“Those who get satisfactory results free-hand, do not bother. If I were that good, I wouldn’t either.”
Metod,
I’m not trying to bust your chops, but how will you develop the muscle memory needed to sharpen free-hand without taking the time to sharpen free-hand?
I’m happy your sharpening jigs work for you, but they remind me a little of some of the Rube Goldberg contraptions our students try to cobble together because they haven’t learned how to fettle and use a hand plane and think it would be “easier” to spend a few hours making a jig so they can use router to do what would have taken them two minutes with a tuned-up #5.
One of the reasons woodworking schools have value is because a qualified instructor can provide real-time feedback that helps students correct their technique before they develop bad habits. If you don’t have someone who can “analyze your golf swing,” it’s harder to improve your game – but not impossible.
For me, it starts with the ability to visualize every aspect of a process before you start and while you’re doing it. Have you considered positioning a large mirror at your sharpening station to help you see what you’re doing while you’re doing it? Might be worth trying.
Good luck,
-Jazzdogg-
Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.
Edited 5/16/2005 2:03 pm ET by jazzdogg
Replies
I'm an extreme novice when it comes to sharpening by hand. I'm very interested in learning to free hand, and was wondering if you know of any books/literature?
Dustin,
Sharpening is a lot like sex: everyone seems to do it with a twist, and preferences, of their own; and for most people, it's the end result that matters more than the technique.
The best books on the subject (sharpening!) I have found are:
"The Complete Guide to Sharpening" by Leonard Lee. Taunton Press, 1995
"Taunton's Complete Illustrated Guide to Sharpening" by Thomas Lie-Nielsen. Taunton Press, 2004.
I have a slight preference for Lee's book, but maybe that's because it's been around longer and is more deeply imprinted on my consciousness.
For my money, it all boils down to understanding how to achieve a shape that's appropriate for the tool and task at hand, followed by; refining the shaped edge(s) to the desired keenness, and finally; honing, which is what most of us do to bring our cutting tools back to optimum performance on a daily basis.
Good luck,-Jazzdogg-
Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right.
Just a note on Lee's book - he advocates the use of a guide and NOT doing sharpening free hand.1 - measure the board twice
2 - cut it once
3 - measure the space where it is supposed to go
4 - get a new board and go back to step 1
"
Just a note on Lee's book - he advocates the use of a guide and NOT doing sharpening free hand."
Rick,
I view shaping and honing as separate activities, and "sharpening" as a catch-all phrase that tries to combine the two disciplines under one rubric - unsuccessfully. Please let me try and clarify my position:
When a damaged edge needs to be reshaped, or a bevel angle changed, I turn to a low-speed grinder - sometimes free-hand, and sometimes with a simple jig. That being said, I seldom have to reshape the edges on my cutting tools - perhaps once a year for my most-used tools - unless something gets dropped.
When I don't have access to a grinder, I can reshape my cutting tools using only stones, which, I agree, can be easier and more accurate with some kind of jig. Thankfully, this in an infrequent occurrence, and not something I would advocate as a standard practice - unless you have no choice or someone is paying you by the hour!
With a properly shaped and undamaged edge, I can quickly hone my cutting tools to razor sharpness with only several strokes across my stones, and without need of guides or jigs. This kind of honing makes up perhaps 95% of the "sharpening" I do each year.
Sorry if I sound like a contrarian,
-Jazzdogg-
Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right.
Edited 5/16/2005 6:51 pm ET by jazzdogg
Thanks.
Good summary, Jazz.Regards,Leon Jester
Having mutilated more than a few stones and blades in attempts to sharpen free-hand, I can more than relate to the need for a guide. For me, the Veritas guide was a revilation; accuracy, repeatability and speed in a simple package.. I guess the bottom line is that it doesn't matter how you get there, all that counts is the qualty of your edge...
Mike Wallace
Stay safe....Have fun
<<A substantial reason that the students develop bad (dangerous, inefficient) working habits is because they are trained and not educated. Even here on Knots you frequently come across "that's how I was taught". Such comments come from trained an not educated person.>>
Well said, my friend. My terminology on this is the difference between 'being taught' and 'learning'. When I first learned to turn on an engine lathe, how's that for dating myself, we ground our tool bits by hand; changing the geometry to achieve the results desired. There was immediate feedback and the learning curve was steep and pregnant with sublety. I got pretty good at it and the knowledge spilled over into other sharpening challenges because, I believe, I understood the concepts.
Years later, I allowed myself to be convinced that sharpening a plane iron would be beyond me without some fixture. I've used them and they certainly work, but I decided to see if I still had the muscle memory honed (pun intended) so many years ago. What a joy to find that I still do. My take on your point is that the muscle memory is one thing, and a luxury if you have it or can develop it, but understanding what you need is every bit as important, indeed most important, since the guide can help us overcome the limitations of our motor skills.
Greg
It boils down to what works for the individual.
The only sharpening guide/jig I use is the Veritas one for grinding wheels, I find it's faster to set it to the angle I want to grind than to free-hand it.
Beyond that, I free-hand to hone. I was fortunate in that my favourite uncle taught me how to do it when I was a kid -- he got tired of patching me up, I guess, when I got cut using a dull knife.
Some folks have a knack for it, some don't. I'd gladly trade it in for the skill someone like Rob Millard has with building furniture.
One works with what one has.
Regards,
So education is somehow superior to training, is it?
Carry out the following simple experiment --- first read, study and thoroughly educate yourself in the theoretical principles of plastering then purchase a trowel and try rendering a wall.
Most hand tools -- even something as basic as a hammer -- require practice [i.e. 'training'] in their use. Theory should march hand-in-hand with training, not be touted as a substitute.
IanDG
So, Metod, are you using stones and a jig to shape, hone, or both?
-Jazzdogg-
Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right.
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