How do you sharpen a scraper like this one?

[Mike Dowell]

Just curious - It is still sharp but when it comes time, I want to know what I'm doing. I have a card scraper which I sharpen with a file, then burnisher but this one is curved. I've also got a scraper like this one but inverse.

Thanks!IMG_1129.jpg

[Richard Verwoest]

carefully.....

But seriously, I would use wooden dowels and an assortment of abrasive papers. Then use the burnisher to turn the bur.

[Dale Stansbery]

You can get round stones of various diameters, both concave and convex to sharpen it, but I don't a correct way to burnish it, or if you should for that matter.

[Tony Zaffuto]

For what it's worth, I have one of those and used it maybe twice (on cherry). What I did was to hone the flat sides on a fine ceramic stone (any fine stone would work) and then used a carbide burnisher to turn an edge. It worked, but I had to have a good grip on it otherwise it had a tendency to skip.

[Max Neu]

you could try using dowels with sandpaper attached to them.

[Jim Matthews]

Dowels with polishing compound (Jeweler's rouge).

If you're deforming the edge, you're turning ebony pegs.

[Daniel Rode]

I don't use a file for scrapers. I use my diamond stones an get the edge square and polished before going to a burnisher to form the hook. That's all I'd do if I wanted to use the convex edges.

For the concave parts, I'd use sandpaper and a dowel. It's a cheap and easy way to get the edge prepared for burnishing. I'd also probably use a nail set to for the edge. The thin tapered shape would work well for this application.

[Mike Dowell]

Dowels with polishing compound (Jeweler's rouge).

If you're deforming the edge, you're turning ebony pegs.

What do you mean?

[Mike Dowell]

So, I thought to sharpen *any* scraper, you need to:
1)file the edge square
2) hone the newly filed surface
3) burnish

Is that right?

By the way, thank you all for the input!

[Jim Matthews]

The edge should last a long time, if you're trimming softwood dowels.

If you're deforming the edge quickly, the material is very hard.
Ebony is very hard.