Wood Chisel

Guidelines shown below are for Primary Bevel Angles & Secondary bevel angles (also known as micro bevel angles). Notes are also available on a different web page for Micro / Secondary Bevels. If this chisel is to have a skewed end (as shown to the right), it is recommended that β not be greater than 20°. A more acute angle will cause the chisel to drift to the side when using it. 15° is a better target for the maximum.

Primary & Secondary Bevels both ground on a wheel.	Primary Bevel ground on a wheel Secondary Bevels ground on a flat stone

General Guidelines
Type	α		β	Notes
	Primary Bevel	Secondary (Micro) Bevel	Skew
Bench Chisels	20°	2° - 5°	0° - 15°
Corner Chisels	35°	n/a	n/a	A mill file (or some other form of safe edge file) is used to sharpen the inside corner of the chisel.
Firmer Chisels				The secondary bevel needs to be wider : 1/16" (0.0625" / 1.5 mm)     to 1/8" (0.1250" / 3 mm)
- Soft Woods	25°	2° - 5°	n/a
- Hard Woods	30°	2° - 5°	n/a
Mortise Chisels				The secondary bevel needs to be wider : 1/16" (0.0625" / 1.5 mm)     to 1/8" (0.1250" / 3 mm) In The Complete Guide to Sharpening, Leonard Lee recommends rounding off the corner where the sharpened edge meets the top of the chisel. This allows for easier levering of the waste out of the hole.
- Soft Woods	30°	2° - 5°	2° - 5°
- Hard Woods	35°	2° - 5°	2° - 5°
Paring Chisels				These are typically used without a mallet (i.e., using only hand pressure).
- General Use	20°	2°	0° - 15°
- Fine work	15°	2°	0° - 15°
Scraping Chisels	70° - 75°	n/a	n/a	Could be as high as 90°.
Slick Chisels (large paring chisels)	20°	2°	n/a	When used for dovetail work, they are sharpened flat across. Otherwise, they are sharpened with a slight crown. Do not flatten the slight belly in the back of the tool. This aids in its use.
Utility Chisels				The projection jig shown to the right is a great, quick-and-dirty tool that can help to quickly re-sharpen utility chisels.	Projection Jig for using the TTS-100 with the SE-77
- Narrow	30°	2° - 5°	0° - 15°	< 3/8" (8 mm) wide
- Standard	25°	2° - 5°	0° - 15°	3/8 - 1" (8 - 25 mm) wide
- Wide	20°	2° - 5°	0° - 15°	> 1" (25 mm) wide

Notes & Comments

Information regarding Grindstones

Flattening the back is really critical for the overall sharpness. There is a good video about that below.

Hollow grinding on the back of the chisels (traditional, not Japanese chisels) is recommended by some, including by Garret Hack. Two videos below show that process.

SE-77 Square Edge Jig Some have mentioned that it is a bit tricky to get the alignment correct for chisels using this jig. That said, this jig is very useful for cambering plane blades, so it is useful to have if you sharpen those also. Shorter chisels won't always work in this jig. If you have some of your grandfather's old chisels around which you want to use (other to open paint cans), consider using SVS-38, SVH-60, or SE-77 with the MB-100

SE-76 Square Edge Jig This is a great jig to use for sharpening chisels, including skewed edges. However shorter chisels won't always work in this jig. If you have some of your grandfather's old chisels around which you want to use (other to open paint cans), consider using the SVH-60. As with the SE-77, shorter chisels won't always work in this jig. Consider using SVS-38, SVH-60, or SE-77 with the MB-100 The SE-77 has replaced this jig and the SE-76 is hard to find.

SVS-38 Short Tool Jig This jig is also useful for sharpening chisels where there is not enough length to use either of the two jigs listed above.

SVH-60 Straight Edge Jig This is the original jig for sharpening chisels and plane blades. It is no longer being made which is unfortunate as it is really great for holding shorter chisels. If you have shorter chisels, consider getting one from the used tools market. The SE-77 has replaced this jig and the SVH-60 is hard to find.

More Information

Books & Papers

• A great general reference is the U.S. War Department's TM 9-867 Maintenance and Care of Hand Tools.

Videos & Presentations

• Tormek Live Sharpening Class - Part 3 - Chisels, plane irons & Tormek grinding wheels (YouTube video). Sebastien and Wolfgang offer some great tips on the sharpening of chisels & plane irons using the various Tormek grinding wheels, including the use of the diamond wheels.
• At 00:46, there is a great explanation of sharpening a tool with a radiused end using the SE-77 Square Edge Jig.
• At 00:52, there is a great explanation of how to use the MB-100 Multi Base.


• Tormek Live Sharpening Class - Part 9 - Sharpen a flat bevel with Tormek MB-100 on a diamond wheel (YouTube video). In this episode we learn how to use the Tormek MB-100 Multi Base to sharpen a completely flat bevel ▼, on the side of Tormek's diamond wheels DC-250, DF-250 and DE-250. For some tools, such as 🎻 luthier knives,🔪 Kiridashi knives, v-tools, chip carving knives and Japanese plane irons, a completely flat surface on the bevel is preferred over a slightly concave, which you get when you sharpen on the rounded part of the grinding wheel. For some people this is more of a personal preference.

  Regardless of what might be the reason to want a flat bevel, Sèbastian and Wolfgang show how to achieve it with your Tormek wet sharpening system, They will also touch upon the differences between the different types of bevels.



• Chisel Sharpening (YouTube video). Vincent Chicone owns a cabinet making shop and uses an old Tormek 2000 to sharpen his tools. This video is really good at showing how he flattens the back on the side of the SG grindstone.


• Sharpening with Garrett Hack - Hollow Grinding on Chisels and Plane Blades (YouTube video)


• Hollow-grinding a chisel with a Dremel tool (YouTube video)


• Tormek SE-76 Square Edge Jig (YouTube video)


• Using the SE-77 Jig to Camber a Plane Blade on the Tormek Sharpener (YouTube video)


• Tormek SVH-60 Straight Edge Jig (YouTube video). This jig is no longer sold, but is quite useful for short tools.


• Tormek AngleMaster WM-200 (YouTube video)


• Tormek Turning Tool Setter TTS-100 (YouTube video)

Tormek is a copyrighted logo of Tormek AB. Its presentation on this site is used to help the user quickly understand when specific Tormek tools, jigs, or setting are being used. For specific information regarding Tormek AB, or its products, please refer to the www.Tormek.com.