Rob Luter
01-18-2014, 2:32 PM
The thread that Jim Koepke posted about granite countertop scraps as a base for a "Scary Sharp" honing setup prompted me to finally post my sharpening station. I use the "Scary Sharp" method with great success. I started off with a granite surface plate as a mounting surface for sandpaper but it became a bit ungainly to use, especially when it came time to change grits or move it around. Instead, I put together another solution that's served me well for about 4 years now.
I started with blocks of thick MDF core board that has oak veneer on either side. Regular MDF would work as well, but I was using up some scrap material. I mounted a 3" x 11" 1/4" thick glass plate to each block with contact cement. Double strength hardware store glass would work just as well. I'm a window engineer and have easy access to whatever glass I want, so it was like "go big or go home". Each of these MDF/Glass sandwiches serves as a mounting surface for 3M abrasive film I get from Tools for Working Wood. I mount each of the 5 available grits on the glass and wind up with progressively finer honing surfaces. A squirt of water on each block and you're good to go. Just wipe them off to clean them up. They work great for both flattening backs and honing beveled cutting edges. I can achieve near optically perfect flatness and put a cutting edge on a chisel or plane iron that is truly "Scary Sharp". I use a Lee Valley honing jig for both plane irons and chisels. I use the Borg grinder for putting a hollow grind on the blades when necessary.
While I have everything all set up on its own table, the honing blocks are easily portable so I can bring one to the bench for periodic touch ups to chisels. The whole setup was pretty cheap to make and the 3M film lasts a surprisingly long time. You get three usable pieces from each sheet so one of their multi-packs lasts about a year in my shop. Unlike water stones, I never have to flatten anything and there's little to no mess.
If you're looking for a good sharpening solution, I'd recommend giving this approach a try.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5511/12016227873_7c0db0c76f_b.jpg
I started with blocks of thick MDF core board that has oak veneer on either side. Regular MDF would work as well, but I was using up some scrap material. I mounted a 3" x 11" 1/4" thick glass plate to each block with contact cement. Double strength hardware store glass would work just as well. I'm a window engineer and have easy access to whatever glass I want, so it was like "go big or go home". Each of these MDF/Glass sandwiches serves as a mounting surface for 3M abrasive film I get from Tools for Working Wood. I mount each of the 5 available grits on the glass and wind up with progressively finer honing surfaces. A squirt of water on each block and you're good to go. Just wipe them off to clean them up. They work great for both flattening backs and honing beveled cutting edges. I can achieve near optically perfect flatness and put a cutting edge on a chisel or plane iron that is truly "Scary Sharp". I use a Lee Valley honing jig for both plane irons and chisels. I use the Borg grinder for putting a hollow grind on the blades when necessary.
While I have everything all set up on its own table, the honing blocks are easily portable so I can bring one to the bench for periodic touch ups to chisels. The whole setup was pretty cheap to make and the 3M film lasts a surprisingly long time. You get three usable pieces from each sheet so one of their multi-packs lasts about a year in my shop. Unlike water stones, I never have to flatten anything and there's little to no mess.
If you're looking for a good sharpening solution, I'd recommend giving this approach a try.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5511/12016227873_7c0db0c76f_b.jpg