> On Jan 13, 2017, at 5:45 AM, Thomas Conroy via OldTools  wrote:
> 
> O Galoots:
> This one rambles a bit before it gets to the point, but with patience we can
get aroound all four bases.
> {SNIP}
> They are, as 1/4' chisels often are, grossly thick, as thick as they are wide
near the socket, so to get them thin enough for a dovetailing pair I will have
to grind off at least half the thickness in the inch or two nearest the edge.
I've taken the Fulton down to 1/8" at an inch from the edge, and 1/16" a quarter
inch from the edge. This completely removes the bevel-edging in the ground
areas; I haven't yet decided whether to re-bevel the edges. I would hesitate a
long time before doing this much surgery on a name chisel, or even one marked
"cast steel" and nothing else, but hey, it's a Dunlap and a Fulton--- no great
worry if the regrinding proves a frost.
> 
> And we get to the point of this email. I'm almost ready to grind the skew on
the front. And I need to decide what angle is best for small dovetails. Opinions
seem to differ on this. Anyone care to give an opinion about what angle is right
for a dovetailing skew? Lie-Nielsen does a very mild 20 degree skew. Most makers
seem to favor a more pronounced skew; some seem to go all the way to a 45 degree
skew. I'd probably go for a pretty pronounced skew, maybe 30-35 degrees (my
first set was around 40 degrees, and y second around 25). But I'd like to hear
what other galoots think is most useful.
> Also, I have to decide on ha dle size.

I have a pair of no-name skews that are 7/16th wide and ground at 30*. I don’t
use them often but occasionally find them helpful. My fine dovetailing chisel is
a nominally 1/4” Fulton (7/32 actual) that I ground into a triangular cross
section. This one gets a good workout when doing half blind DT’s as it is the
best for reaching into the corners.

Bill