MKC Professional Woodworking Cabinetmakers Mortise Chisel set Chrome-Vanadium Steel with Hornbeam Handles for Carpentry, Woodworking, Carving, Craftsman, Set of 3, 1/4”, 3/8”,1/2”

The 1/4" & 3/8" chisels are alright.But the 1/2" one is damaged. The tip has been chipped.Feel disappointed.

The handles on the 1/4" & 1/2" chisels are fine but the handle on the 3/8" chisel is twisted at least 20 degrees which makes it difficult to align properly with the work piece (see photos). I requested a replacement set and, to the vendor's credit, I surprisingly had a new set by the end of the same day (they must be local to me). Unfortunately, the handle on the replacement 3/8" chisel was actually more twisted than the original. I returned the replacement set and informed the vendor that if it was not possible to provide a 3/8" chisel with the correct handle alignment that I would like to return the original set , as well, for a full refund. These chisels are made in China and while the price point is very good for mortise chisels, I know that quality control on Chinese tools can be hit or miss. As of now, I have received no communication from the vendor on a resolution.UPDATE: I am changing my rating from two stars to five stars based solely on how the vendor has chosen to handle this situation. To their credit they refunded the full purchase price on the set of chisels showing that they are ethical in the way they conduct their business. I realize that they are at the mercy of the Chinese concept of "quality control" but they were willing to make it right...kudos!

I recieved these around a week ago. What I got was of a far higher quality than I was expecting for the price. The steel is excellent. The cutting edges are all square which beats some other brand named products I've run across in the past. The edge is sharp to approximately 180-220 grit, so they are useable out of the box, but there is plenty of room if you're addicted to tool sharpening, like myself, to get just the edge you want without having to go to the grinder.The handles are very well fit to the steel, There are no visible gaps or wiggles. The cross section of each handle is oval shaped to be comfortably held in the left hand with the bevel facing away from you, which helps guide a straight cut, while the edges along the length of the steel have zero chamfer, which helps keeps each mortise square and smooth along the walls. I did a little digging for info about the company and found that they are a smaller, 6 person, US based company.

I bought these to complete a project I started. I used the 1/2" chisel to mortice a mailbox post. Mortices were 3" deep 2" wide and 5" long in Locust. I also cut a through mortice 2" wide 6" tall and 6" deep. I used a 20oz Mallet to bump the tool through the project.The chisels came serviceably sharp, but when new I flattened and sharpened to razor sharp on a diamond plate. The tool stayed hair popping sharp through the first two mortices. I dropped it on the concreate buggaring up a corner. Mad. The diamond plates made quick work, starting at 120 grit then 180, 400, 1200, and on to the leather strop to finish. The chisel finished the job sharp enough for the next.Hornbearn handles held up very well and do not show any marks from use.Even though I oiled the chisel after my first sharpening with balistol, It corroded slightly as it sat in the garage between the first time I used it and the next. I has to be the oil from my skin that caused it. Note to self - oil after each use.Overall - Very happy with performance and edge retention. Locust is very difficult to work and hard on tools. These held up just fine to some very large and heavy work.

These at first glance look like some really good chisels.Pros:1. Though the handles feel strange (rather odd shaped and big) they are solid2. The ferrules on the chisels are really well made and fitted to the handles. They are the best I've seen.After removing the handles for sharpeningCons:1. Out of 6 chisels 2 were croaked and needed a lot of work to get flat, one was not grounded to the standard 25 degrees and need to be reground, the rest were 'hollow' ground but still needed flattening to remove the hollow. (see photos)2. 1 chisel (see photo) had a bad forge and chipped off. Though irritating it does not seem to effect the use.3. The handles get in the way for flattening the backs and were removed.I would have given this 4 Stars for the hardness of the steel, wood handles and the well fitted ferrules, but the need for a lot of work to flatten the backs and the chipped tang they get 2 stars.