Middle of the road gouges

[WoodDoesntTalkBack]

So a coworker of mine saw what I was carving on my lunch break and we struck up a conversation about woodworking and he expressed interest in purchasing some chisels and gouges just to play with on occasion and then asked for recommendations. My first thought was the Woodcraft store down the street for some Flexcut items, but he didn't seem to like the price. And it seems to me that he's the type that wants "middle of the road" pricing because he tends to dip in and out of hobbies. I told him I would ask around. So, any recommendations on brands for "middle of the road" chisels/gouges? Or at least where to purchase the items?

[samhell]

Theres a bunch in the Grizzly catalog... dunno how great they are but they aren't as expensive as the Flexcut stuff. Avoid the Harbor Freight ones... they'd be ok for carving wet clay but thats about it.

[Bob Rozaieski]

Carving tools are a fickle animal. I haven't found much in the way of "middle of the road". Plus, that's a fairly relative term. What kind of price point are we talking about here?

The thing with carving tools is that cheap tools will make carving frustrating. The steel is usually too thick, or worse, uneven in thickness. You can get away with this in a bench chisel, but in a carving chisel, it makes sharpening and carving frustrating. I'm not one to usually suggest the higher end tool as the best option (I use $5-10 wooden planes and old hand saws myself), but when it comes to carving tools, it usually pays to spend a little more. The nice thing about good carving tools is that they hold their value extremely well. You can sell an Ashley Iles, Dastra, Two Cherries, Stubai, or other premium carving tool for about what you paid for it if you decide you don't like it. The same can't always be said for a lot of other tools. But there's a reason that these tools cost what they do, and there's a reason that good old carving tools from makers like Addis are so highly sought after and often sell for more than high end new tools. They're worth it.

I personally use Henry Taylor tools. I think they are a good valued tool. They have good steel, the thickness is consistent, they aren't too thick, take a good edge, and they are priced a little better than brands like AI, Two Cherries, Dastra and Stubai because they don't come polished. Saving the polishing step saves a bit of labor and that can be reflected in the price of the tools. I think they are a good value in carving tools, but they still aren't what I would consider cheap at about $30 per chisel on average.

With all that said, there are a couple of brands that get OK reviews for just starting out. However, they are typically not full sized tools but smaller tools to save on cost. This can be ok for small hands, but most people will find them a little small for full sized furniture type carving. It really comes down to what you intend to carve. If your friend is ok with that, check out the tools made by Ramelson. While I've never used them, several of the carving sites say they are an ok investment for getting started. However, I would consider the money spent on them lost. If your friend decides he doesn't really like carving, it is unlikely that he'll be able to sell them without a substantial loss in investment, unlike the higher end tools. Still, they might be worth a look for him. Check them out here:

Ramelson Carving Tools

[WoodDoesntTalkBack]

Thanks for the responses. I will tell him. And I personally use a set of 5 General gouges that I bought on a whim at a garage sale at my condo complex. A lady 2 garages over had a ton of tools for sale (widow), and just for the hell of it I bought the gouges a couple years ago and never had a use for them until a few weeks ago. Then I decided to see how much they were worth, and places are selling them anywhere from $35 to $54! I would say that they were worth my $5!