Suggest a sharpening jig?

[Dustin Cranford]

This might not be a question that will get much activity due to it being so basic, but I will ask anyway. I also realize it is about preference.

Bowl gouge is on the way, but still need to be able to sharpen it. I can't freehand sharpen anything so I need a jig. I have the Oneway Wolverine setup except for the varigrind and I have the Jet slow speed sharperner that will take Tormek jigs. So which should I buy? I will tell you now it needs to be pretty basic.

Also from what I have read the Tormek only does fingernail grinds. Is this correct?

Thanks,
Dustin

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Dustin,

Since you already have the Wolverine setup....get the vari-grind adapter. I use the Wolverine and it works well for me.

[Steve Schlumpf]

I second Ken's suggestion! Works great!

[Ben Richardson]

I too have thew Wolverine setup. I like it very much. You might also look at the SharpFast adapter as an alternate to the Verigrind. Craft Supplies carries them. It holds the tool and doesn't allow it to slide off to the side, which can cause a Bad thing.

[David Walser]

Dustin,

You asked for a comparison of the Tormek and the Vari-Grind jigs. First, the Tormek is a more accurate jig. (It's also more expensive.) The Tormek is more accurate because there is less "play" in the jig. This is because the Vari-Grind fits in a pocket, which allows you to move the jig forward and back, side to side, and lift it out of the pocket. It's also because the the Vari-Grind's pivot point is farther away from the tip of the tool you're sharpening. This magnifies any "error" introduced by having the pivot point slightly out of place. By contrast, the Tormek's jig mounts onto the Tormek's (in your case, the Jet's) universal support. There's no way for you miss place the pivot point. The jig slides smoothly from side to side on the universal support (without changing the distance of the jig from the wheel). This allows you to use the full width of the wheel when grinding.

Second, even though the Tormek jig's "fixed" to the machine, it allows you more freedom of movement and a greater variety of grinds (which means it does more than just a fingernail grind). The Vari-Grind allows you to adjust the leg angle and the distance of the pivot point from the grinder. In addition to these two adjustments, the Tormek also allows you adjust the length of the leg -- moving the tool's tip farther up or lower down on the grinding wheel.

On the downside, the Tormek jig is more expensive. Many turners are vary happy with the Vari-Grind or one of its imitators. There's no reason you wouldn't be, too. Many turners are more than satisfied with their Jet or Powermatic lathes. Few would argue that those lathes are better than a Oneway or Robust lathe...

HTH

[Jeff Nicol]

In my world the cost of the tool and how it performs have nothing to do with one another. If I can buy a tool that costs $30 and use it correctly and it does the job why pay $150 for the same thing. When there is no worry about how much it costs then people tend to spend more. My budget does not let me buy whatever whenever. A tormek system is nice but for me it is just another thing to play with and have for no reason. Don't get me wrong I have a lot of tools but they were bought over a long period of time and were the best I could afford at the time. I still have them and they still work great. This thread is just like an extension on the hone or no hone sharpening one. If what you do works and in the end the finished product is what you are looking for it does not matter if it gets delivered in a beat up old ford or a brand new mercedes. It still gets delivered!

I wanted a stubby lathe but don't have one does that make my PM3520B sub-standard? I don't think so. It is better to start out slow and learn the craft and replace tools as you go. It would not be good to go out and spend $10,000 on tools and find out you don't have the skills or patience to master them, some one would get a great deal on slightly used tools!

A bright red sports car does not make the man, the man makes the car

But get the wolverine varigrind it is great!

Jeff

[Alan Trout]

I use the Tormek jigs on my Jet wet sharpener for my gouges. The positives of the jig is that it holds the tool captive on the bar. It is very repeatable with the TTS100 setting fixture which needs to be purchased at the same time. It is very frugal with tool steel because of the nature of the sharpener. It leaves a very fine edge. Some say that the edge does not need to be that fine however I think the finer edge cut better and last longer. To me it is just as fast to touch up as the other jigs such as the Wolverine. You will also need the leather strop to remove the bur from inside the flute or use a slipstone.

Downside is the time it takes to establish or change a particular shape of the grind. For the same reason I like the wet sharpener I also dislike it because if you want to change a particular grind it will take a while. Also the cost with not just the jig but the setting fixture, and strop make it more expensive.

In my humble opinion there is a place for both. The more egressive bench grinder with the Wolverine or one of its clones for changing shapes of tools and the wet grinder for refining the edge. If I could only have one it would be my Tormek jigs. Again thats just my opinion.

Good Luck

Alan

[Gordon Seto]

I have both Varigrind and Tormek. The Tormek took a lot of time for initial set up. It is very slow in shaping a new gouge. Every time I took a class, I had to convert the grind back to my Tormek setting after messing up with dry grinder. It was a hassle, so I abandoned it and went back to Varigrind. Last year, I took some advice from Jeff Farris, the head of Tormek USA. I am back to Tormek now. I like the new Tormek TTS-100 set up jig; to refresh a grind on Tormek jig is faster and easier than Varigrind. The gouge is sharper, and it seems to hold the edge longer than off a dry grinder. But for how long, it is difficult to give a number. Several months ago, I did a demo on off center turning with the Thompson detail gouge. In the afternoon a member was using the same gouge for the whole afternoon Turn & Learn. He said he was going to buy the same gouge because how well it holds the edge and cuts. I don't know whether it was the tool or the wet grind or both.
I think Nick Cook, Richard Raffan are using Tormek now. Neither Tormek nor any tool can turn us into masters; they can still beat us if they have to sharpen their tools using the side walk pavement.

Tormek can give a finer edge, remove less steel (tool may last longer) and very high ititial cost. Tormek claimed the finer edge lasts longer. But for how long in turning, I don't know. If you are using the grinds from TTS-100, the set up is fast, simple and accurate. Initial set up is very, very slow, especially on a skew. Dumping the waste water in freezing winter is a hassle. I don't dump the water in the drain; I am afraid the heavy sediment may stay in the trap. There are trade offs. Both are good systems; you can't go wrong with either.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I have both the Tormek and Wolverine jig. I now use the wolverine jig to change or put profiles on my gouges then to the Tormek to sharpen. I agree with Alan and Gordon. One question you asked is the Tormek only does fingernail grinds. No you can put about any grind you want on a gouge. I have gouges with what I call the conventional grind and the fingernail grind. IMHO my tools do last longer turning when using the Tormek and honing.

[Dustin Cranford]

Alright fellas thanks for the replies. I went ahead and ordered the vari-grind due to price and I will give it a try. Even had them throw on a Bill Grumbine video plus got free shipping. I may still pick up the Tormek at the end of the month when I get paid again, but for now my bi weekly budget is tapped since for some reason my wifes new tires came out of my fun budget. lol isn't it funny how that seems to work sometimes. I will see what I can do with the vari-grind. I never did have much luck with my wolverine before so I will see what happens.

I'll probably be back with more questions I am sure so just have patience with me.

[Wyatt Holm]

I have the wolverine and I used to have the varigrind. It worked out ok, but since I took Mike Mahoney's course I sharpen a different way he shows it in this clip:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m8-8MNhpvY

[Don Eddard]

+1 to Alan's, Gordon's and Bernie's comments.

I think getting the Varigrind is a good, logical first step, but when the funds are available, I don't think you'll regret having the Tormek jig as well.