Veritas PM-V11 Butt Chisels

Chopping out dovetails in white oak used to mean stopping every few minutes to hone, but the PM-V11 steel keeps a working edge through a whole set of pins. The butt length gives me way more control on paring cuts than my old bench chisels.

These things hold an edge far longer than any chisel I've owned — I flattened the backs once and they've stayed dead flat through weeks of paring. The PM-V11 steel really is the real deal for fine joinery work.

I've been using these for dovetails and paring end grain, and the PM-V11 steel really does hold an edge noticeably longer than my old chisels. The butt style is short enough to control easily with one hand on detail work. Fit and finish out of the box was flawless.