wet sharpening systems

Chuck Beland

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Location
Rhode Island
To make a long story short I have a Neurological disorder which makes my hands shake. So when I sharpen my gouges on my Wolverine & Woodcraft grinder. I'm really starting to screw up my grinds & this really irritates me. Vaughn was nice enough to remember a thread about the T3 here http://tinyurl.com/27rcavc But this mostly deals with the wheels. I'm more looking to get a wet system either the T3, reg Tormek or the Jet one. I'm thinking the captive tool systems of the wet sharpening I should get a more accurate & repeatability grind, so I've come for some advice. to the following questions.

1. I'm a hobby turner which system would you advise & why.

2. Pro's cons between the three systems.

3. Which one has a good track record for long lasting?

any advice is appreciated.
 
Chuck, I love the Tormek, but you might consider trying the Tormek jigs (particularly the gouge sharpening jig) on your dry grinder. Tormek sells the parts to use their jigs on other grinders. I have the setup, but have not installed it and tried it yet.

If it helps, you've saved a few hundred bucks. If it doesn't, you'll already have the jig for whatever wet grinder you buy. ;)
 
Chuck, I would certainly get a hands on trial before spending cash on a tormek style wet system, Vaughn's recomend to try the jigs on a dry grinder or the Sorby clone version (same tool holder) for dry grinders etc. as a cost limiting route.
Although the gouge Jigs clamp the tool more closely to the working end they may still give you significant tremble on the wheel as you still drive the setup by gripping the tool handle.
 
I have the Tormek and love it. I figured if I was going to get it I might as well get both the turning kit and the hand tool kit. I use it to sharpen everything from my wife's scissors to the pruning shears. Her kitchen knives and steak knives are extremely sharp. The turning outfit will put a edge on that will last at least double or longer than the edge off a dry grinder IMHO. I also have the bar that fits my dry grinder so I can use the accessories to shape without taking a long time on the Tormek. Yep it is expensive but to me worth it. The neighbor got a Grizzly clone and it was junk. He sent it back. He has the Jet but not satisfied with it but did keep it.
 
I don't know Chuck. The neighbor has used my Tormek and he said it was better than his Jet. I have never used his Jet so can't make a informed decision or discussion on it. I think the Tormek jigs will work on the Jet. He wants to borrow a couple of my pieces and if they work he will order for the Jet.
 
My guess is it would be the wheel on the grizz and jet. On my grizz, the wheel isn't exactly true. I did get a Tormek wheel tru'er, and it makes it so the wheel is 'true'. It does have the appearance of 'wobble.

Works good enough for me though... :huh:

Once the wheel wears out, i'll get a tormek wheel and see if it makes a diff, but that's years down the road...

If you have the cash, get the tormek, if you have the patience, maybe try one of the clones....
 
I have the Jet unit which works very well. I only use the Tormek jigs on my jet unit. They work perfectly and are better than the Jet jigs. I have had mine going on about 4 years still on the same wheel and it works great. I have used the Tormek and to me not a whole lot of difference in performance. I do think that the Tormek is probably a little better made. The shaft on the Tormek is now stainless steel which it is not on the Jet unit. I just use grease on the shaft every time I clean it and it has not been a problem. I also got mine in the days when Amazon would have the crazy tool deals. I think I paid $162 which included shipping for my Jet and it has been worth every penny and more.

Good Luck

Alan
 
Another County heard from

Hi,

I have the Jet---A present from my son, Glenn. I had purchased a Jet through a post on Saw Mill Creek. The guy took my money and did not send me the sharpener. I found out that he was also scamming Knickers and people working with ceramics.

Anyway I decided the heck with it and figured I would never own a slow wet machine. That's where Glenn stepped in. When I opened a box he gave me a couple months later and saw the contents I was so shook up that I doubt that I said anything intelligent. Dang it all---I'm going to keep that kid!

Anyway, in my shopping I had five people tell me they preferred the Jet to the Tormek, however they all said that the Tormek gouge jig was superior to the Jet.

The set-up works fine. However a big, HOWEVER that is, You still have to line the chisel, gouge, whatever up by looking across the unit to see where light leaks through between the tool and the stone, then re-adjust, re-adjust, etc. You can do the blacken the end of the tool and see where the bevel gets bright with a trial run, re-blacken, re-try, re-adjust, etc. routine instead if you prefer.

In either case, you can do that routine a heck of a lot cheaper with many hand units.

If you need to do any regrinding, it takes forever!!! I use the Wolverine to reshape or remove a nick; then I go to the Slow Speed Wet Jet.

If the tool is flat, like a chisel or plane iron, I use the WorkSharp 3000. It is a bazillion times faster and more accurate than the wet systems. The WorkSharp also does a much better job. If I sharpen a chisel, use it, then come back to it 3 months later, I can have it sharpened at the EXACT same angle and polished in about 90 seconds.

At 90 seconds with the other systems, I don't even have the tool fastened to the jig, let alone properly aligned.

Oh yes, Jet said to dry the unit after each use to prevent rust. That's why you are not supposed to need stainless steel nuts and washers. That sounds good in print or over the telephone. Reality Check: If I dry off the wet unit the stone will still be wet weeks later and that wet stone is what is against the nut and washers speeding rust.

Surprisingly I do not have a rust problem with tools even though I am about six miles from the Pacific Ocean...except with screws on an inexpensive 4 x 36 belt sander, and the handle on a HF machinest's vise. However, my Slow Speed nut and washers have rusted like they were years old...They are not one year old yet.

The Slow Speed is quiet and runs smoothly. The two Tormeks I have encountered are no quieter nor are they any smoother. I will just have to find a source for stainless steel nuts and washers. The shaft is doing fine.

Glenn made a great jig for sharpening gouges on the WorkSharp 3000. The jig is made from a small piece of hardwood scrap and a machine screw or knob. That is the good news. The bad news is that you need a separate jig for each class of tools. By "class of tools" I mean that one jig will do your half and three-quarter inch gouges...But you will need another for the three-eighths and down, etc.

Enjoy,

Jim
 
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That's quite a gift, Jim. :thumb: If I ever have a son, I hope he's just like Glenn. Except better looking, of course. :p

...The set-up works fine. However a big, HOWEVER that is, You still have to line the chisel, gouge, whatever up by looking across the unit to see where light leaks through between the tool and the stone, then re-adjust, re-adjust, etc. You can do the blacken the end of the tool and see where the bevel gets bright with a trial run, re-blacken, re-try, re-adjust, etc. routine instead if you prefer.

In either case, you can do that routine a heck of a lot cheaper with many hand units.

If you need to do any regrinding, it takes forever!!! I use the Wolverine to reshape or remove a nick; then I go to the Slow Speed Wet Jet...

All but one of my bowl gouges are sharpened at the same jig setting on my Tormek, so I don't have to adjust the bar very often. I agree the regrinding (or initial grinding with a new tool) is a lot slower on the wet grinders. That's why I got the Tormek bar for my dry grinder. I still haven't installed it though, because I haven't had a need to regrind anything yet.

I do prefer to use my dry grinder to put a burr on my scrapers and hollowing tool bits. Here again, all of them are at the same angle, so I leave the tool rest (Wolverine clone from PSI) in the same position all the time...haven't moved it for years.
 
I have had my Grizz large, very slow wet wheel sharpener for about 20 years. It now sits unused. I used it very rarely. The grit is very fine and suitable only for keeping an edge on already sharp chisels. I found it useful only for flat chisels. A couple years ago I found the big wheel cracked. Dunno why :dunno: jest happened. I cannot recommend this unit. It is/was sold under several brand names. e.g. Jet/Delta/etc.
 
I don't have either the Tormek or the dry grinder, I just use my friend's when I need to sharpen... mostly I use the dry grinder. I haven't used the wet grinder, my friend usually does that for me, but even he says the set up on it seems to take forever... it does put a mirror shine on the edge. Mostly I touch up my tools on the belt sander with 100 grit belt... I get a decent edge, but over time I do change the shape of the tool...it's good to reshape them on my friend's grinder.
 
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