My brother is sending me something.

[Lemwise]

Ever had one of those periods when it seems new tools just keep pouring in? Well, I'm having one of them right now. My brother lives in Belgium and yesterday he walked past a tiny hardware store and they had a brand new set of 6 Nooitgedagt chisels on display. I once told him that if he ever comes across Nooitgedagt chisels he has to buy them right away and I'll pay him back. So that's what he did, he bought them and he's mailing them to me ;D The sizes are 6, 12, 16, 20, 26 and 32mm.

For those of you who don't know the brand, Nooitgedagt was a Dutch manufacturer of high quality woodworking tools. Nooitgedagt chisels were the standard among furniture makers and shipwrights (and general carpenters as well) in The Netherlands. They're made from Swedish Eskilstuna steel and they're very well machined and hold an edge well.

Here's a pic my brother took in the store:

 

[AlexThePalex]

That's a nice find, good chissels, I also have a bunch of them in different varieties. A shame the brand ceased to exist, oh glorius foreign takeovers.

 

[Kev]

Seems Eskilstuna is famous for steam engines too .. I'd never heard of it.

 

[Lemwise]

That's a nice find, good chissels, I also have a bunch of them in different varieties. A shame the brand ceased to exist, oh glorius foreign takeovers.

Indeed a good find and I'm very happy with them. Well, I will be once I have them. According to the owner of the hardware store these are from the mid 80's when the steel was still of the highest quality. After the takeover by Snap-on (I think it was them) the quality  of Nooitgedagt tools started to decline. Especially the quality of the steel was noticeably worse. It still had the "Swedish steel" stamp but it definitely wasn't that good old Eskilstuna steel.

 

[derekcohen]

About 15 years ago, Nooitgedacht chisels were being sold on eBay for about $20 for a set of 8! I bought a set, like many others on the Badger Pond forum at the time who were raving about them.

They were more like bevel edged firmers and, sorry to say, really quite ordinary in regard to edge holding. Not in the same class as Swedish Berg chisels they resemble, which I had.

Your set looks different. I hope they are better.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[Lemwise]

Nooitgedagt chisels up to the early 90's were made with Eskilstuna steel and basically a copy of E.A. Berg chisels. How do I know this? Well, I live in Friesland and not that far from Ijlst where the Nooitgedagt factory was located. A friend of my father worked for them and this is what he told me. I'm taking them over to him once I have them and he will be able to tell if these are the good ones.

 

[derekcohen]

I find it difficult to believe that the Nooitgedacht are a copy of Berg chisels - unless in someone's dreams. Sorry.

The Nooitgedacht chisels I had (from new) were softer than the Bergs I owned at the same time. They did not hold an edge nearly as long. The blades of the Nooitgedacht were quite crude by comparison - much thicker and with significantly larger lands.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[Lemwise]

You are correct, Derek, the chisels from the late 90's on were of poorer quality. When Record took over the quality took a nose dive. The early Nooitgedagt chisel were much, much better. However, they were indeed a bit thicker than the original Berg chisels and the lands were indeed larger. Apart from that they were very well machined and they took a very keen edge that was wear resistant. I should know, I've used them for years when I started out as a shipwright.

And just so you know, my dad's friend who worked for Nooitgedagt for 45 years told me they were modelled after Berg chisels.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Nooitgedagt had many different series of chisels through the years, some better and some more basic. I have two with the wooden handle, very old, thin steel, and really nothing special. I also have two concave ones with the red handle and I think they are very good. And I have a small set of wood carving chisels which are also pretty decent.

 

[Maximus]

I've tried them, but to be honest, I've found Henry Taylor chisels to be better.  They're hand forged and the Sheffield steel is superb. They're still being made thankfully  [big grin]

 

[Lemwise]

Nooitgedagt had many different series of chisels through the years, some better and some more basic. I have two with the wooden handle, very old, thin steel, and really nothing special. I also have two concave ones with the red handle and I think they are very good. And I have a small set of wood carving chisels which are also pretty decent.

The red handled chisels were generally speaking of better quality. They had to be because they were also used by construction carpenters on site. The steel was tougher than the wooden handled chisels which were only used by shipwrights and furniture makers.

 

[Lemwise]

The blades of the Nooitgedacht were quite crude by comparison - much thicker and with significantly larger lands.

So first of all I took the set of chisels to my fathers friend and he confirmed that these are good ones. According to him they were most likely produced somewhere in the late 80's with the high quality Eskilstuna steel. As for the crudeness of the blades, here are some pics of the 26mm chisel. The rest are at work but are exactly the same in terms of thickness and finish. Personally I wouldn't call these crude. All of the blades are 4mm thick and everything is nice and straight.