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Thread: Lie Nielsen Blades Not Staying Sharp

  1. #1

    Lie Nielsen Blades Not Staying Sharp

    Hi all,

    I've been lurking for awhile but haven't got around to posting too much. I recently took the plunge and bought a few Lie Nielsen bench planes but am running into trouble with all three. I have zero difficulty getting them sharp and passing every test of sharpness I've came across (cutting arm hair, slicing paper, paring end grain, etc). Trouble is they are dull after very little use. I'll sharpen the blade, and get very fine shavings for several passes, and then the shavings stop. When I take apart the plane to inspect the blade, the edge is already rolled over. When i run my finger across the blade it feels very much so like a burr you'd feel when sharpening.

    My sharpening routine is as follows:
    -jig set the blade at 35 degrees
    -800 grit, 1200 grit, 8000 grit with DMT diamond stones and remove burr on 8000 grit
    -strop and remove burr again on the strop

    I have already tried grinding back far enough to remove my micro bevel and then rehoning hoping to get to better steel with no luck.

    Immediately following this, the blade makes hair fall off my arm with no effort and slicing paper like it wasn't there. At this point I'm beyond frustrated and believe since its multiple blades I'm experienceing this with its something I am doing. My old stanley's didn't have this problem, should I be doing something different with A2? My old jack plane hasn't been sharpen nearly as often as it should but doesn't have a rolled over edge like my Lie Nielsen's after a minutes worth of use. I plan on calling Monday to see what they think, but am trying to find the answer in the mean time. Any help would be appreciated
    Last edited by Adam Chevalier; 03-25-2017 at 6:06 PM.

  2. #2
    Contact Lie Nielsen. That's not normal. Sounds almost like the irons were not heat treated.

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  3. #3
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    Post a picture of the dulled blade.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  4. #4

  5. #5
    WIN_20170325_18_23_42_Pro.jpgHere's the other side

  6. #6
    I have a hard time believing three blades would have the same problem that wasn't user oriented as high on quality as LN is. I'm just out of ideas.

  7. #7
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    Did they get hot when you were grinding them?

    If they did, they will chip badly for a sharpening or two. If you grind, don't grind all the way to the edge, keep it back a little then get the edge with your stones.

    I know this because I got a corner hot before and it behaved similarly.

    Finally if you are planing material that has been roughly sanded, the blades will look like that very quickly.
    Last edited by Brian Holcombe; 03-25-2017 at 6:44 PM.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  8. #8
    When I say grinded back, I should have stated I sat there for 20 minutes with my 200 grit diamond stone with my jig set for a lower angle (30 deg). They didn't get hot.

  9. #9
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    What are you planing?
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Holcombe View Post
    What are you planing?
    Black walnut

  11. #11
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    Rehone a few more times and see if doesn't clear up. Don't go to 200 grit, start at 1000~ and work up to a finish. Alternatively you can grind at 30 degrees and hone at 35 using just your finish stone.

    Are there any lines showing on the back from the rough stones? If there are any the blade with chip at those spots. Usually the back will need to be finely polished for me to get an edge that I like and one which is very durable.

    Finally grind back until all of the wear is totally gone each time this happens. The burr that forms upon grinding a clear edge will be unbroken along the length of the edge. Don't tear off the burr, hone it off using the stones and be certain it is fully removed by looking at the edge in the light until it is clearly gone and cannot be felt.

    If all of these are done and the edge still misbehaves I would contact LN
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Holcombe View Post

    ...Are there any lines showing on the back from the rough stones? If there are any the blade with chip at those spots. Usually the back will need to be finely polished for me to get an edge that I like and one which is very durable...
    Very good point. I have seen this happen when someone is happy with getting the back flat and does not continue to match the polish that is on the bevel cutting edge. The scratches from the coarser stone will weaken the edge by creating a thinner area right at the (already) thin cutting edge.

  13. #13
    Ive honed it a few times at 35 degrees since grinding back at 30 degrees. After not much use (less than a minute or two) I still have a folded back cutting edge. I can try again though. I plan on calling Lie Nielsen regardless Monday, if my work schedule allows it.

    The back only has scratches from the 8000 grit dmt. Its not quite a perfect mirror polish, as I believe the 8000 is only 3 micron, but I can certainly see solid reflections in the back.

    At this point I'm researching after market irons (hock o1, veritas pmv11) to see what would fit. Even my block plane is showing a weak edge. I took apart my jack plane that I can't remember the last time I sharpened and as a blind test my fiancé felt more of a burr on the lie Nielsen after a handful of passes than the jack that probably has a couple hours of use.

  14. #14
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    This is what caught my eye:

    -800 grit, 1200 grit, 8000 grit with DMT diamond stones and remove burr on 8000 grit
    Leaving the burr on through all the grits has caused problems for me.

    The only other time I have seen something like this is if the blade was installed bevel up in error.

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

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    This is what caught my eye:



    Leaving the burr on through all the grits has caused problems for me.

    The only other time I have seen something like this is if the blade was installed bevel up in error.

    jtk
    Is it standard practice to remove the bur on each grit? That seems like that could be.very inneffecient removing the blade from the guide between grits.

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