For two years now I have struggled with getting my chisels, gouges, knives, and plane blades sharp. I’ve bought stones and strops and other items, read books and watched videos. No luck.
Recently while touring through the hills of Tennessee I met a guy named Mac Proffitt at Smokey Mountain Wood Carvers, who set me straight. I simple cloth wheel charged with abrasive he sold me has changed my sharpening life forever. I spent the last 48 hours sharpening (or polishing) every tool I own. My bench chisels now cut end grain of oak like butter. My plane blades give me the thinnest shavings I’ve ever had. My gouges and knives are razor sharp.
Thanks Mac, I owe you one!
Jeff
Replies
If you like it and it works then don't change. Go build something with those nice sharp tools.
Charles,
"build something with those nice sharp tools"
What?! Won't that get 'em dull??!!
Cheers,
Ray
Jeff. always glad to hear about something that works well and is easy to do in twoodworking. Could you be more specific about what you are using and doing? What wheel (size, make, mounted on, etc.)? What charging compound? Method of sharpening - as in jig or technique? Thanks.
Well, it's all downhill from here. Now the arguments will start about the firmness of the wheel, the right compound to use, and all the rest.
There is no one "right" answer for most of the things we kick around here, and especially sharpening methods. But it's certainly interesting to hear first hand reports of what works for particular ww'rs.
Charles,Have you ever been to a wedding and noticed how excited the bride and groom are? I suppose one could say to them: "Here we go again. Another couple getting married We've seen all of this before."Jhoundshell has just found a way to make his tools sharp enough to make him happy. After trying hard to do this for a long time, he is, and he should be, genuinely excited and happy!!! And like the newlyweds, it is nice to share his happiness and excitement. Actually, for the newlyweds, it doesn't make any difference that others have gotten married before them. Nor does it make any difference that others have learned to sharpen their tools well. Last night I posted a question about the hardness of felt wheels. Today, I read your post which indicates that this ground has been plowed before. Like the newlyweds, it is irrelevant to me that others have tread this ground before. I haven't, and I want to attain the knowledge and skill that others have already attained. I spent a lot of time researching the topic. As I pointed out in my post, I contacted three people who make a living by woodworking and they used three different types of wheels for buffing (soft, medium and hard). This prompted me to look further into the question.My post on Knots last night resulted in a great response from Derek Cohen who is doing research on honing for an article that he is writing for Fine Woodworking. I really appreciated the fact he is doing this research and that he took the time to let me know of his findings. I am one of those unfortunate people who has still not conquered the demon of dullness to their own satisfaction. I would appreciate your ideas on honing, or at least a pointer to where you think the best information on honing can be found. A wise man once said that there is a good view when you stand on the shoulders of giants. Actually I don't know if anyone ever said that, but it sounds good, doesn't it? Looking forward to hearing back from you. Your advice has always been very helpful in the past.
:-)
Thank you.
MelMeasure your output in smiles per board foot.
I'm sure that by the time this thread runs its course the original poster will be convinced he never really did sharpen his edges like he thought he did. There is no way his method could possible have worked, you see, because my method is so much better. I've 'researched' sharpening and even submitted an article for publication.
I stand by my suggestion that his edges are sharp enough to build with.
So, go build.
As for your question, just get a medium felt wheel (medium anything is almost always a reasonable compromise) and polish the bevels only (regular bench chisels and plane blades). The honing compound sold at Lowe's (next to the felt wheels conveniently) will work fine. By the time you read any particular article in print, hopefully the topic will be more or less academic in your case - you're edges are just fine thank you and the woodworking is progressing nicely.
Taken to an absurd extreme, which I can assure you a lot of people here are more than willing to do, you will spend your day married to your bench grinder and wrench, changing wheels out - leather for this, cardboard for that, stitched muslin will only work for this, hard felt for that, soft cotton for THIS ONE CHISEL.
MEL, DON'T FALL INTO THIS ABSURD TRAP!
Spend your time learning layout. Learn how to mark out joinery without referring to a book. Know joinery and stock preparation cold. Your edges are most likely already perfectly fine for any woodworking that you plan to do. If you don't already have the felt wheel you need, then don't buy one at all. You don't have to have one. There is no such a thing as a sharpening revelation. Have another kind of revelation - go and lay out a frame with stuck thumbnail moulding and cut it by hand. Learn to chop a mortise. Learn to cut a mortise and tenon joint that fits straight off the saw and chisel - no shoulder plane 're-model' needed. Cut a houndstooth dovetail. Learn about furniture history instead of the relative merits of O-2 vs. hell I don't know. If your time is constrained at all, don't waste it on all this sharpening bull.
Do something.
Sharpening is like taking a leak, really. It's just something you do. Don't make it too complicated.
If you've read Planecraft, or any other relatively brief treatise on sharpening, then you've read enough. Don't worry about felt wheels, waterstones vs. Shaptons, and all that rot. You don't need to be an amateur metallurgist to enjoy building things with wood. It's really not necessary. A grinder and a few oilstones are all you really need (a sane scary sharp set up is also the essence of simplicity). You can strop on a piece of rock Maple. Or your blue jeans. Or the heel of your hand.
Charles,
Thank you for that classic response. I think we are in violent and raging agreement. I don't spend much time sharpening, and I want to spend even less. I don't want to complicate sharpening, but to simplify it. I get my chuckles out making furniture and carvings, not out of sharpening my tools. I believe if you saw my output and my methods five years ago and now, you would assess that I have made great progress (but that I have miles to go.) I have made furniture for 35 years, but have only really tried to "stretch" in the past few years. I try to use good layout tools and practices, and have moved from dowels to mortise and tenon. As you know, I have started to use handtools, rather than to rely solely on machines, and am enjoying it immensely. I can now get a long thin shaving out of my three planes, and I am finding more ways to use them! I do all my dovetails by hand now, though I cut mortises with a router, and tenons on a tablesaw. I am going to try TJ McDermott's practice of using a medium felt wheel to hone carving tools. He's no slouch when it comes to carving!!! I only want to do this to cut down on sharpening/honing time. If it doesn't work for me, I'll go back to Scary Sharp for my carving tools too. For honing my bench chisels, I have used a leather strop that I bought decades ago. But now I see that it is thick and it compresses, so I will make a new one out of chamois and MDF. I really am not into fads. I am not trying to make sharpening complicated. By the way, I wasn't endorsing the method that jhoundshall has adopted for honing. I was merely saying that I applaud the fact that he is trying to improve, and that he has improved. I share his joy in making another step in the long and enjoyable journey. Thank you for the advice and the encouragement.
MelMeasure your output in smiles per board foot.
Well, it's all downhill from here. Now the arguments will start about the firmness of the wheel, the right compound to use, and all the rest.
hahahahahahahahahahah aha....(whew) indeed.
Samson,Hopefully, this link will get you to the wheel and compound I'm using:http://www.woodcarvers.com/buffingwh.htmAs long as your blade has an edge on it, I don't think there is any need to actually "sharpen" it. They showed me how to use a 1 inch belt sander to shape the blade if necessary (this is the model I bought... http://www.deltamachinery.com/index.asp?e=136&p=835). Watch the video on FWW by TJ McDermott about carving letters (http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/SkillsAndTechniques/SkillsAndTechniquesArticle.aspx?id=27064). There is a very short segment of the video showing him buffing a gouge and a chisel. This is the exact same process I'm using. No jigs involved, only takes a couple minutes.LMK if you have any other questions.
FWIW, the belt sander/felt wheel combo was 'made famous' by Tage Frid.
It's been around forever. Nothing new. But it is certainly effective.
Thanks, Jeff. I may try to add it to my sharpening arsenal as it looks to only involve a $15 investment in a wheel in and some compound. Cool.
One of the problems with this method is that the point of the tools becomes sort of rounded after a bit. So after a few (quite a few actually) buffings, a regrinding is necessary. You will notice it as it becomes harder and harder to cut that end grain.
It is really tempting to buff both sides of a chisel or plane iron, and what is really happening is that the backs of these tools end up less than flat. So be careful!
You can get away with it on carving chisels, but it takes a lot of work to reflatten a flat backed chisel.
Hal
http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com
So how do you sharpen your blades?Jeff
Well...I sharpen my plane irons and chisels exactly the same way. It is absolutely fool proof. Well, it would be fool proof except that I had an apprentice a couple of years ago that didn't do it my way and he could never get his stuff sharp. So not totally fool proof.
One really important thing is to flatten the back. There are many methods, most of them take a ton of time, so just do it. Get them flat and polished with at least a 1200 grit Japanese water stone. I actually do it to 6000 grit. The finer the stone, the sharper the tool. It's worth it so spend the time.
Here are the basics for sharpening the edge once the back is flat and polished:
1. Forget about all of those fancy brass and anodized aluminum jigs. Buy a Stanley sharpening jig. It will cost about 20 or 25 dollars. Yes they look cheap, but they are the best. Nothing else will work as well. The thing they have going for them is that they have 2 wheels instead of one, and they have a built-in bevel gauge that is really simple to use.
2. Put your chisel or plane iron in the Stanley jig set at 25 degrees. Hone the blade at 25 degrees on an 800 grit Japanese water stone until all of the flaws at the cutting edge are removed. (I do this step on my grinder these days.)
3. Move the blade to the 30 degree setting, so that now you are just honing the cutting edge. Give it about 30 strokes on your 800 grit stone. Wipe off the blade and give it about 100 strokes on a 6000 grit waterstone. Lap the back on the stone to get rid of the wire edge just 1 stroke, give it about 10 more on the bevel, and it is as sharp as you will ever need it. Too sharp if you drop it on your foot.
If it gets a bit dull, you can just put it back in the Stanley jig and hone the 30 degree part again. It's really quick and easy.
One other note. I start with my widest irons, and do smaller and smaller as I go. Water stones are soft and honing dishes them. After I am finished sharpening everything in the shop, I let my stones dry so I can flatten them before sharpening again.
I adapted this from the way I learned that John Economackie (sorry about the spelling) of Bridge City Tools did it. Before becoming a tool maker, he was an incredible woodworker. I was told that he did the 25 degree angle part on his belt sander just by using the jig on the sandpaper. It's hard on the jig's wheels though.
Hal
http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com
Edited 10/20/2006 1:09 pm ET by Hal J
Edited 10/20/2006 1:09 pm ET by Hal J
One other thing I should have added:
I sharpen my carving tools on a cotton buffing wheel. It is fast and effective. I would rather spend my time carving than honing.
There are also guys that use diamond dust in a slurry on glass and get the shapest tools possible. Their edges break just the same as everone elses, it just takes more work for them to get back to sharp.
Hal
http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com
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