For Those Of You Using Scary Sharp...

[John Hollaway]

..., what do you find to be the most convenient size of glass on which to place your SC paper. In other words, one grit per glass slab, and what size, or multiple grits per glass slab, and how many and what size each? Hoping to learn from other Creekers' inconveniences. Thanks.

[lowell holmes]

I have a 8X10 ?? 1/4" plate glass I use sometimes.

I'm going to get a granite surface plate like at Woodcraft.

http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2004864/7535/granite-surface-plate-9-x-12-x-2-a-grade.aspx

I use diamond hones more than the scary sharp method.

I do use Dunbar's free hand method though.

[Tom Vanzant]

I sometimes use the Veritas diamond film strips mounted on a 12" x 12" glass panel. Each strip is mounted centered along an edge, which gives me access to the strips from both ends or both long edges whether using a honing guide or freehand.

[mike holden]

While I use a granite block, you only need the one flat surface. I use water to adhere the paper to the granite, and then lift it off and wet the next piece as needed. Glass should work the same. Adhesives are not necessary.
Mike

[Edward Mitton]

My scary sharp setup consists of (4) 1/4"x6"x12" glass plates. These were purchased for a dollar each several years ago from a large department store that was going out of business and liquidating all of their store shelves and fixtures. I use 8 different grits of sandpaper ranging from 60 to 2000. Each glass plate has 2 grits affixed with spray adhesive. This setup may not be as good as using a single granite plate, but it has worked very well for my purposes. All of my chisels and plane irons get honed to proper 'arm-shaving' keen-ness with this system.

[bill tindall]

First, this technique preceded the the person that applied the silly name to it by decades. And this person recommended an inferior abrasive for the task. I would like to see the silly name relegated to obscurity. "Sharpening with abrasive sheets" is descriptive of the technique. Comprehensive information can be found in the Articles section of the WoodCentral Forum.

I used a 12 x 12 glass plate or rock counter top scrap for the abrasive substrate and put 3 grit sizes on each plate. I obtained the superior 3" wide aluminum oxide sticky back paper rolls from Klingspor.

[Steve Voigt]

First, this technique preceded the the person that applied the silly name to it by decades. And this person recommended an inferior abrasive for the task. I would like to see the silly name relegated to obscurity. "Sharpening with abrasive sheets" is descriptive of the technique.

Amen, brother. I hate that term.

[David Weaver]

I hate that term.

Me, too. A straight razor properly sharpened is far sharper, and there's nothing scary about it. It's actually quite pleasant. It should be called the comfortably sharp method, if anything. Anything less is, well...painful. At least in straight razors. If it's not scary shaving your face, why would it be scary elsewhere?

[John Walkowiak]

I used a 12"x40" piece of 1/4" thick tempered glass. I purchased it at a glass supply house for about $25. Using this large glass, I have 2 strips of 180 and 240 on one side, and 1/2 sheets of WD paper on the other, going to 2000 grit. Having paper on both sides helps it from sliding around. When finished I lean it up against a wall, out of the way. I use 3M spray adhesive, and use an old, wide plane iron to scrape the old paper off. I use naphtha or MS to remove the excess adhesive. I find this more convenient that several smaller pieces of glass or whatever.

[Jim Koepke]

I would like to see the silly name relegated to obscurity. "Sharpening with abrasive sheets" is descriptive of the technique.

Even though it is a silly name, and as David points out it is also a misnomer, the average person will pick the phrase that is easier to say. Chalk one up to laziness.

I have used floor tile for holding abrasive sheets. This is now my main surface for holding pressure sensitive adhesive backed abrasive sheets:

291081

It is about 4' long and can get a blade rather warm with a little vigorous muscular application.

jtk

[Pedro Reyes]

Too much has been said... but I will still share my set up.

I purchased two pieces of (I think 3/8") glass the size of a sheet of sandpaper (9x11), for when I really need the whole surface (seldom) I just attach (water or spray adhesive) a sheet and it all gets used, usually tho I cut the sheets in 4 pieces (3-3/4 x9") each, which can be attached to the glass (4/per), this gives me 8 grits on two plates, overkill most of the time, but handy when needed. Glass is not expensive.

/p

[Rob Luter]

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.




https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5511/12016227873_7c0db0c76f_b.jpg

[Bill White]

I use both glass (safety/laminated) and a granite sink cut out (free from a countertop fabricator).
Bill

[Bob Glenn]

Be cautious using tempered glass. Yes it is safer, however, the tempering process sometimes distorts the flatness of the glass, more so with thinner rather than thicker glass.

[Stan Calow]

I got a piece of 1'x4' polished granite slab at the local Habitat for Humanity Restore for a buck. I can fit 4 sheets on it at once, and work down the grits. Habitat deals in leftover building supplies, including pieces of counter materials, if you aren't familiar with them.

[Bill Brush]

I bought a 12x12 granite tile at the local DIY store for about $3. I don't know if it's flat to within 2 microns, but it seems to get the job done.

[Tom M King]

I like the granite surface plates that Woodcraft puts on sale twice a year for 25 bucks so much that I've bought two of them. I also got a larger one off of Craigslist, just because it was cheap.

I keep the Diamond Lapping Film that LV sells on one of the surface plates, which does way better than the other "sharpening films/papers", but I do still use the film/paper for sharpening jointer knives. I use the Diamond Lapping Film to finish up an edge after an 8000 water stone, or sometimes just the film alone if I think to stop using the tool before it needs more. That film is only PSA, so I dedicated a surface plate to it. I like the weight, and height above table for finger clearance off the edges of the 9x12 plate, and it's not bad to handle.

The granite surface plates hold paper just fine with just a splash of water under them, which makes it a snap to change grits. I have a bigger piece of granite countertop that I bought for next to nothing to make a sharpening bench with, but the surface is glossy, and won't hold paper with just water under it.

Next shop will have a sharpening room.