Tools Central

All About Straight-Blade Wood Chisels

Chisels are cutting and shaping tools that are essential to many carpentry jobs. All the chisels shown here have straight blades. Curved-blade chisels, known as gouges, are used to cut curves in wood and rounded corners.

Excerpted from Do It Yourself Home Improvement

Care and Maintenance

Oil stones composed of silicone carbide are the most common sharpening stones. There are other types available, such as more expensive diamond stones. It is best to buy more than one so that you have a coarse stone to remove large amounts of metal from a chipped blade and a smoother one for final honing. In fact, some stones are made with one coarse side and one fine side. Depending on the stone's composition, apply water or oil to the stone’s face to lubricate it for sharpening.