water stone sharpening question

[Jim Hinze]

For planes or chisels, push the edge across the waterstone with pressure or pull it toward you with pressure?

I've seen it demonstrated both ways but am curious what the concensus is here?

Thanks in advance.

[Steven Wilson]

Push, I find I have better control

[Tom Scott]

I suppose I do both. I keep the blade on the stone, going back and forth, without any real difference in pressure, moving it around the stone to get a more even wear pattern.

Tom

[Pam Niedermayer]

Push and pull for me, too. Waterstones don't wrinkle like sandpaper.

Pam

[Steve Wargo]

Figure 8's

[Jim Barrett]

I Pull, but whatever you find comfortable and gives you the best result is the way to go!

Jim

[Jerry Palmer]

On my courser stone I generally push, except for narrower chisels. On the fine stone I find I don't gouge out the stone if I pull. It is somewhat softer than the others and when freehanding, if you raise the blade ever so slightly it will dig in.

[Mark Singer]

I push and pull. If you arre free handing...ovals with good down pressure on the bevel works good.

[Jim Hinze]

Thanks everyone!

I just picked up some waterstones and will be giving sharpening a try... just wanted to get some more info before I gave it a go... so far I've just been doing scary sharp and figured the water stones will be quicker and easier.

Again, my thanks to all!

[Jon Olson]

This is a perfect post...I also just got two waterstones from Lee Valley. I'm going to try pulling first. I had better control of the pressure with sandpaper that way.

Jon

[Kenneth Sternberg]

Narrow chisels gouge water stones too easily and don't come out as well as I like on water stones any how.
Scary sharp is the best in many ways, but for chisels under about 1/4" I use oil stones and then strop on a piece of wood with a dab of chrome polish.
I strop most stuff with the chrome polish actually. I like to be able to shave with my pocket knife or my plane irons.

[Brent Smith]

Push and pull for sharpening.Just pull for honing.

[Jerry Palmer]

Narrow chisels gouge water stones too easily and don't come out as well as I like on water stones any how.
Scary sharp is the best in many ways, but for chisels under about 1/4" I use oil stones and then strop on a piece of wood with a dab of chrome polish.
I strop most stuff with the chrome polish actually. I like to be able to shave with my pocket knife or my plane irons.

I use a cloth buffing wheel with one or another metal buffing compound after working them on a 4000 grit water stone. Both the bevel and the back get this treatment but I don't try shaving with mine, especially chisels as while the blade is shaving the hairs, the edges are making nice neat surgical incisions into the skin.:eek:

[Derek Cohen]

"I use a cloth buffing wheel with one or another metal buffing
compound after working them on a 4000 grit water stone. Both
the bevel and the back get this treatment"



PLEASE don't do this anymore! Not if you actually want to use your chisels for precision work. Sharpened this way they are being abused!!

The first rule of sharpening chisels is flatten the back of the blade. Unlike plane blades, you CANNOT backbevel chisel blades since you then no longer have a flat surface to act as a guide when paring. You may take a shortcut with plane blades by adding a 1 degree backbevel (ala David Charlesworth's "ruler trick"), since the blade is guided by the plane's bed/frog.

The first rule of stropping blades is that a soft buffing surface will round off the bevel. A cloth wheel is the WORST culprit here. You are better off with a hard felt wheel. A better surface is a flat, hard one. I much prefer the flat face of a piece of MDF.

Buffing the bevel side of the blade with a cloth wheel will round the blade. To do this on the back of the blade as well (!!) is to ensure that the blade you have has no flat against which you can work accurately.

Sorry to jump all over your post, but it should not be used as a good model.

Regards from Perth

Derek