Lie-Nielsen Honing Guide

[Jeff Ranck]

I'm thinking of one of those Lie-Nielsen honing guides and had a question for those of you who own one. I have a set of the veritas bench chisels. Do I need the chisel jaws or will the basic jaws fit the veritas bench chisels as well as plane blades?

Jeff.

[Tony Shea]

the standard jaws fit most of the bench chisels other than anything smaller than 1/4". It will also do their plane blades. It is no doubt the best guide on the market!

[Rob Luter]

the standard jaws fit most of the bench chisels other than anything smaller than 1/4". It will also do their plane blades. It is no doubt the best guide on the market!

I'm curious why you consider this one the best? I've used a Veritas MKII for years and found it far superior to another guide I had that was substantially identical to the LN offering. That said, I've never used the LN guide. The one advantage I can see to the LN is the replaceable jaws that allow sharpening short blades like you'd find on a spokeshave, but I'd welcome your commentary on other advantages.

[Stewie Simpson]

Rob; that's why I didn't bother to reply to Jeff's inquiry. I also own the LN honing guide, but new it would not take too long before someone would start a tit for tat commentary on the best of the 2 main brands. Wasted space imo.

Stewie;

[Mike Brady]

"substantially identical to the LN offering":

Buy one and try it, or go to a LN Hand Tool event. How can you comment on something you have never used?

[david charlesworth]

I have the guide, it is a beautifully machined item.

I would be extremely surprised if the Veritas chisels did not fit in the standard jaws.

Chisels and blades fit in the same slot, so for 30 degrees say, the projections are all the same.

Best wishes,
David

[Derek Cohen]

I'm thinking of one of those Lie-Nielsen honing guides and had a question for those of you who own one. I have a set of the veritas bench chisels. Do I need the chisel jaws or will the basic jaws fit the veritas bench chisels as well as plane blades?

Jeff.

Jeff, the LN guide is beautifully machined, like a little jewel. I bought one not long after they came out for use with (Veritas) BU blades. I do have the Veritas Mk II guide, but I prefer the simplicity of a side clamping guide for this task.

I vaguely recall trying out my Veritas chisels in it to see if they fitted. I think that the 1/4" is the minimum size that will fit (before the side clamps bottom out), which is what Tony stated. The side walls of the LN clamp are too low for mortice chisels. Narrower blades and mortice chisels work better in the Veritas guide, together with the small blade holder, mortice accessory, and straight wheel.

I like the LN on BU blades but there is only just enough projection possible for honing at 50 degrees, which is the only secondary angle I use it for.

I think that this goes to show that there is no single "best" honing guide. The Veritas is very versatile. The LN is nice and simple. They do different things very well, and some things only so so.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Rob Luter]

Rob; that's why I didn't bother to reply to Jeff's inquiry. I also own the LN honing guide, but new it would not take too long before someone would start a tit for tat commentary on the best of the 2 main brands. Wasted space imo.

Stewie;

I think you meant "knew", and I'm not interested in a tit for tat anything. I was hoping someone (thanks Derek) would offer up some objective input as opposed to starting a snark fest. I've used guides of that type (yes Mike, substantially identical) and thought they were OK. For my money "beautifully machined" is what I would expect from LN, but "beautifully machined" doesn't exactly speak to utility. I'll hush up now. Merry Christmas to all.

[Tony Shea]

Ok, I probably should not have stated that the LN was the best guide and rephrased it as though it was my opinion the best. I own both the LV and LN but much prefer the simplicity of the LN. This guide is not even close to the eclipse style guides that are on the market right now. The precision does mean a much better guide in function as the wheel has no unnecessary wobble in it, the clamping doesn't jerk the tool out of square, and the tightening mechanism is super tight when just turning by hand. The parts are all stainless steel other than the bronze bushing therefore is extremely durable, substantial, and corrosion proof.

My biggest reason for liking the LN is its simplicity and ease of setup. There is no questioning whether or not the blade is square and all projections are the same. It is just a great design. And I do own the LV but just have not got along with it that well. This is all personal preference.

[lowell holmes]

. The side walls of the LN clamp are too low for mortice chisels.

Regards from Perth

Derek




I sharpen mortice chisels free hand. I find a guide is not needed for them. I do use a guide for bench chisels.

[Rob Luter]

Thanks Tony, that's exactly the kind of objectivity I was after.

Edit: to be fair, there was some subjectivity too, but it was well reasoned and appreciated.

[Jeff Ranck]

Thanks folks. I appreciate the input. Personally, it still seems like I get a better edge with a honing guide. I have an old eclipse style that is getting ready to break and I was thinking to try the LN guide.

[Derek Cohen]

An alternative to the LN is the Henry Eckert ...

https://www.henryeckert.com/image/cache/data/HE%20Honing%20Guide/IMG_5301-500x500.jpg

This is CNC machined aluminium with a stainless steel bearing, made in Australia: https://www.henryeckert.com/index.php?route=product/product&manufacturer_id=33&product_id=1162

With the exchange rate in your favour, it is cheap as chips.

Made as Eclipse would have dreamed.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Mike Brady]

That Henry Eckert guide looks very nice. I have found three original Eclipses on eBay (made in UK) that are good quality too. There is an American boat builder, Jim Ritter, who has a patent pending on a new guide that he is field testing right now. It holds a variety of blade configurations. He is using his tester's feedback to come up with an ideal configuration before he considers production. It is a machined product, not cast.
I have found the LN guide to be excellent and preferable to the Veritas, for my needs. Both require changing attachments for different blade configurations. The Veritas MkII seemed rather bulky and over-sized, though I used it regularly for several years.

[Derek Cohen]

Mike, the Henry Eckert (HE) is very well made. I have used them on several occasions in demonstrations for Lie Nielsen at Tool Shows - Henry Eckert is the Australian agent for LN (actually, David Eckert is the agent, and the business is named after his young son, Henry). The HE is the one to get if you can't justify the LN.

I have the original version of Jim Ritter's honing guide. I have been feeding Jim ideas from before it was conceived. It has a little way to go before it will be ready for production.

Regards from Perth

Derek