Butt Chisels

I just bought a set of 4 of the Wood River Butt Chisels for something like $29 for my grand daughter as a Christmas present. I think they are still available at that price.
 
Seriously Roger, I find that, even, inexpensive chisels work out fine if you have a WorkSharp 3000 (not the 2000). The inexpensive chisel dulls quicker. However, you can have a new edge in 10 seconds with the WorkSharp (longer if you actually nick the edge). The main thing is you want to choose the design of the blade for what you are going to do. Example: Thin edges for dovetails. I would look for flat backs on anything---you probably don't want to spend a few hours flattening the backs of your new chisel set.

Since I have had the 3000 I find that I grab my cheapies a whale of a lot more often, keeping the more expensive stuff for more expensive or complex woods. In the past I used the less expensive chisels when there was a concern about damaging the chisel itself. I used better chisels for everything else. However, now, the better chisels stay in their storage place a lot more.

I hope that makes sense. I also hope no one shoots me for the previous post.

Enjoy,

JimB
 
My favorites are not new, but you can find them at many garage sales or flea markets. They are the Stanley No. 60 series, the yellow-handled ones with the steel caps on them. You can whack on them all day long with no problem at all. The steel is good, they take a keen edge.

They look just like this, usually found with paint splatters:

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