Sharpening for beginner

[Jeff Bilbro]

Hi all, as a beginner when it comes to the realm of sharpening, where do I start? Is there a definitive online resource? What is a good cheap entry-level sharpening setup for chisels and eventually some planes?

Thanks!

[Robert Rozaieski]

The best article I know for learning to hone freehand.

http://www.antiquetools.com/sharp/

[Mark Roderick]

Please do a Search. This topic has been covered about a thousand times. If you need more information, absolutely feel free to ask.

[geoff brandenburg]

Hi all, as a beginner when it comes to the realm of sharpening, where do I start? Is there a definitive online resource? What is a good cheap entry-level sharpening setup for chisels and eventually some planes?

Thanks!


The Lie-Nielsen Basic Sharpening Set (http://www.lie-nielsen.com/catalog.php?sku=1-SK) is a good place to start.

[Prashun Patel]

The cheapest is the Scary Sharp method. Search for it and you'll get good info.

I'd get a honing guide. I like my Robert Larsen one at $14 from Amazon. There are better ones, but it does the job fine.

You basically adhere different grits of sandpaper to a piece of plate glass or granite, spritz it with a lubricant, then grind away.

Chisels are the best place to start, since it's easy to see when you got it sharp. Block planes are a good 1st plane to start with.

Once you

[Joe Close]

I second the scary sharp method. It's inexpensive to get up and going. I've played w/ both SS and waterstones. Although I did spend a bit on the Veritas MkII jig. It works very well IMO. I still use the waterstones off and on, but find myself re-honing bevels w/ SS for some reason. It's just quick for me.

One thing different I've done w/ the SS process is to use only a film of water on the glass to hold the paper in place. Using contact cements just became comberesome and messy everytime I had to change paper.

A couple of misty sprays w/ a hand sprayer, a couple of stokes of the iron, and I have a bevel that serves me well so far.

[Sam Takeuchi]

I also think scary sharp is a very good starting point. You can experiment with different method later on when you gain more experience. But until then, scary sharp using honing guide will help you get very good edge. :)

[jerry nazard]

[QUOTE=Shawn Patel;1147957]The cheapest is the Scary Sharp method. Search for it and you'll get good info.

I'd get a honing guide. I like my Robert Larsen one at $14 from Amazon. There are better ones, but it does the job fine.


Shawn is correct. You can get the Larsen honing guide at Tools for Working Wood for $10.00 + change. They also have LOTS of sharpening accessories.

-Jerry

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Just hold the tool firmly so it doesn't wobble and stroke from your knees with the rest of your body pretty stiff.

It'll come to ya.

[Michael Faurot]

What is a good cheap entry-level sharpening setup for chisels and eventually some planes?


This really is both good and cheap:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92867

If you're willing to do your sharpening freehand, for $12 this will get the job done.

[Tri Hoang]

This really is both good and cheap:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92867

If you're willing to do your sharpening freehand, for $12 this will get the job done.

Just make sure it's really flat!

[Dan Karachio]

Jeff, as a fellow newbie, trust me, because this has been covered 1000 times, you will get 1000 opinions and it will drive you to all kinds of ideas and experiments. It can be bewildering. I started by buying Norton stones, then I got a worksharp, I also have a granite slab and various grits of wet dry paper. I now use them all!

Here is what I would do if I could start over. Get a nice flat piece of glass or granite. Buy some wet dry paper from 200 to 2000, 4000 if you can. Get a cheap honing guide. You could do all this for well under $75. Using just this stuff, practice sharpening both chisels and plane blades. I have a couple of cheap planes and chisels I used while learning and the great thing is I had no fear of messing them up and in the process tuned up a $25 Groz block plane to the point where I use that little puppy right along with my Lie Nielsen block plane (alas, can't say the same about the Groz bench plane...). Before you get into anything fancy, I think you need to learn the basics. Understand what sharpening is. Who knows, you may find you need nothing more and will save yourself all kinds of money, or you will be much better educated in buying some super fancy rig like the Tormek.

[Tom Adger]

go back to joe's post. he has it right about the veritas Mk II jig. you can get it from Lee Valley. I have one, and it is the only thing i use when sharpening. you will get advice about freehanding and doing it by eye, which is a load of BS. The MK II is not cheap, but it is a quality piece of equipment, which will give you years of service.

[Dan Karachio]

Second the MKII - I have one of those as well.

[Jeff Bilbro]

Wow, thanks for all of the replies. I agree with Dan about it being overwhelming for someone just starting out! So many different methods and opinions on said methods.

I think I have settled on starting with the Scary Sharp method. Does this (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=5983) seem like a good deal? I was planning to get the Course System and then the Fine paper as well. I'm sure the jig that comes with it is on the low-end side, but hopefully it will help me cut my teeth and figure out what works best for me. I was going to buy a set of the Marples chisels (hopefully a set made in England) as an all around set. I know chisels are another hot button...

[Sean Hughto]

I use waterstones mostly, and recommend this articles and the items recommended in it for a beginner:

http://popularwoodworking.com/article/Sharpening_Plane_Irons_and_Chisels/

Chris has laid it out pretty well, and the start up cost is fairly reasonable.

[Sam Takeuchi]

I don't know about this set. It's really ambiguous as to what grit of papers 'coarse' and 'fine' sets include. Coarse sheets are less used for the most part, mainly for re-grinding bevel or grinding back chipped blade. For every day use, probably #800 would serve as the lowest grit papers to grind micro bevel off. If you have #800, #1000, #4000 polishing film and #8000 polishing film (probably overkill, but if you find one, it'll give you really nice edge), you are set. That'll provide you with hair shaving sharpness.

I don't know if you can get a float glass or granite plate cheaply, but if you can, you might as well buy them individually. Honing guide that comes with that set might work ok, but you'll need to make sure the blade sticks out to correct length from the guide every time, otherwise you'll be beveling the blade all over the place. Like others suggested, Veritas Mk II honing guide is very good, you'll be able to set the blade to exact angle every single time. I also recommend it. It's a good investment, I think. It's about $60 now, but it'll last a few years, so I think it's a very good deal.

Regardless of what you are going to get, it'll take some practice to get consistent and good result. Practice and read up on sharpening techniques on the net. You'll eventually achieve good edge. Don't get discouraged :)

[John Keeton]

Another vote for the MKII, some sandpaper, starting at 220 - 2000, and then a block of MDF with a little mineral oil and some green honing compound for final polish. Doesn't get any simpler, and seems to work for me.