Gosh! Didn't Know It Was That Important

[Jim Koepke]

If you asked me about the angle of the bevel on my tools I wouldn't be able to give an exact answer.

Most of the time if a blade needs to be set up to regrind the bevel the tool that came from Lee Valley to measure bevel angles in five degree increments is sufficient.

295347

But now for those who feel knowing to the closest gnats eye lash measurement of angle, this new device is available for a limited time:

295348

http://www.woodpeck.com/ottanglegauge-pw.html?et_mid=687386&rid=237522995

Sometimes there are too many tools to buy.

jtk

[Sean Hughto]

Well, for one-third the price you could get one of these to check bevel angles and hav e tool you can use for lots of other things besides. http://www.amazon.com/Shinwa-Japanese-Stainless-Protractor-degrees/dp/B00AGAB1P2/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=10TX40P8PXJCWH3Y5WZK

[Jim Koepke]

Well, for one-third the price you could get one of these to check bevel angles and hav e tool you can use for lots of other things besides. http://www.amazon.com/Shinwa-Japanese-Stainless-Protractor-degrees/dp/B00AGAB1P2/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=10TX40P8PXJCWH3Y5WZK

I have an old one of those by General tool or Craftsman, (can't remember).

It only cost a couple of bucks from a yard sale.

jtk

[David Weaver]

Well, for one-third the price you could get one of these to check bevel angles and hav e tool you can use for lots of other things besides. http://www.amazon.com/Shinwa-Japanese-Stainless-Protractor-degrees/dp/B00AGAB1P2/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=10TX40P8PXJCWH3Y5WZK

That is exactly the tool that came to mind when I thought about it, too. That woodpeckers thing is way over the top. I know the power tool guys love the woodpecker stuff that comes out, but I cringe every time I see an aluminum "tool".

[Chris Griggs]

Pshhhh...that's so lame, I mean it measures in degrees....real men measure angles in radians. I like to hone most my edges to an angle of pi/6 radians.

[David Weaver]

Pshhhh...that's so lame, I mean it measures in degrees....real men measure angles in radians. I like to hone most my edges to an angle of pi/6 radians.

That's pretty steep! (well, for chisels)

[Daniel Rode]

My work is precise, so I bought a protractor that measures in minutes and seconds. I use a pocket microscope to read it. Still cost less that $45 :)

[Chris Griggs]

That's pretty steep! (well, for chisels)

Its 30 degrees....do you need to review your unit circle or do you consider 30 degrees steep for chisels? :-)

[Steve Voigt]

Its 30 degrees....do you need to review your unit circle or do you consider 30 degrees steep for chisels? :-)

Oh, snap!:D
I like to grind the primary at 5pi/72 before honing at pi/6. ;)

[Chris Griggs]

Ummmmmmm not to be an even bigger geek than I've already been in this thread, but errrr that's 12.5 degrees Steve. I think you mean 5pi/36?http://www.sawmillcreek.org/images/smilies/smile.gif

[David Weaver]

Its 30 degrees....do you need to review your unit circle or do you consider 30 degrees steep for chisels? :-)

Yeah, it's pretty steep. I keep mine shy of that by a little bit. good starting point for plane irons, though.

[Chris Griggs]

Interesting. I really wasn't sure if you considered that steep of if you had converted wrong. I like my bench chisels (which are 01) right at 30 degrees and sometimes will even raise my narrow ones up a degree or 2 from there. I used to keep them lower than that but I found that they didn't hold up as well as I would like to chopping when below 30

[Steve Voigt]

Ummmmmmm not to be an even bigger geek than I've already been in this thread, but errrr that's 12.5 degrees Steve. I think you mean 5pi/36?:)
I am shamed. :(
I will have to do some degree/radian conversions and SOHCAHTOA before supper.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Okay, I admit- I think it's a cool tool, if not a bit of a luxury item. Most of my tools I know what I have them ground at, but I sharpen a lot for other folks and it would be a nice quick way to check a bevel angle, especially on power planer blades that I have found come in varying angles. I recently started sharpening those for folks with the Tormek. (Works great, by the way, with their planer blade jig).

I have that Japanese protractor thing... Somewhere... Deep in a drawer. I don't really like it, although mine does not have as good of a scale as the one Sean linked to. That one seems a bit easier to read than mine.

As as for aluminum tools, the Woodpecker tools are thick and well-made. A flimsier aluminum tool maybe not, but a quality one works equally well and doesn't rust. Question to ponder- does aluminum move more or less than steel with temperature changes? I don't know the answer to that. I would suspect more, so perhaps if doing machine work down to the microns an aluminum tool may have disadvantages, but for guys like me scoring a line and then cutting as close as possible to it, aluminum works fine.

[Chris Griggs]

I am shamed. :(
I will have to do some degree/radian conversions and SOHCAHTOA before supper.

Well I should confess, I didn't remember a lot of this stuff until recently, but I randomly decided to register for some undergraduate math courses this coming year (I work in higher ed so its free for me), so I've been reviewing a lot of basic trig and such as of late in preparation.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

... But for $50 I am probably out. I would rather buy a chisel or other tool for that.

[Bill Houghton]

All these cheaper solutions for the problem Woodpeckers has solved...but, guys, none of them are anodized in bright red! That adds huge precision to your work.

[David Weaver]

Interesting. I really wasn't sure if you considered that steep of if you had converted wrong. I like my bench chisels (which are 01) right at 30 degrees and sometimes will even raise my narrow ones up a degree or 2 from there. I used to keep them lower than that but I found that they didn't hold up as well as I would like to chopping when below 30

I haven't seen any that really hold up and fail super slowly below 30 degrees, either. I've got a set or two somewhere around 25 degrees, though, and when it comes down to it, when I use the washita, the last angle might be somewhere around 30 once they're honed a couple of times.

[Tom M King]

I've used one of the cheap Generals forever, and it's good enough for the job. I cut the long leg off shorter because it interfered with something, but don't remember what.

[Tony Zaffuto]

I like looking at the red stuff, but have never purchased any. Some well thought out, but sometimes high priced, jigs, that can be the basis for some hand tool assistants!

[Tom Vanzant]

I thought it was red so you could find it in the shavings...

[Bruce Haugen]

All these cheaper solutions for the problem Woodpeckers has solved...but, guys, none of them are anodized in bright red! That adds huge precision to your work.

Does that mean I have to get my sliding bevel anodized red before I check the angle with it and the protractor I used in high school geometry class some (cough) years ago?

[Matthew N. Masail]

If you want a protatrctor I'd buy this one

291124260139

I got mine about 1 month ago and it's like a light year ahead of the cheap (not much cheeper!) stuff like that one on amazon.

[Jim Matthews]

I have the most critical analytic for measuring the bevel angle.

Does it cut?
Carry on.

Doesn't cut?
Grind sum mo.

[Tom M King]

Since I got the Batty gauge for setting the grinder rest, the protactor hasn't come out of the "sharpen" box.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

All these cheaper solutions for the problem Woodpeckers has solved...but, guys, none of them are anodized in bright red! That adds huge precision to your work.

Red cars are also faster than blue ones. In a race, woodpecker would beat Rockler on the track.

[Mike Allen1010]

I randomly decided to register for some undergraduate math courses this coming year (I work in higher ed so its free for me), so I've been reviewing a lot of basic trig and such as of late in preparation.

CG,

You are a far better man than I. Personally I would rather have needles in my eye.

Besides everyone knows you certainly don't need math for woodworking!!! …ummm...... wait a minute, ....maybe this explains why the drawer openings in my projects that are supposed to be "progressively decreasing in size in a proportional way" from the bottom to the top of the case never end up even close.

Maybe I should reconsider; what are those courses you're taking again? Shouldn't there be an app for this? Please say yes :)!!

Cheers, Mike

[Mark Maleski]

You laugh, but I was thinking about how much harder it would be to misplace a bright red tool (I can never find my General one when I want it).

[Jim Koepke]

You laugh, but I was thinking about how much harder it would be to misplace a bright red tool (I can never find my General one when I want it).

If you have a lot of the Woodpecker tools, everything is bright red.

My shop may be a mess. But it is an organized mess. Many of my small measuring devices have a home (small drawer) of their own.

jtk

[george wilson]

I taught math for 1 year,but I can assure you that I have forgotten everything I ever knew about algebra,trig,and the rest!!

And,I NEVER have checked the
angles I grind at I just do it by eye.

[Jim Koepke]

I have the most critical analytic for measuring the bevel angle.

Does it cut?
Carry on.

Doesn't cut?
Grind sum mo.

Same here.

Was it Frank Klausz who when asked what angle he used on his paring chisels answered, "sharp?"

jtk

[Bill White]

Goes to prove that one can be overeducated to the point that practicality can be obscured.
That's an original quote, and you are welcome to use it in any discussion relative to the art of woodworking.
Wanna cut some dovetails based on pay per finished piece?
Betcha those fellers didn't have any exotic measuring devices other than their eyes. :)
Bill