Chisels are hand tools used for cutting, shaping, and trimming various materials like wood, metal, stone, or bone. With origins dating back to ancient times, chisels remain indispensable tools for carpenters, woodworkers, sculptors, masons, and other craftspeople.
Choosing the right type of chisel is crucial for efficient and safe work. There are many different types of chisels available today, each designed for specific purposes and materials. Understanding the key differences and applications of various chisel types allows you to select the most appropriate tool for the job.
This comprehensive guide covers 20 of the most common types of chisels, their characteristics, purposes, and tips for choosing the right chisel for your needs.
What to Consider When Choosing a Chisel
Before exploring the different types, here are some key factors to consider when selecting any chisel:
Blade Material
Chisel blades are commonly made from carbon steel, chrome vanadium steel, or high carbon steel. Carbon steel offers good edge retention but requires more sharpening. Chrome vanadium has better resistance to wear and impact. High carbon steel combines edge retention with durability.
Blade Shape
The shape of the chisel blade impacts its cutting performance. Common blade shapes include bevel edge, paring, and skewed. Bevel edge is versatile for all-around use. Paring has a straight blade for detailed trimming. Skewed blades cut easier on the push stroke.
Handle Material
Wood, plastic, or metal handles provide comfort and control during use. Longer handles allow two-handed use for mallet chisels. Short handles give better finesse for paring chisels.
Hand Safety
Chisel handles should have a wide butt to prevent hand injury if struck by a mallet. Plastic or metal hand guards offer additional protection.
With these factors in mind, let’s review the top 20 types of chisels.
1. Bench Chisel
Bench chisels are general-purpose tools for all kinds of light chiseling, trimming, detailing, and cutting tasks with hand pressure or light taps from a mallet.
Key Features
- Blade lengths from 1⁄4 inch to 2 inches
- Bevel-edged blade for versatile cutting
- Wooden handle with metal hoop or ferrule
Bench chisels are essential basic chisels for every workshop. Their shorter blade allows better control for detail work. The beveled cutting edge slices as you push the blade as well as pare away material when pulled back.
2. Mortise Chisel
Mortise chisels are sturdy tools designed for heavy chopping and removal of large amounts of waste wood when cutting mortise and tenon joints.
Key Features
- Narrow blade widths from 1⁄4 inch to 1 inch
- Thick, strong blade to withstand mallet blows
- Metal hoop guard for hand protection
- Long handle for two-handed grip
The thick blade and hoop guard offer the strength and safety to withstand repeated mallet strikes when hacking out deep mortises. Their narrow blades allow precision when chopping the sides of the mortise hole.
3. Firmer Chisel
Firmer chisels have solid blades made for general carpentry work and chopping small to medium sized mortises.
Key Features
- Blade lengths from 1 to 2 inches
- Thicker blade than bench chisels
- Beveled cutting edge
- Wooden handle
Firmer chisels bridge the gap between lighter bench chisels and heavy mortise chisels. Their versatile design suits all kinds of light chopping, paring, and trimming tasks.
4. Bevel Edge Chisel
Bevel edge chisels have angled cutting blades suitable for both paring and chopping tasks.
Key Features
- Blade beveled along both sides
- Typically 1⁄4 to 2 inches wide
- Various lengths from 1⁄4 inch to 2 inches
- Wooden handle
The beveled edges enable sharp, precise paring while also allowing chopping with the flat portion of the blade. Their general-purpose design makes them one of the most useful chisel types for all-around utility.
5. Paring Chisel
Paring chisels have straight, flat blades optimized for cleanly slicing and paring away thin pieces of material.
Key Features
- Flat, elongated blade
- Blade lengths from 1 to 4 inches
- Ideal for fine trimming and sculpting
- Thinner blade than firmer chisels
- Wooden handles in various lengths
The thin blade and straight cutting edge excels at making clean veneer-like shavings. The longer blade provides better leverage when paring and peeling away material.
6. Skew Chisel
Skew chisels have angled, skewed blades that make it easier to pare materials on the push stroke.
Key Features
- Blade angles 25-30 degrees from handle
- Cuts neatly and smoothly
- Less tearing of wood fibers
- Built for paring tasks
- Different widths available
The slanted blade shape slices as you push instead of lift. This makes paring cuts easier with a natural motion and cleaner cut surface.
7. Slick Chisel
Slick chisels are extra-long paring chisels designed for trimming and slicing veneers and thin stock.
Key Features
- Extra-long thin blade up to 16 inches
- Ideal for peeling and slicing veneers
- Shallower bevels for razor-sharp edge
- Wood or plastic handle for grip
The extended blade provides superior leverage and control when peeling extremely thin shavings of material. The shallow-beveled edges can be honed to a razor sharpness perfect for veneers.
8. Cranked Neck Chisel
Cranked neck chisels have a blade offset at an angle to the handle, allowing better leverage when paring tight spaces.
Key Features
- Blade angles 30-40 degrees from handle
- Better reach into confined areas
- Made for fine paring and detail work
- Varying offset angles available
- Also known as bent chisels
The angled blade neck enables cutting in hard-to-reach areas like the insides of mortise and tenon joints or dovetails. The offset provides improved blade control and visibility.
9. Corner Chisel
Corner chisels have an L-shaped blade designed to reach into the sharp interior angles of joints and recesses.
Key Features
- 90-degree bent blade
- Cuts directly into corners
- Removes waste from acute angles
- Thin blade for tight spaces
- Varying blade widths
The right-angle blade negotiates tight inside corners and angles that would otherwise be unreachable by normal straight chisels. It excels at cleaning waste from dovetails, laps, and other joints.
10. Butt Chisel
Butt chisels have short, beveled blades designed for trimming and finishing work on the end grains of boards.
Key Features
- Short 1-to-2-inch blade
- Handles with rounded metal or plastic butt
- Beveled edges
- Built for end-grain trimming
The short hooped handle and blade allows close-up trimming of the ends of boards while protecting the user’s hands. The beveled edges make tidy finishing cuts directly to the ends of pieces.
11. Framing Chisel
Framing chisels have thick, heavy blades for rough carpentry work like cutting mortises in masonry and timber.
Key Features
- Extra-wide 1-to-2-inch blades
- Very thick and durable construction
- Hoop guard for hand protection
- Steel bolster for extra strength
This specialized chisel is purposely built for the extreme stresses of chopping and hammering on heavy structural materials. The wide blade withstands intense blows.
12. Flooring Chisel
Flooring chisels are designed to remove damaged wood from tongue and groove flooring boards so new pieces can be inserted.
Key Features
- Curved blade tip
- Beveled sides
- Blade neck sets lower than handle
- Allows close-up access beside boards
- Varying blade width for flooring sizes
The recessed blade neck provides clearance beside adjoining boards while the curved tip helps extract the damaged flooring piece. The beveled edges make clean trim cuts.
13. Gouge Chisel
Gouge chisels have a curved, U-shaped blade used for scooping and removing waste wood in carved areas.
Key Features
- Deep U-shaped blade
- Wider widths for roughing work
- Narrow widths for detail carving
- Varying sweep radii
- Handle lengths from 4 to 10 inches
Gouge chisels bore out wood according to their blade’s radius, leaving a rounded cavity. The sweeping arc motion naturally scoops and excavates waste as you push the blade through the wood’s fibers.
14. V-Parting Tool Chisel
V-parting chisels have a V-shaped blade used to undercut turnings and cut beads on rounded work pieces.
Key Features
- Narrow V-shaped blade
- 60-90 degree V-angle
- 1⁄4 inch to 1 inch widths available
- Cut profiles and beads on turnings
- Handle length around 5 inches
The V-shaped notch in the blade lets you cleanly undercut and define rounded forms on spindle turnings as the stock rotates against the blade tip. It facilitates precision bead cuts.
15. Fishtail Chisel
Fishtail chisels have a blade shaped like a split fishtail for smoothing and finishing the sloped sides of carved hollows.
Key Features
- Two projecting points like a fishtail
- Angled bevels on each side
- Smoothes and blends concave surfaces
- Varying widths from 1⁄2 to 2 inches
- Handle approx. 5 to 6 inches long
The dual bevels form highly specialized cutting edges able to shear scrape and blend convex and concave curves. This helps refine the flowing lines of artistic carvings.
16. Registered Chisel
Registered chisels have a deep acute angle between the blade and handle that self-centers on rounded work like dowels.
Key Features
- Blade angle allows self-centering
- Holds steady on cylindrical stock
- Makes uniform paring cuts
- Hooped handle for mallet use
- Various edge bevel angles
The extreme angled blade naturally finds and seats itself in the center as it rolls against rounded workpieces. This helps make exceptionally clean and uniform lengthwise paring cuts.
17. Tang Chisel
Tang chisels have a blade inserted into a socket or slot in the handle and secured with a ferrule or hoop.
Key Features
- Blade fully attached to handle
- No exposed blade neck
- Durable construction
- Handle lengths vary
- Ferrule provides reinforcement
The full-tang blade design makes this one of the most solidly constructed and durable chisel types. It transfers force directly down through the blade.
18. Socket Chisel
Socket chisels have blade necks permanently fastened into pre-formed metal sockets on the ends of their handles.
Key Features
- Blade neck seated in metal socket
- Ringed collar prevents handle splits
- Durable hooped handle
- Blade lengths vary, typically 1 – 2 inches
Permanently seating the blade into a solid metal socket makes this an extremely tough and durable chisel. The hooped handle withstands high-impact stress.
19. Bolstered Chisel
Bolstered chisels have solid metal strips forged between the blade and handle for reinforcement.
Key Features
- Extra-thick metal collar or bolster
- Distributes mallet force
- Prevents handle splits
- Found on mortise and framing chisels
The thick collar absorbs impacts and prevents the handle from splitting on these heavy-duty chisels designed for mallet and hammer work.
20. Plastic Handled Chisel
Plastic handled chisels have molded high-impact plastic handles with hoops to protect hands.
Key Features
- Durable plastic handle
- Won’t split or crack
- Hoop or cap hand guard
- Low cost
- Range of blade types
Inexpensive plastic handles offer grip, shock absorption, and an indestructible alternative to wood. The hoop guard provides protection.
Choosing the Best Chisel Type
Consider the primary purpose, material, and scope of your project when choosing a chisel type.
For detailed woodworking, paring chisels make clean and precise cuts. Firmer or bevel edge chisels handle all-around utility tasks. For heavy chopping, mortise chisels withstand mallet blows.
Use gouge chisels when hollowing out portions of carved woodwork. Skew chisels provide superior paring control. Slick chisels excel at veneers.
For confined spaces, opt for corner and cranked-neck chisels. Butt chisels tidy end grains. Flooring chisels remove damaged boards.
See this comparison chart for a quick guide to choosing chisels:
| Chisel Type | Best Uses |
|-|-|
| Bench | General purpose cutting and shaping |
| Mortise | Chopping deep mortises |
| Firmer | All-around light chiseling tasks |
| Bevel Edge | Multi-purpose utility chisel |
| Paring | Fine trimming, shaping, sculpting |
| Skew | Easy paring and smoothing |
| Slick | Extra-long reach for veneers |
| Cranked Neck | Reaching into tight spaces |
| Corner | Interior angles and recesses |
| Butt | End grain trimming |
| Framing | Heavy masonry and timber work |
| Flooring | Removing damaged floorboards |
| Gouge | Scooping and hollowing carved areas |
| V-Parting | Undercutting and bead cutting |
| Fishtail | Smoothing concave curved surfaces |
| Registered | Self-centering on rounded stock |
| Tang | Maximum durability, full blade/handle contact |
| Socket | Permanent blade/handle joint |
| Bolstered | Reinforced for mallet chopping |
| Plastic | Inexpensive general purpose chisels |
Using the appropriate chisel for your needs will ensure the highest quality results as well as safety and efficiency. With practice and experience using the various types, you’ll gain skill in selecting and handling the perfect chisel for every job.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chisels
What are the parts of a chisel?
- Blade – the cutting end made of steel
- Neck – the pointed shank between blade and handle
- Handle – grip area, usually wood, plastic, or metal
- Ferrule or hoop – metal band securing handle
- Bolster – thick collar for reinforcement
How do you hold a chisel?
- Grip the handle near the blade neck for control
- Index finger rests on the neck for guidance
- Keep palms and body behind the blade
- Thumbs on handle flats, not near blade
How do you use a chisel safely?
- Secure workpiece with clamps or vise
- Keep hands behind the blade
- Use slow, light blows if hammering
- Wear protective gloves and eyewear
- Keep blade sharp and bench clear
What angle should a chisel be sharpened?
- 25-30 degrees for paring and framing chisels
- 20-25 degrees for firmer and bevel edge bench chisels
How can you prevent chisel handles from splitting?
- Avoid over-striking with a mallet
- Use chisels with hoops and bolsters
- Keep the handle tight with wedges
- Coat handle with linseed or tung oil
When should you use a mallet versus hand pressure?
- Use hand pressure for light paring, trimming and detail work
- Use a mallet for impact and leverage when chopping and waste removal
How can you extend the life of a chisel?
- Store safely in a tool roll or cabinet
- Protect the edges with a blade guard
- Lubricate the blade with oil
- Avoid overheating during sharpening
- Tighten the handle hoop/ferrule
Conclusion
With their versatility, chisels remain invaluable for countless shaping, trimming, and cutting applications. Understanding the variety of chisel types and their purposes empowers you to select the best tool for each unique job. Take time to get familiar with the different blade configurations, sizes, handles, and materials available.
Seeking out quality chisels made from durable blade and handle materials ensures they’ll withstand years of use if properly maintained. Taking time to periodically sharpen and hone the cutting edges will keep them slicing cleanly and efficiently.
Developing proficiency in handling chisels takes practice but will be rewarding. Employ proper grips, safety methods, and techniques to get the most from these indispensable hand tools. With the right skills and chisels, you’ll be ready to take on any chiseling task with confidence.