These tools form a good starting point. Please call me for advice if you are unsure about a purchase or the suitablity of a second hand tool.
Bench plane | no. 5 1/2 Jack plane |
Blockplane | low angle with an adjustable mouth |
Chisels | set of five or six bevel edged bench chisels |
Dovetail saw | either western or Japanese |
Tenon / carcass saw | rip cut, either western or Japanese |
Piercing or Jewellers saw | adjustable and with a throat of at least 100mm |
Mallet | small mallet suitable for cabinet work not carpentry or joinery, typically around 14oz |
Straight edge | 1000mm long, steel not aluminium |
Scalpel | Swann Morton no.3 handle with 10A blades |
Engineers square | steel, either 75mm or 100mm |
Dovetail square | 1:8 |
45 degree mitre square | steel, Japanese combined try and mitre squares perform well |
Sliding bevel gauge | Japanese ‘shinwa’ perform well |
Steel rules | ideally 150mm, 300mm, 600mm, and 1000mm |
Marking / cutting gauges | ideally two, the wheel types perform well, alternatively choose two wooden cutting gauges |
Calipers | Vernier style, either dial or digital |
Combination waterstone | 1000 / 6000 grit or similar |
Float glass | non toughened ideally 15mm thick and approximately 600mm x 300mm |