HELP: I need to rent a sharpening system

[Ken Shoemaker]

I'm pretty new to woodworking. I've learned the value of very sharp hand tools. I find that all the new tools, hand chisles, mortise chisles, and plane, i've aquired are almost useless out of the box. I've got water stone to keep them sharp after the first sharpening.

I wonder if there is anyone around Chicago that knows of a Tormek or Lapsharp system for rent? Once I get them sharp I can take a few minutes to keep'em sharp and get to the business of making sawdust.

Thanks in advance for our thoughts on this matter.

[tod evans]

ken, learn to sharpen with what you`ve got, you`ll be glad in the long run..02 tod
oh-yeah- i don`t use any fancy "systems" never needed them

[Steve Schoene]

To speed up the process and not break the bank get a regular grinder. Woodcraft has an 8", 1800 rpm slow speed grinder on sale for $70, that has decent white al. ox. wheels. This speeds the task dealing with chips, or changing the bevel angle. Then, with a hollow ground bevel, it is a very quick task to hone to sharpness on your waterstones. The expensive tormeks etc are just devices to reduce the amount of honing required, they won't do a better job of the major reshaping that takes all the time with stones or scary sharp.

A Veritas tool rest and guide would make the task of using the grinder simple.

[Ken Shoemaker]

Steve,
I thnk you nailed it... I'm trying to just get all these things up to speed so I can learn to use them. The I can learn to sharpen them as I use them... More sawdust can be made... Thanks for the info...... Ken

[Brian Jarnell]

Steve,
I thnk you nailed it... I'm trying to just get all these things up to speed so I can learn to use them. The I can learn to sharpen them as I use them... More sawdust can be made... Thanks for the info...... Ken

You could borrow my Tormek,but I might be a bit far out of town.

[Dennis Peacock]

Hey....I'm closer to you than Brian is!!!! You can borrow mine or just ship me your chisels and I'll sharpen them for you.

[CPeter James]

Look into the "Scarey Sharp" system. It uses sandpaper and a flat plate. Very fast and very sharp. I sometimes use it and find the results are very good.


CPeter

[Brett Baldwin]

If you have an edge sander, you can easily make a jig to set the bevel. Then the scary sharp system can hone it to a nice sharp edge. This is an inexpensive way to learn sharpening. BTW, if you use a grinder or sander to set the bevel, be careful not to let the metal heat up to a blue color, you'll have destroyed the temper and have to sharpen very frequently(at best).

[Steven Wilson]

Check to see if you have a local woodworking club, woodworking guild, or woodturning club. Many of the local guilds, clubs have nice sharpening setups for memebers. As for a high speed grinder, do you know how to use one? If not, you'll probably trash the first few chisels or plane irons you pass over one. Besides the grinder you would probably get some sort of jig system so you can make square passes over the grinder. If you don't, final sharpening on stones will be a nightmare. For removing metal quickly or establishing a new bevel a belt sander (like a 1x42 or 2x30) is great and I find easier to control than a high speed grinder.

[Mike Henderson]

Unless your tools are really messed up, you don't need any power tools to sharpen them. A good honing guide, like the Veritas MKII, will make things easier, especially if you're a beginner - I recommend it.

Pick up Leonard Lee's book "The Complete Guide to Sharpening" and follow the directions.

If you have access to someone who's an experienced sharpener, it will help to see the process, but you can learn quite well from Lee's book.

You'll do fine.

Mike

[Maurice Ungaro]

Sharpening is part of woodworking. I know that my cheap Marples chisels needed sharpening before I could properly use them, and I laid down some low dollar investment for the wet/dry paper and a box of granite tile. The Scary Sharp system took some time, but the results made the use of the chisels a pleasure. I've since started using waterstones, and I own a Makita sharpener that i bought for $100 (barely used). I'll probably own a few more gadgets in the coming years too.

All of that is to say that you should embrace the opportunity to get into sharpening and own some inexpensive alternatives to the big expensive setups. Who knows, you may have to fall back on the Scary Sharp system when your big fancy sharpening machine has to go back to the factory for repairs.