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Thread: I don't mean to destroy your romance with sharpening . . .

  1. #1

    Wink I don't mean to destroy your romance with sharpening . . .

    . . . But I have a feeling that I will be ostracized from this sub forum with my viewpoints. I've read several threads and posts about the nuances of everyones favorite sharpening system, and thought I'd offer some views from the opposite extreme. First off, I majored in furniture design at RIT, ran a high-end furniture / cabinet shop for ten years (as a professional, NOT a hobbyist) which resulted in national and international awards as well as being published in FWW's Design Book Six, so I can speak with some degree of authority on this subject, although that kindof means nothing compared to the fact that I purchased my first japanese waterstone in 1981, and have since worn it down to the point that I needed a new one in the early 90's (Which I still use).

    Trust me, I HAD your romance. I still kindof do have it - nobody likes a dull blade. I've used white and black hard arkansas stones etc, so I know the breadth of all your arguments (Still favor waterstones - they cut so fast).

    So basically, the novelty wore off after a few years, and I would like to share my method that has served me so well ever since, and I likely can sharpen blades at least 2X or more faster than most of you with these methods.

    Here it is:
    40 grit wheel on a 4" 12K RPM hand grinder to re-establish the hollow grind faster, and less chance of burning than setting the chisel or plane iron up on my upright grinder (at least up until I get off my lazy butt and mount a coarser wheel on it).

    Then pull out my 1500 grit waterstone out of its plastic cookie jar in the shop sink and hone a perfect edge - face and back enough to shave with.

    That takes about 90 seconds tops, because waterstones cut so fast. If, for some reason, I want that mirror edge that splits atoms, I run the edge on my plastic buffer thats always loaded with white rouge. But that is stupid, because even if paring a tenon face, the edge is dulled within a few minutes to the original 1500 grit waterstone edge equivalent.

    So now that most of you hate me, let me give a few tips that will bring me back into your good graces, hopefully (This is all in jest really - not trying to start arguments - I love pretty much all woodworkers).

    Best thing I did when I discovered diamond hones was to buy the big ones (solid, not honeycombed) then cut them into four pcs, 1" x 3" or so and grind a back bevel on one edge for sharpening drill bits, router bits, etc and then keep one in your pocket all day long. Way faster to pull it out and dress your tool right on the spot, than to walk across the shop to go through the "sharpening ceremony" that appears to be so popular here .

    The next coolest thing I discovered was thin diamond blades designed for sharpening carbide. I acquired about five blades - all about 600 grit continuous diamond on the outer 3/8", and about 1/16" wide "kerf", but unfortunately had a 1" arbor, so I made a bushing to fit them on my Unisaw.

    Then I made a magnetic based centering jig with a sliding dovetail slot where I match the face grind bevel on my carbide saw blades, and hone the inner tooth faces, and Viola! - I can sharpen my own blades within minutes without sending them off to be sharpened. Great for carbide router bits too. Get one of these diamond blades online, and you will thank me for it.

    sharpening-main.jpgsharpening-tooth.jpg
    john.blazy_dichrolam_llc
    Delta Unisaw, Rabbit QX-80-1290 80W Laser, 5 x 12 ft laminating ovens, Powermax 22/44, Accuspray guns, Covington diamond lap and the usual assortment of cool toys / tools.

  2. #2
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    . . . But I have a feeling that I will be ostracized from this sub forum with my viewpoints.
    If what you do works who is anyone else to give it a knock?

    Then pull out my 1500 grit waterstone out of its plastic cookie jar in the shop sink and hone a perfect edge - face and back enough to shave with.
    Paul Sellers has a video saying 250 grit is fine enough for plane blades since that is how fine people sand to before putting on a finish.

    I too can get a blade sharp enough to shave with a 1500 grit stone. It is a much more comfortable shave when an 8000 grit stone is used.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  3. #3
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    Oh man John! That was suppose to be a deep dark secret only revealed under the most severe torture.
    Jim

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    "sharpening ceremony"

    That is the funniest thing I've read in awhile!

    DC

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    In reality if one is using a scrub plane, a jointer or a jack and taking a substantial shaving the edge honed to a mirror finish isn't likely to have much advantage. It might reduce the effort somewhat.

    For me when smoothing or trying to fit a piece being able to take an ultra thin shaving is preferred. This tends to prevent plane tracks or taking too much material from something like a molding plane wedge.

    Of course as usual, YMMV!!!.jpg

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  6. #6
    You will not be ostracised ....we can't stop reading all we can get ,even when we know OUR method is the " Real Thing"!!.
    And the Internet means all can be heard without the messy business of taking over a radio mike....and the lines to do that were just getting intolerable!!

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by John Blazy View Post
    . . . But I have a feeling that I will be ostracized from this sub forum with my viewpoints.
    To be fully ostracized you have to express everything in metric.

  8. #8
    I love woodworkers. You guys crack me up. I tell my wife that this is "Man Facebook".

    On a serious note - has anyone ever heard of a carbide tipped plane iron? I would buy one if I saw one. But then again, I dont hand plane as much as I used to. I absolutely loved the carbide jointer knives I had on my old 6" jointer though - dressed quickly with the diamond hone, and stayed sharp forever.
    john.blazy_dichrolam_llc
    Delta Unisaw, Rabbit QX-80-1290 80W Laser, 5 x 12 ft laminating ovens, Powermax 22/44, Accuspray guns, Covington diamond lap and the usual assortment of cool toys / tools.

  9. #9
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    I send all my blades,knives,swords to middle earth for sharpening.The elves do a nice job.
    So I don't need any pointers!
    Attached Images Attached Images

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Andrew Hughes View Post
    I send all my blades,knives,swords to middle earth for sharpening.The elves do a nice job.
    So I don't need any pointers!
    Pssht - when it comes to metal working, the Dwarves know better.

    I purchase my stones from Misty Mountains Natural Whetstones Co. exclusively, and would never settle for less.

    Also, Ale works best for lubrication, and moderate consumption prior to sharpening enhances one's ability when sharpening free-hand

    All that said, I do believe 1500 grit sandpaper will work just fine in a pinch! After all, Dwarven-Nats are kind of expensive these days, what with the closing of the Moria mine and all. Misty Mountains Co. just doesn't think it's worth the effort to clean out all the goblins and start mining Lily-White Morias again. =/
    Last edited by Luke Dupont; 08-25-2016 at 5:54 PM.

  11. #11
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    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

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    I love woodworkers. You guys crack me up. I tell my wife that this is "Man Facebook".
    Now that could get you a few blocks of wood tossed your way. There are some very capable women who often inhabit this cave.

    Okay Brian, since there was no text with your pictures were those from plane blades sharpened on a 1500 stone?

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  13. #13
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    .....of course, 1500 was one step along the way.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by John Blazy View Post
    I love woodworkers. You guys crack me up. I tell my wife that this is "Man Facebook".

    On a serious note - has anyone ever heard of a carbide tipped plane iron? I would buy one if I saw one. But then again, I dont hand plane as much as I used to. I absolutely loved the carbide jointer knives I had on my old 6" jointer though - dressed quickly with the diamond hone, and stayed sharp forever.
    I don't think carbide would hold up at edge angles acute enough to plane. Carbides are generally very brittle and need high angles to tolerate any sort of impact (though even then they chip easily), and most carbide tools have 60+ deg edge angles for that reason.

    There's also a limit to how sharp of an edge you can hone onto solid carbide (compare your router bits to a sharp plane blade some time...).

    You can get carbide scrapers though.
    Last edited by Patrick Chase; 08-25-2016 at 7:04 PM.

  15. #15
    Man, Brian, those shavings and all that reflectivity bring back some great memories. A surface so smooth, that a finish wont stick. That would be one of those cases where I would go from the waterstone directly to my white rouge "strop" stage, then you can nearly plane burled grain.

    Good point Patrick about the angle capability with carbide. enough stress, and chips the size of 36 grit will ruin any added longevity. My jointer knives were about 35 degrees IIRC, buts thats a totally different animal.
    john.blazy_dichrolam_llc
    Delta Unisaw, Rabbit QX-80-1290 80W Laser, 5 x 12 ft laminating ovens, Powermax 22/44, Accuspray guns, Covington diamond lap and the usual assortment of cool toys / tools.

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