New TormekT8

[Gregory Carles]

Well I am looking at the T8 and a set of Naniwa water stones to use in combination with each other. I have never sharpened my chisels beyond the factory edge. Only used some sand paper to try and I emphasize try to hone the edge a little. I want to get a couple of hand planes also. I have strictly been a power tool wood worker with an occasional chisel here and there. I did a lot of research and I found out that just the Tormek T8 will not do the whole job by itself and that you need to final finish the edge on a good set of Waterstones after the Tormek is done grinding.
If I get the tormek I can also sharpen knives as opposed to strictly using a honing guide for chisels / Plane irons.
As for the cost I can spend close to $500$ bucks on a Lie Nielsen honing guide and a quality set of water stones so I thought why not just get the Tormek for a little extra and be done with it.

Any comments welcome.

[Tim Bueler]

I struggled with whether or not to buy a Tormek for years. Just couldn't convince myself it was worth the cost. A few months ago I bought a Work Sharp WS3000 and couldn't be happier. I'm not a sharpening aficionado but it works excellent for me. I also have the Work Sharp WSKTS-KO that I'm very happy with as well. Both are much faster and more accurate than the diamond "stones" I was using (and Arkansas stones before that). I'm not sure I'm wiser in my old age, but I'm certainly lazier.:D

[andy bessette]

It's easy and fun to blow a bunch of dough on tools and machines. But you can do everything you need using a belt sander and a couple Japanese water stones.

[Andrew Hughes]

I vote for the Tormek it will do tasks the my high speed grinders will not do. I will make a list
Carving tools esp v gouges
Turning tools
Plane blades
Chisels
Knives all types marking knives to kitchen knives
12 inch jointer knives
card scrapers
drill bits
Sometimes I use it shape small metal parts and screws that my high speed grinder will grab and throw who knows where?

[Gregory Carles]

It's easy and fun to blow a bunch of dough on tools and machines. But you can do everything you need using a belt sander and a couple Japanese water stones.

I know - I love spending my kids inheritance.. :D

[casey herring]

I've got the:
T8
worksharp ws3000
sorby pro edge
veritas mk2 honing with shape on stones 300-16000

the works harp is definely the most used, it's just way more convenient than everything else and gets everything scary sharp... up to 2" wide. Then it's just st too inconsistent. That's when I I got the tormek, when I was struggling with wider blades. On top of that tormek does carving tools very well, and, if you have the patience, turning tools.

my current regent looks like this.
chisels: all done on worksharp.
all plane blades:on tormek (most could be done on the worksharp)
finish all plane blades with 16000 shaping stone.
Lapping: all lapping is done on the worksharp, again, it's just so fast.

turning tools all done on sorry pro edge.

to sum it up, the tormek is absolutely the most versatile, the WS is absolutely the best value. Honestly, MOST people would consider my tools strait off of either machine as sharp as anything sharpened on stones up to 8000

hope that helps!
cheers!

[Gregory Carles]

Ordered the newT8 from Tormek.
I hope it is worth the investment.

Never sharpened anything in my life. Always had to have it sent out to get done by professional. There's always the wait period and usually need it sharpened in the middle of the project. So hopefully I will get to learn how to use this thing fairly quickly.

Any tips or hints for a first time sharpener on the Tormek?

[Alex Snyder]

I bought the T8 last week and finally got around to resharpening some of the wife's kitchen knives to get her into it ;). I can't believe how fast and easy it was to knock out a set of knives!

Before Tormek I used sandpaper and stones, but with a full arsenal of axes, knives (kitchen, survival, etc), sheers, and then some of that you know...woodworking stuff... I was getting tired of the hours it took to sharpen. I used to plan a week of evenings and set everything up in the kitchen to not alienate myself from the family. Now I foresee sharpening happening in the shop where I won't have to cleanup as much and can knock out everything in less than 2 hours.

[Gregory Carles]

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Look what showed up this morning..

[Andrew Hughes]

Nice,When my stone wears down more on my Tormek 2000 I'm getting a T8.

[Gregory Carles]

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Got the Tormek installed to it's new home.
I did get the swivel base and it is very handy.

[Rick Potter]

Andrew,

What advantage is there in moving from the 2000 to the T-8? Just curious.
.

[Andrew Hughes]

Mostly because my 2000 is worn out.This is its second stone and it's completely rusted to the shaft. I thought about rebuilding it because parts are available.The cost of parts would put me more than halfway toward a new T8.

Aj

[Rick Potter]

Thanks,

I have one, hardly used. Can't seem to decide if I want to make room for it. Been thinking about it for years. Don't sharpen much, and just use a diamond plate.

[Charles Bjorgen]

Ordered the newT8 from Tormek.
I hope it is worth the investment.

Any tips or hints for a first time sharpener on the Tormek?

Congratulations on your Tormek purchase, Gregory. Check to see if you received the Tormek diamond truing jig with your purchase. With use the grinding wheel can develop uneven spots that can lead to frustration. You can check this with a small machinists' square as you use the tool. The truing tool will fix this. Also check to see which Square Edge jig you got with your package. If it is the SE-76, you might want to consider upgrading to the SE-77 which offers a few improvements, among them a way of adding camber to Plane blades.

I've had my old Tormek 2000 for nearly 20 years and have added several of the upgrades Tormek has developed.

[Stew Hagerty]

Gregory, I'm sure you won't regret your T-8 purchase. I got mine several months back and could not be happier. I also have a nice set of oilstones (course, medium, & fine Norton India Stones. Plus Soft, Hard, and Black Arkansas stones from Dan's) that I have used for a few years after selling my WorkSharp 3000. I never liked that thing. All the endless glass disk changes and the hassles of replacing the paper disks were just way too much hassle for me. I like the oilstones and never had any problem sharpening any blade, even A2 steel. It just takes minute or two longer. Then I saw the T-8 and decided to get one. I am thrilled! The thing is fast as long as there isn't a ton of damage. I have a grinder, and the oilstones for that. I use it for everything else. I also go straight from the machine to the wood. I don't buy what people say about still needing to hone. I run it with the rough stone, then smooth the stone and run it again, and finish up on the strop wheel. It's shavably sharp right then and there. I use my Black Arkansas and a flat strop with .5 micron diamond spray for quick touch-ups, but not before using the tool. This goes for all of my chisels and planes with two exceptions. Those are my LV Bevel Up Smoother with any of the 3 blades options (all 3 are PMV11), and my LV Shooting Plane. I do do run those two over my Hard, then Black Arkansas Stones before running them quickly across my flat strop. Even my White Steel Pairing Chisels go straight from machine to wood without problems. So, like I said, I'm sure you will enjoy your new toy, but let us know what you think...

[Eric Commarato]

I have the Tormek T-7. I seldom use it. It is quite messy with a bath of water constantly being picked up by the sharpening stone, and flinging it all over the bench. If I had to do it over again, check out Rob Cosman's great YouTube videos on his simple sharpening system that uses a 1000 grit stone and a 16,000 grit stone. Shapton stones I believe. He uses the rule trick where you place a thin steel rule under the plane iron to just slightly lift the back of the blade so only the very front edge of the back of the plane blade is being worked or flattened. He then flips over to the bevel side and slightly lifts the bevel a couple degrees and works this edge for 20-30 seconds on the 1000 grit then the 16,000 grit. The whole process takes him about a minute to a minute and a half. The blade is scary sharp. Of course the price of the Shapton stones with the flattening plate probably pushes about $300, but still cheaper than the T8.

[Mike Tekin]

Sorry to hijack, but I can respond too...

The biggest difference is the shaft and other parts susceptible to rust are now stainless steel such as shaft. In addition, the most recent T8 also includes the newest iterations of the the jigs, plus other enhancements.


Andrew,

What advantage is there in moving from the 2000 to the T-8? Just curious.
.

[Andrew Hughes]

I don't think your hijacking Mike, The stainless shaft is nice and makes it possible to switch between wheels have you seen the Cbn wheels.It would be nice to switch wheels.

[Gregory Carles]

Well I sharpened 8 chisels yesterday getting acquainted with the all new T8.
All I can say is razor blade sharp for a chisel. The chisels are so sharp I am amazed.
I did get the truing device and have already ran it on the new stone. Even though it is a new stone it was not calibrated to my tool rest. Now it is.
It came with the SE-77 square edge jig which is the newest version.
The polishing wheel literally leaves a mirror finish on the bevel.
The tricky part I had was getting the chisel to grind square. This was remedied with a micro adjustment of the 2 cambering knobs on the very end of the SE-77 jig (page 128 in the manual). Due to the geometry and the engineering if you loosen knob "A" and tighten knob "B" one can fine tune how square the chisel / plane iron grinds as related to the tool rest and wheel.

[Gregory Carles]

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[Andrew Hughes]

That looks great
one tip I have not sure if it's in the manuel.Add oil to the leather strop.It helps keep the paste from drying out too fast.I use gun oil but have used 3 in 1

[Gregory Carles]

Thanks Andrew for the tip. It comes with a small tube 100% pharmaceutical grade oil. What ever that is.
Do you add oil before each use of only at the first set up. I got it added to the new leather wheel then added the compound - it works great.

[Tim Bueler]

It comes with a small tube 100% pharmaceutical grade oil. What ever that is.

Mineral oil. Laxative section.

congrats on your purchase!

[Gregory Carles]

OK, cut little finger tonight pretty good. Like a surgical knife type cut. Was using the 1/2 inch chisel to chop an ash mortis to see how it was performing and the chisel slipped out of my grasp, well I grabbed for it not thinking..... and it sliced me pretty good.
Those band aides they send with the machine came in handy.
Definitely need to wear some protective gloves until I get used to how sharp these are now..

[jim mills]

Appreciate your comments on squaring of chissels. I've wondered how controllable that is with these machines. Any additional feed back on this issue is appreciated.

[Stew Hagerty]

Appreciate your comments on squaring of chissels. I've wondered how controllable that is with these machines. Any additional feed back on this issue is appreciated.

Jim, I always use a straight edge to check the alignment of the blade/iron against the outside edge of the stone. I know that the stone's edge to the grinding surface is 90 degrees, so if the blade's side is straight, then all I need to do is make sure the side lines up with the stone's edge and the cutting edge should be perfect. Once you get the jig squared to the stone, it remains so unless you use it to grind a camber. Unfortunately, the instructions for this new revised jig are vague and they don't yet have a video for it. I figured most of it out myself through trial & error, with an assist from a call to tech support. But it really works great. My only complaint is repeatability in setting camber. There is no scale and so no way of setting a specific amount other than by how much you loosen each screw.

[Mike Tekin]

David Charlesworth has a good video on the jig (SE-077) but more towards camber...


https://youtu.be/Bfd-xzOF5sc

and one from Highland Woodworking...

https://youtu.be/FCV1EkboiGo

[Stew Hagerty]

David Charlesworth has a good video on the jig (SE-077) but more towards camber...


https://youtu.be/Bfd-xzOF5sc

and one from Highland Woodworking...

https://youtu.be/FCV1EkboiGo

Ahhh... Those are both new since I got my machine. The last time I looked was probably in June or July.

[Jerry Olexa]

I've got the:
T8
worksharp ws3000
sorby pro edge
veritas mk2 honing with shape on stones 300-16000

the works harp is definely the most used, it's just way more convenient than everything else and gets everything scary sharp... up to 2" wide. Then it's just st too inconsistent. That's when I I got the tormek, when I was struggling with wider blades. On top of that tormek does carving tools very well, and, if you have the patience, turning tools.

my current regent looks like this.
chisels: all done on worksharp.
all plane blades:on tormek (most could be done on the worksharp)
finish all plane blades with 16000 shaping stone.
Lapping: all lapping is done on the worksharp, again, it's just so fast.

turning tools all done on sorry pro edge.

to sum it up, the tormek is absolutely the most versatile, the WS is absolutely the best value. Honestly, MOST people would consider my tools strait off of either machine as sharp as anything sharpened on stones up to 8000

hope that helps!
cheers!

Very good summary...I agree.

[Ashwini Kaul]

To me the the T7 closeout at $200 less is a much better deal. The few upgrades were not so appealing to me.
Still getting used to the leather wheel freehand honing.

[Timothy MacMurtrie]

Yes indeed 🤣

[Jerry Olexa]

Two of the advantages of The TORMEK are its accuracy on the angle in its fixed position and two, it will handle any WIDTH blade....Worth the $ investment..IMHO

[Derek Cohen]

I have a Tormek 2006 model. There is no significant difference between this and the latest version. Mine also has the stainless steel shaft. It has the earlier blade holder (SE76). I purchased a SE77, but am not that keen on it - its main advantage is to grind a camber, but I do not recommend this for smoothing planes if you are experienced with sharpening since the camber is minute. You do not want to overdo the camber. The SE76 ends up being easier to use.

The other difference is the water trough, which was improved on T7. Upgrade to a CBN wheel (when the original wheel wears out), and you no longer need water to cool, and one more source of mess is gone!

I love the Tormek, but I am dedicated to using handtools whenever possible, and sharpening is a frequent and vitally important affair. I still have the Tormek, but have now "upgraded" to a 8" half-speed grinder with 180 and 80 grit CBN wheels. Link: http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/UltimateGrindingSharpeningSetUp.html

Below is an article (http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/IsTheTormekAGrinderOrASharpener.html) I wrote about the Tormek in 2010. I think that most experienced hand tool users would agree with my argument. Predominantly power tool users may not identify with the issues involved ....

The answer is really to add water- or oil stones to the sharpening regime.


Is the Tormek a Grinder or a Sharpener, and are 30K grits for Wankers?



I love my Tormek, but I have had a number of "debates" with the US representative of Tormek, who insists on calling it a sharpener" while I insist on it being seen to be a grinder. This is not simply a different choice of words to mean the same thing.

He argues that the Tormek is a sharpening system since the honing wheel will convert the 1000 gritted grind to a 8000 grit edge. I argue that this may be so, but I would not use it (others might, not me) on wood if I want a good finish. There is more to sharpening and preparing an edge - be it chisel or plane blade - than simply "sharp".

"Sharp" is for me synonymous with "smooth" - a smooth edge is a sharp edge. As you go up the grit ratings, so you create an ever increasing smooth edge, that is, the edge serrations become smaller and smaller. This transfers to your wood, and the finish is smoother as well.

There is a second factor. Taking an edge off a 1000 grit wheel and honing it on a 8000 wheel strop does not necessarily produce a flat edge. The edge may be 8000, it may feel sharp (cut arm hair) etc, but it can be curved/serrated/grooved, etc.

Instead one should take the edge off a Tormek (or any grinder) and smooth/straighten it out on a flat waterstone (or sandpaper, etc). I go to a 1000 Shapton for this. But if you are doing this, then there is NO NEED to go higher than 220 on the Tormek (that is, you do not need to first re-surface the wheel to 1000 grit before moving on) ... a big time saver!

... and so on to 8000, 12000, etc ... whatever you want.

But wait ... there is more!!!

Is a 12000 or 15000 or 30000 grit stone only for wankers? http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/IsTheTormekAGrinderOrASharpener_html_m58964265.png

No. Edges often fail, not because the steel is not strong enough, but because it is strong enough! This means that edges are more likely to chip than to bend. Chipping is more likely to occur where there are serrations, and the larger the serrations, the greater the propensity for chipping.

Soooooo .... the smaller the serrations, the less likely the chipping ... hence a higher grit sharpening will hold an edge longer than a lower grit sharpened blade.
One more thing to consider. I was reading Ron Hock’s new book, The Perfect Edge, the Ultimate Guide to Sharpening for Woodworkers (http://www.hocktools.com/perfectedge.htm), on sharpening in which he presents evidence that Side Sharpening (http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolReviews/Side%20Sharpening%20and%20The%20Sharp%20Skate.html ) leaves an edge with fewer serrations than front-and-back honing.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Dennis Peacock]

Love my Tormek.....but of course, I'm still using the Tormek Supergrind 2000. :eek: :D

[John K Jordan]

Love my Tormek.....but of course, I'm still using the Tormek Supergrind 2000. :eek: :D

Me too, I have a 1200 grit CBN on mine. If you get tired of the thing let me know - I'd love to have a second one so I can use the CBN and the water wheel.

JKJ

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Andrew,

What advantage is there in moving from the 2000 to the T-8? Just curious.
.

My guess is..... larger diameter stone, so, (1) it lasts longer and (2) shallower concave grind.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Primary reason that I like my Tormek is that I really like the hollow grind..... I find that i am able to very quickly free hand any touch-ups so that I do not need to fire up the Tormek that often, it is mostly just hand on my water stones until it is time for another major resharpening.