Professional Japanese Chisel Oire Nomi Kanetomo - 18mm

The Kanetomo Oire Nomi chisel is a professional, general-purpose Japanese woodworking chisel that can be struck with a mallet. It is widely used for standard carpentry tasks such as joinery, furniture making, doors, frames, and more.

The chisel features a high hardness of around 63 HRC and is made from high-carbon Shirogami tool steel, also known as White Paper Steel. In Japan, Shirogami is a high-quality tool steel, ideal for producing chisels and knives. This chisel is laminated, meaning the blade is made of two layers: a hard and a soft steel layer.

The handle is made from red oak (akagashi) and finished with a metal ring.

Specifications:

• Blade Width: 18mm
• Blade Length: 58mm
• Total Chisel Length: 225mm

(Note: Photos depict the 24mm version.)

The chisel is pre-sharpened and ready for use. It can be struck with a metal-headed mallet, but it is essential to ensure the ring is positioned as close to the blade as possible, so the mallet contacts the handle end directly. To prolong the handle’s life, periodically oil the handle end to prevent splitting. Japanese Oire Nomi chisels feature a characteristic hollow on the back, which reduces the contact area between the tool and the material.

Due to the short blade length, this chisel is not suitable for deep mortising and should not be used as a lever (it is neither a mortising nor a framing chisel).