Tungsten carbide tools for stone sculpture

Carbide bits have an insert made of carbide, often referred to as WIDIA. The term derives from "like diamond" and refers to the fact that diamond is the hardest material on the Mohs scale is the hardest mineral of all. Accordingly, all other types of stone can be worked with it.

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Tungsten carbide tools are particularly well suited for working stones with a hardness of about 4 or more on the Mohs scale, such as harder marble or hard limestone. It is also very good for chipping hard stones such as granite, gneiss and diabase or gabbro. You can also use carbide chisels for sandstone: The sharp-edged quartz components can do little harm to the tools.

The special properties of carbide tools

On the one hand, carbide is characterised by extreme hardness, but on the other hand, the material is also more brittle than, for example, forged steel. Carbide bits therefore usually have a blunter cutting angle, thin and pointedly ground carbide could break too easily.

Perfect carbide tools for hard rock

The rule for cutting hard stone is: the harder the stone, the blunter the cutting angle of the tool should be. Hard stone can therefore be worked very well with the blunter-ground carbide chisels. The chisels hardly need to be resharpened during work, as there is very little abrasion. The cutting edge has a correspondingly longer service life than tools made of forged steel.

We recommend the use of carbide claw chisels for hard stone such as granite or for firmly bonded sandstone. Carbide claw chisels can also be used, for example, for very hard limestone from a Mohs hardness of about 3 and for harder marble. Carbide claw chisels are not suitable for very soft limestone (and similar soft stone) and soft-bonded sandstone, as the teeth can very easily become clogged with the material or jam with larger pieces that are cut off, causing teeth to break out. For soft, abrasive stones such as soft sandstone, we advise using a claw-insert holder with a replaceable claw-insert made of forged steel.

Hammerhead or mallet head?

At bildhau you will find carbide tools with mallet head and with hammerhead. If you want to work your stone with a wooden or synthetic mallet , please choose chisels with mallet head. If you are working with an iron or steel mason's hammer, chisels with a hammerhead are suitable.

You want to know more about chisels?

For example, which chisel shape is best suited for which stone work? Then take a look here.

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