How do you set up a "scary sharp" system?

[Pete Ducklow]

Hi everyone -

I have been reading a lot about the scary sharp way of sharpening tools, but I haven't seen much on the practical ways of implementing it. Do you normally use one full sized sheet of sandpaper for each grit, or do you cut them into smaller sizes? How many sheets of sandpaper do you put on a slab of glass? Do you use one large piece of glass and put all the different grits of sandpaper on it, or does each grit get its own piece of glass? (If you are sharpening several chisels at a time, it would get awkward switching grits of sandpaper. I plan on using a sharpening jig to hold my chisels and plane blades, and I don't want to have to keep taking them out of the jig until each one is done). I read somewhere that you should use a back and forth motion to keep from tearing the sandpaper, but I figured if I just pull the jig backwards, I wouldn't have a problem with that. Lastly, I've read about adhearing the sandpaper to the glass with water, with spray adhesive, or using sandpaper which is adhesive backed. Which is prefered (or easiest). Thanks, and if you can think of any other practical advice, I'd appreciate hearing.

PS - I just found this site. It's great!

[Mike Wenzloff]

Hi Pete--and welcome!

Brent Beach has great info on how he does it here:
http://www3.telus.net/BrentBeach/Sharpen/jig.html

He include shop made jigs, source for the paper (which I also think Joel at Tools for Working Wood sells).

Plain good information (including SS and other methods) is here:
http://www.antiquetools.com/sharp/index.html

The original SS information:
http://www.shavings.net/SCARY.HTM

Ralph Brendler's sit has lots of good other info as well.

Have fun. Sharpening is as easy as you make it. Jig, no jig. Shop made, SS, stones, Powered systems--it doesn't matter. One key is just pick a method and enjoy the sharpening process.

Take care, Mike

[Steve Beadle]

Welcome to the Creek!

I sometimes use the Scary Sharp method and find it pretty satisfactory. Although I have separate sheets of glass for each grit (I ran into a great deal on the glass--free is a very good price!), I have read somewhere of a guy who cuts out smaller pieces of different grits and puts them all on one sheet of glass. That makes it easier to go through the succession of grits. But that's probably best used with smaller tools such as chisels. I like a little more surface area for plane blades. And for flattening the sole of a plane, I like one, two, or three sheets butted together.
I mainly use a spray adhesive to attach the sandpaper, though if I'm using wet-or-dry paper, I just wet it a little.
I always get in trouble if I both pull AND push the blade across the surface, so I just pull. I seem to remember that in Mike Dunbar's video on sandpaper sharpening, he uses adhesive-backed paper and moves the blades from side to side. I probably should take another look at that video to see if I am recalling it correctly, though!
Yeah! Have FUN sharpening! Especially during the winter when the shop might be too cold, bring your sharpening gear inside.

[Tom Hamilton]

Welcome to the Creek! :D

My scary sharp system is a piece of marble that was a table top before the movers broke it;

grits of wet/dry ffrom 80 to 2000 and a spray bottle and a plactic tub.

Wet the slab, put a piece of full sized paper down, make your strokes, I'm a back and forth guy, and switch grits when appropriate.

I keep the new paper in separate manila folders in an accordian folder; the used or partially used is in the front of the tub that holds the whole system.

The used is great for all kinds of touch-up, little jobs etc.

I too use a jig, the original Veritas, and get great results.

Again, welcome to SMC. Tom

[Don Naples]

Pete: Most Wetordry paper is Silicon Carbide, so does not hold up well when abrading steel. Aluminum Oxide should be used for at least the initial stages of conditioning a plane iron or chisel. If you use SiC, be prepared to go through a lot of paper. Once the tool is in good condition, the SiC will work, though AlO2 is a more durable abrasive. Some may think sharpening to 8.4 micron (P2500) is sharp enough. An 8000 grit waterstone in 1.2 micron. On the plus side, since the SiC breaks down so quickly, you actually have a finer gritquickly. If you have metal to remove, go back to AlO2 to do the work, or you will just burnish your tool and make it shiney, but not get the edge sharp. Aluminum Oxide is readily available down to 9 micron. After that, it is called Lapping Film. I have tested it to 0.3 micron, so fine AlO2 abrasives are available.

[Kevin French]

I got lucky, I found about 70 pieces of 16 x 10 x 3/16" plate glass in the dump. Because it's thin I've put Duck Tape on the backs in case it does break it will hold together.
I cut the sheets of sand paper in thirds lengthwise (3" wide) and put two of each grit on each piece of glass. I use 80, 120, 220, 320, 400, 600, 1000, 1500, and 2000 grits. You can do it with about half of these grits but after you get the final angle set and ground with the coursest grits You just make a few quick strokes on the finer grits and move on to the next, so it doesn't add a lot of time or wear out the sand paper too much. When you do move to the higher grit make sure to wipe off the blade AND the roller on the jig if you use one.
When I change the paper I pull it off, scrap with a razor, wash with mineral spirits, wash with glass cleaner, then LIGHTLY spray the paper with an adhesive.

I also found some larger pieces of glass, around 3' x 5/16" that I glue Sander Belts to, to flatten plane soles. The finest grit I use on those is 320 grit.

Good luck

Kevin