Menu
What's new

Work Sharp - Sharpener - Comments ?

I use the LV MKII jig and water stones. One of the things I like about the jig is that I get repeatable angles - If I put a 25* bevel on a block plane blade, when I put the blade back in the jig, I'll grind exactly flat on that bevel.

I can sharpen by hand, but it's too easy to rock the iron when sharpening by hand. The bevel comes out not flat but slightly rounded and you don't have the angle that you think you do.

I agree with the previous posters - you can get excellent results with water stones - most people do. You need to find out what you're doing wrong and the best way to do that is to work with someone who knows how to sharpen. It may be that you need to keep the stones flat but that'd just be a guess on my part.

Also, be careful of Rockler's "reviews". I submitted a less than glowing review of one of their products and it never got posted. Seems that they only accept those reviews that praise their products.

Mike
 
Work Sharp

When I first saw a demonstration of the Lee Valley at a wood show in California, it amazed me to see how briefly a chisel blade touched the abrasive. So all the banter about heat build-up puzzles me.

Unless you are really 're-forming' a tool edge, you won't be grinding away for 5
minutes. Most tool sharpening is touch up. And the relatively low platter speed on the Veritas doesn't heat stress the steel. As I mentioned in my first reply, I bought the Veritas MK II because the Lee Valley representative sharpened a chisel in what seemed like a heartbeat.

After talking with another Northern California woodworker who is a distributor for Lap-Sharp, I ventured out into using leather honing pads with diamond compound. While I'm not truly an experienced user, i simply give the machine switch a 'blip' and then let the platter coast to a stop. That's all. Nothing more. And most of my sharpening now is confined to this honing process with compounds on leather. I haven't used the stick-on abrasive pads in a long while. Thus, no heat.

That's my opinion.

Gary Curtis:)
 
Bartee Lamar said:
Mike,

Thanks for the comments. Very interesting about Rockler's comment posting.

Unfortunately it makes sense.
Click to expand...

there are lots of places on the net with filtered content:eek: .......i`m darn glad that short of the big three no-no`s we can speak our minds unmolested here!
we now return you to your regularly scheduled thread..
 
Are y'all using the term "wet stones" interchangeable with "oil stones"? I know there are some, like the Japanese, that work best with water. But, others, seem to work equally well with water, spit or light oils. e.g. Arkansas stones. Folks use them with both/either per their personal preference. I use light oil on the Arkansas stones as a rule.
 
Jay Knoll said:
One of the things to consider for us "older guys" is the wear and tear on joints doing lots of repetitive motions.

So, I learned to sharpen without a jig,and flattened chisels on water stones -- what a pain!

I'll look for anything mechanical to avoid the "back and forth" associated with hand sharpening --it only makes my hands hurt!

Jay
Click to expand...



jay, i`m of the opinion that once a fellow learns how to sharpen without training wheels he`ll be able to get a servicable edge using any sharpening method......by training wheels i`m refering to jigs-n-tool holders that remove the sharpener from the sharpening process......ask ol` larry what i did to his pocket knife with an ol` 40 grit belt sander :eek:
 
Timothy.

I will take some pictures to help illustrate my frustration. It may be that I am just not patient enought ( now that would be a surprise... NOT ).

I have a couple of books on sharpening. I think it just may be that I need practice.

I am learning a whole lot about hand tools. I do know they need to be very sharp.

So I will update this later with pictures... going out of town this weekend, so it may be a while.

Thanks for you interest and reading.

...bartee...
 
More reviews from a woodworking mag

The latest Woodworker's Journal eZine contains not one but two reviews of the Work Sharp system. Apparently the left hand doesn't always know what the right hand is doing, so once in a while they both write similar articles. (If that was confusing, read Rob Johnstone's editorial on the main page.)

Anyway, here are direct links to
Michael Dresdner's "Tool Maker Insider" article
and
Rob Johnstone's "Tool Preview" article.

Note that the latter article mentions (and has a picture of) the coming-out-in-July model WS2000 that sells for half the price of the already-shipping WS3000.

I for one am watching for more details on the WS2000, and for any hands-on reviews by "early implementors" of either model.
 
tod evans said:
jay, i`m of the opinion that once a fellow learns how to sharpen without training wheels he`ll be able to get a servicable edge using any sharpening method......by training wheels i`m refering to jigs-n-tool holders that remove the sharpener from the sharpening process......ask ol` larry what i did to his pocket knife with an ol` 40 grit belt sander :eek:
Click to expand...

well tod its still sharp!!!! it was on the dull side when he got a hold of it and no time he had it shvun sharp....and folks i can sharpen things freehand to some extent, my main meat source comes from that knowlege:D but tods wooden wheel is something that my new shop will have.. :thumb: its easy to make if you got a friend with a lathe and it works great....
 
Kerry, Thanks for following up. I read another article today which basically says the same thing. It is over on Wood Central. Click Here

I did get a very good free Lesson last Saturday at the "Truck Load Tool Sale" in Atlanta.

So I am going try my water stones again, but will eventually own a Work Sharp system.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top