceramic or diamond media. Once sharpened, they easily outlast any other chisel by a factor of 10. Respect what they are( never lever!), side to side slight wiggle is ok) I work with mostly cherry, maple, but also osage orange and persimmon at times. Fabulous chisels- would purchase again w/o hesitation.
I own this product.
So far, so good
By: Nick Sawyer (Jun, 2020)
I was tired of my western chisels folding edges and getting nicks while working various joints (particularly dts) in hardwood and had heard good things about edge retention on blue steel. As other reviews say, they’re hand-forged and look as much. No machine precision but I personally like that about them and grinding new bevels, flattening backs, and setting hoops was an enjoyable process. Harder edge means more brittle. I’m quickly learning that these aren’t as forgiving as western HSS and have chipped the corners off two chisels. That would be user error prying instead of rocking. My only complaint would be the boxwood. It’s premium because it’s endangered. The stark yellow is, in my humble opinion, off putting and I immediately refinished the handles with dye and cold blued the steel. Oak handles would have rounded this out to a solid 4.5 stars. Vein, I know, but I like to make pretty things with pretty tools. If you’re a beginner, I’d recommend starting on something more forgiving. If you’re hand-cutting half blinds for a living and tired of sharpening, I’d get these. The shape is great but there’s still a small shoulder and while being better than bevel edge chisels, I still prefer my fishtail for corner clean-out.
I own this product.
Fantastic Steel, A LOT of Work!
By: Gabe (Jan, 2020)
Let me say first: I was going to give this 3 stars. If you've never owned Japanese chisels, these shouldn't be your first. These are undoubtedly hand forged as advertised. There are asymmetries, tools marks, and a uniqueness to each tool that only comes with hand forging (not a bad thing. The inconsistencies can be trying for a western woodworker. First, every one of the four chisels I bought was ground at a different bevel angle. Ranging anywhere from 21.8 to 35.8 degrees at the steepest. The bevel angle seemed to not related to the chisel size at all. The steepest was the 6mm I bought and the shallowest was the 12mm (makes no sense). The other two were somewhere in between. Next, the handle fell off of the 18mm I bought causing the chisels to almost fall on the floor. Refitting Japanese chisel handles is not for the beginner and took quite awhile to refit the ferrule and get the tang to "stick". After that, the backs of these chisels were wildly out of flat. The ura appeared to present a nice symmetrical face but 3 out of 4 chisels were vastly concave (~5 thousandths) which is actually not a bad thing. The worst was the 4th chisel which had a belly (convex) of about 3 thousandths. Needless to say, flattening the backs of these chisels without eating into the ura was extremely challenging. Now for the good part, these chisels are an amazing value. You get Japanse boxwood (Gumi) handles which are a premium feature (if not slightly ugly). You also get blue steel which has fantastic edge retention when compared to HSS of western chisels. I had to sharpen these about 3 times less than I would sharpen my HSS chisels. And you get hand forged hoops that are already beveled making setting the hoops on these a breeze. However, it is clear that the setup of these chisels is where they saved time/money. I would be hard pressed to buy another one of these chisels if it were not for the value and for having a matching set. I may buy a Matsumura blue steel chisel if I need another size due to the difficulty of setting these up. Overall, if you're skilled in the setup and care of Japanese chisels these come at great value. If you're a western woodworker looking for an easy-to-use entry-level Japanese chisel: look somewhere else. These will put your skills to the test!
I own this product.
Luthier
By: Tom Zawila (Apr, 2019)
I bought the 6mm 30+/- years ago and have loved it for its ability to retain an edge. The handle could have been a larger diameter as my hands are fairly big.
I own this product.
Astounding!
By: JB (Sep, 2014)
I bought one to test out and was truly impressed so I bought the set of six. These chisels are remarkable in several ways; I've never seen an edge so very sharp, (somehow?) they sharpen faster and easier than any tool I've ever owned, and after using the chisels it dawned on me that the "bent" shape of the overall tool made perfectly square cuts with the natural swing of my arm. These chisels were forged by a genius. I've had these chisels for about a year and half now and am perfectly satisfied. They aren't the prettiest chisels but they're the best I've used. Previously I tried cheap Japanese chisels and they were worthless icepicks, then Sorby and I thought they were okay but these chisels are astounding. Do what I did: get one and try it out. You'll be very impressed.
I own this product.
42mm Iyoroi Chisel
By: Joe Powers (Jul, 2013)
I bought this chisel six months and could not be happier. I do 90% of my work with a 9mm Miyanaga chisel that I paid almost $200 for, and I have found the Iyoroi chsiels to be fully comparable in terms of edge retention and initial sharpness. For the price, I think the Iyoroi chisels can't be beat.
I own this product.
owner
By: Thomas Pleman (Apr, 2013)
I have been carrying a 24mm one of these in my nail bags for over 16 years and can say say it is the best chisel I have ever owned. edge retention , capacity for sharpness are first rate.
I own this product.

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