Jointer knife sharpening recommendations
adkins
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
Can anyone recommend a sharpening service for jointer knives? I just purchased an older (1940s-1950s) delta 6″ model and I don’t want to just take them to the first place I find in the yellow pages. Know what I mean?
If it makes a difference, I live in Salem, MA, but I don’t mind shipping them out of state…
Greg
Replies
Contact your local cabinet shops to see who they use. I see there's several sharpening services listed for Salem MA. What's wrong with the yellow pages. The key is to ask them questions such as what angle do you recommend for hard and soft woods. What's the turn around time, etc. I'd rather keep the business closer to home. You can probably find someone on the way to your job so you can pick them up. Lots of lumber yards and hardware stores will send them to a local sharpener.
Right. There are several services in the local yellow pages. I was just hoping for something like "Bob Smith does all my sharpening and he's in Beverly." or "I've been shipping all my stuff to Bob Smith in Roanoake, VA, for the last 20 years. Here's the address."
I do like to keep things local as well, but like I said, recommendations go a long way. There are a lot of people here from MA, so I thought I might get lucky.
Thanks for the quick response.
Greg
I'd start with the local sharpening service. Your local hardware store probably sends them to them anyway. They might add a fee onto the charge or perhaps they get a cut from the sharpening. Checking with local cabinet shops is your best referral method.
Hello Rick,
A few years ago I found myself in a similar situation. I had used several local, so called, professional sharpening shops in my area. They nearly ruined my 10" Inca jointer/planer knives. I now have been doing my own knives for about three years and I get great satisfaction from doing so.
Do you have second set of knives? Are the ones you have original and have they been sharpened to the point that they should be replaced anyway? If they seem to have some life to them, are they in need of only a quick grinding, or are they badly nicked? I ask these questions because I am willing to do them for you provided I am not trying to salvage a hopelessly, badly worn set (would take too long!)
Here's the deal: you cover shipping both ways, I'll sharpen them and return them to you. If you are satisfied and feel like compensating me (about an 1.5 hours work) I will graciously accept what ever you offer!
Bob, Tupper Lake, NY
Edited 10/3/2007 8:09 am ET by salamfam
Ok, allow me to take this in a different direction. My jointer is a model 37-207 (late 40's early 50's). Replacement knives should be relatively inexpensive. Can anyone recommend a source?
Thanks!
Greg
First you need to measure them to determine what size you need, then start with the link below.
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=jointer+knives&category0=
If you do not find what you need try Freud or http://wkwinc.com
Life is what happens to you when you're making other plans .
Wisconsin Knife Works or http://www.cggschmidt.com are good sources of knives of any size you need. There are inferior knives out there that don't last long.
Edited 10/3/2007 10:43 am ET by RickL
Your post should have been directed to Adkins. I've been in the industry for 35 years and have done every thing from making furniture to machine rebuilding and knive grinding for moulders.
1.5 hours to sharpen a couple of jointer knives!!!! You have to kidding. My sharpener can do a top notch job of four 20" jointer blades in 15 minutes and for $7 each. 6" jointer blades should cost aobut $3 or $4 each to sharpen.
Sure, some sharpeners are better than others and all have their strong and weak points. I've dealth with enough over the years to know who's good at what.
Most people don't realize that steel can move like wood. After enough sharpenings tension can cause the blade to bow and they need to be straightened out.
He's near Boston and there's enough cabinet and mill shops outh there to steer him to a good sharpening service. You can give a man a fish and he eats for a day but teach him how to fish and he eats for a lifetime. I was trying to get adkins to learn how to find the answers rather than jumping on the web to ask. There's literally dozens of hobby wood forums so the answers to most questions have been posted dozens of times. I still find that the ways of searching before the web are very powerful. The web can help compliment those methods but it's sad to say folks are relying on the web and not using the old tried and true methods.
A referral from a local established cabinet shop is worth 100 referrals from persons of unknown skils and background off the web.
Edited 10/3/2007 11:01 am ET by RickL
Edited 10/3/2007 1:25 pm ET by RickL
I asked a local cabinetmaker. He sent me to a guy who, when I walked into his place, it was full of lawnmower blades. However, the guy has been doing sharpening for 35 years and knows what he's doing with woodworking blades. I, too, have an older jointer (craftsman circa 1970). 3 blades, 6", 2 day turn around = $7.50 plus tax. Ask around, the locals know who is doing the right thing.
Hello Rick,
Sorry I inadvertently replied to you rather than Adkins, a slight oversight on my part, but then, to error is human. (at least for me anyway) Congratulations on your impressive resume and the wonderful sharpening service you have! You should have simply given the information to Adkins.
Regarding my offer to Adkins; I was simply offering to help with getting his knives sharpened so that he could get to using his jointer. The statement about compensation was sort of tongue-in-cheek. From the wording in my statement, it seemed obvious, to me anyway, that a thank you, or a stick of gum would have been compensation enough. That's the problem with these forums, several vital elements of live human interaction are completely lost. I did not ask for monetary compensation! Yes, I must agree, that a unknown individual from the internet, might have questionable skills, and since Adkins ( who I would bet is reading these posts) did not reply, I assume, must not have been interested in my offer.
I am not a professional woodworker, just a bloke who likes to work with wood on the weekends. You are also right about teaching a man to fish, I would be happy to show anyone interested how I maintain my tools and sharpen my knives; I just do'nt think they would want to travel to Tupper Lake, to meet some guy of questionable character, and have him show them anything! (NOTE: several elements of human interaction missing :)
Thank you for your nice reply, I look forward to hearing from you in the future.
Questionable Bob, Tupper Lake, NY
Actually I use a multiple of sharpening services for different things. For Bandmill blades I have two that I use for different brands such as Timberwolf blades and Munksforsagar blades. I use a sharpening service in NY state for the 36" radial arm saw blades and a local one for run of the mill sawblades, jointer, planer blades and assorted router bits and other misc tooling. I have another one for specialty moulder tooling.
You might check with the local Woodcraft store. They usually have a list of sharpening shops who cater to the woodworker. Another possibility is the next time you're in the Woodcraft store, ask a couple of customers who they use for sharpening.
I have a local Woodcraft store that sends out saw blades and whoever does the work is excellent.
Almost any local sharpening service will do a good job. I'd contact a sharpener that does stuff for the printing trade. They do a GREAT job on anything with a 'edge'!
Atlantic Carbide has an excellent service and quick turnaround. Their address is as follows:
Atlantic Carbide
20 Assembly Square Drive
Sommerville, MA 02155
800 649-4888
617 776-6429
Beverley handles the calls and is great to work with.
Jim in Woodstock, VT
Sharpening 6" knives on a bench stone is fairly easy. I just hold them on the bevel and slide back and forth the long way. Like a new chisel, it takes a while, the first time, to get the back flat and to remove the grinding marks. You won't get straighter or sharper with grinding than you will by hand. As long as they don't get nicked badly, touch up is quick. You need a flat sharpening stone or surface. In the picture, you can see a little of the scalloping remaining, that a grinder does to the knives.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Greg,
the really best service is printers service.. you see a jointer/planner blade is exactly the same to a printing service company as the blades they use for ink on printing presses..
There isn't enough wood workers getting blades dull on a regular basis for any of them to have the sort of equipment and experiance that printers have.
Printing equipment has to be spot on, a little dull makes smeary printing and they cannot tolerate that
Around here a lot of companies that advertize about planner/jointer blades send them out to printers service companies. If you do just a little work to find them you'll get lower costs and much faster turn arounds.. Printers seldom can have their blades down for long.. when the blades are down the company isn't making any money.. 10 hours isn't unheard of and while you wait can happen as well.
Frenchy! HI..Late post but I have been waiting (never happened) for somebody to mention how Tage Frid did it!Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking.. Book One Joinery, Pages 45, 46, 47.NO I have never tried it!
Edited 10/7/2007 12:52 pm by WillGeorge
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