What/when to Hone?

[Jamie Straw]

In my turning class, the instructor (Bonnie Klein) made sure we knew that turning chisels as a class aren't all honed bright and pretty the way we do regular chisels, plane blades, etc. But in the books I've read different authors seem to hone some of their tools.

So, I'd like to hear what turning tools you do hone, and what do you use to hone with, to fit into the shopping trip tomorrow.

Thanks, no more of these silly questions this week. :o

[Richard Madison]

Jamie,
From what I read, most folks hone only the skew, and use all other tools directly from the grinder. And/but everyone has their own sharpening regimen that works for them, and there is considerable variation.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jamie,

The only tools I hone are my skews. I can usually tell when they are cutting properly or when they are dragging and getting catchy. Then I hone. It really only takes a few seconds. I can go weeks sometimes months with just honing..

[Reed Gray]

I do hone my skews once in a while. Know a local self taught turner who is a master spindle turner. She sharpens her skews on a 6 inch grinder with a 60 grit wheel and does not hone at all. I have noticed that a honed burr on a scraper really cuts nicely, but not worth the extra effort in most cases. If I am doing a pulling shear cut with a gouge, I do hone the inside of the flutes to remove the burr that is left from grinding. Most of the time, I will use a scraper for this cut.

robo hippy

[Jamie Straw]

Reed, Ken, Richard -- Thanks. What do you use to hone with?? I've lost my little diamond paddle, so need to pick up another for general use. Anything else?

Will have to come back next week and get some info about scrapers -- haven't used one yet.

[Paul Atkins]

I never use tools right from the grinder - I always hone everything. This is a 2 minute operation. If you can't shave with it, it's dull.

[Mike Minto]

jamie, i have recently begun to hone everything. a really scary sharp tool is much easier to control, for me, and cuts (no pun intended) down on vibration, which for me is a big issue, what with having a wood floor in my 'hut'. i use my proedge or grinder, depending on the tool, then hand hone with a 6x2 fine diamond or 1/2x2 very fine.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jamie,

Here's the hone I use. It's from CSUSA. I have had it several years now. Once in a while I'll take it into the house and wash it off with soap and water and then immediately dry it well with a towel. It's still working great. http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/store/Sharpening___Honing___Big_Diamond_Honing_Stone___b ig_diamond_honing?Args=

[Jamie Straw]

Jamie,

Here's the hone I use. It's from CSUSA. I have had it several years now. Once in a while I'll take it into the house and wash it off with soap and water and then immediately dry it well with a towel. It's still working great. http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/store/Sharpening___Honing___Big_Diamond_Honing_Stone___b ig_diamond_honing?Args=

Thanks, Ken, that one looks like it would cross over to other kinds of sharpening (non-turning) quite well, much better than the little diamond paddles.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Psssst.....Jamie.......I hate to say it in this forum.....I have used that hone for sharpening my flatwork chisels....:rolleyes:

[Alan Trout]

I also tend to hone everything to some extent. Skews I sharpen and a hone similar to what Ken uses. Mine is the DMT Duo-Sharp fine on one side and extra fine on the other. For my gouges I use these on the inside of the flute. http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/store/Sharpening___Honing___Henry_Taylor_Slipstones___sl ipstones?Args= and these on the outside. http://www.amazon.com/DMT-D2K-Dia-Sharp-Diamond-Mini-Hone/dp/B000S5SD9M .

I just keep them in my pocket of my apron and it keeps me from having to go to the grinder or my wet sharpener all the time. I also find that a honed edge cuts much better. But I am also a very patient person.

Alan

[Reed Gray]

I have the 3 by 8 inch flat stones from DMT that are probably 15 years old. Mostly they are used on skews, and to remove the old burr from scrapers before grinding a new burr. I also use them on my dove tailed scraper for touching up the top which leaves a fresh edge on the tool, but this one also goes to the grinder. I have the small paddle ones as well, and mostly use them on my McNaughton coring tools, but more often, I will touch those up on the grinder. I don't use the slip stones, but do have one round diamond file that looks like a morris taper in a handle for removing the burr on my gouges. I have tried honing the bevels on my gouges a few times, and never noticed any improvement. Another thing to experiment with. Hones will touch up the edge, but can't maintain them for ever. You do have to go back to the grinder.

robo hippy

[Greg Just]

After taking a week long turning class last summer where I learned the right way to sharpen, I use a hone all the time. I don't go back to the grinder until it is really necessary, which is a lot less than before. Finally, I use the hone on everything, not just the skew like some have mentioned.

[Harlan Coverdale]

I recently became another rare gouge honer. I'm mostly interested in removing the burr from the inside of the flute. I don't try to polish the bevel but I do usually hit it lightly with the honing wheel on my Tormek. I also hone my skews. I didn't used to hone my gouges but I saw a post on another forum by a guy who swore by it. I tried it and liked it. Like Mike, it's easier for me to control a honed tool.

[Dick Sowa]

I only hone my small detail gouges (1/4", 1/2") and my skews, and then only to remove the burr from grinding. Something that surprised me when I did the math, was applying a tool to a 2” dia spindle, at 2,000 RPM for one minute, will cover nearly 1,000 feet! A finely honed tool, is bound to get dull in short order.

[Thom Sturgill]

I came over from 'flat work' with neander leanings. I had some training as a luthier. My chisels were all carbon steel and sharp enough to shave with.

My first turning chisels were a HF set and I found, as have many, that it was not possible to keep that kind of edge any length of time. However, as I bought better chisels (notably a couple of Doug Thompson's) I found that the harder steels DO lend themselves to honing and I do hone them, especially inside the flute to remove the burr. Of course with scapers the burr is what you are after and there are techniques for raising a burr between grindings.

[Jamie Straw]

A finely honed tool, is bound to get dull in short order.

This was Bonnie's point exactly! As I ponder this issue, it seems to me that what's appropriate may depend not only on what tool you're using, but what kind of wood you're turning. Some woods demand an extremely sharp edge, do they not? Others, such as the softer Big Leaf Maple of my area turn just fine without the super-sharp edge. Therefore I can save time by having a sturdier, though less keen, edge....?