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Michael Hammers
09-03-2008, 3:27 PM
Just curious if anyone here uses the Lapsharp for carving tools?
MSH

Chiz Eisenhuth
09-23-2008, 9:10 PM
Sorry, Mike, I don't have any personal experience with this unit but here's (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=26451) a thread from 2005 with a pretty thorough discussion. Check it out. I enjoyed it.

Edit: I was having trouble finding it but here it is at Woodworker's Supply -
http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPRES.exe?PARTNUM=136-328&gclid=CP_XmpSi85UCFQhMGgodRHV2cw

In the thread they were posting prices of $599 and the above link lists it at $494 so I don't know if the price actually came down or that they have changed the standard package to meet a price point. Keep us posted on what you find concerning this. Not a cheap unit but it sure sounds great!

randall rosenthal
09-23-2008, 9:27 PM
i read a few posts in the previous thread. i sharpen all my curved carving tools on a cotton wheel on a bench grinder. i sharpen flat tools with a sheet of wet dry sandpaper on glass and some corrosion X as a lubricant.

Chiz Eisenhuth
09-23-2008, 9:41 PM
i read a few posts in the previous thread. i sharpen all my curved carving tools on a cotton wheel on a bench grinder. i sharpen flat tools with a sheet of wet dry sandpaper on glass and some corrosion X as a lubricant.

I'm a total 'noob' at the sharpening game so pardon the lame questions Randall;
1. Are you using abrasive compound sticks/ whose
2. Do you need a different cotton wheel for each compound? I'm thinking, yes.

I'm still mulling using the Scary Sharp method but I need to jump on something before my mulling turns into a psychological disorder.

randall rosenthal
09-23-2008, 10:02 PM
no...i use one wheel . i get the tools really sharp and keep them that way by constant touch ups. i use a very fine grit i get at the jewelry supply store. i have bars of progressively courser grits but only need them if i break an edge or buy a new tool. i have progressively finer sandpaper but almost never use flat tools. when the wheel gets really gunked up i scrape it with a rake made for that purpose while its spinning. after i use the wheel i take the convex side of the tool and run it first lightly on the side of the wheel near the outside where some abrasive has built up then further down on the clean part......gets them sharp enough for me.

Michael Hammers
09-24-2008, 10:31 AM
Hello!
Thanks for the replies. I spoke to the owner/inventor of this unit recently and he was great help. The reason there is price differences is that they are now including some of the peripherals in the new kits. Japan Woodworker has the newer kits while I think Wood Worker's supply online still has the older kit at the lower price.
All that being said, I am getting one. I am one whose time is precious and costly. I know how to sharpen and although I can get great results on edges with my oil stones I need to spend what time I do have working with a SHARP blade instead of sharpening.
I purchased a Jet sharpener last winter during the Amazon sale, which is basically a Tormek and sent it back. So I was pretty much sure I was going to get a Tormek after that experience. After seeing the new prices on the Tormek and then thinking about what it actually does I started to change my mind.
The way I see it is that no matter what you do on the Tormek you still have a radius. So it is off to the stones. A process I am trying to streamline and avoid. I also work with hand planes and chisels so the same goes for them.
I will post a few examples and my thoughts in the coming weeks.
MSH

Gord Pat
09-24-2008, 1:28 PM
Michael, just wondering , have you checked out the Lee Valle Veritas® Mk.II power sharpening system , it's somewhat similar in function...and looks like it might be a bit cheaper unit?
Never used one myself, 1" belt sander/grinder is my bag.

Phillip Bogle
09-25-2008, 4:16 AM
I bought the Grizzly knockoff of the Tormek system and I sent it back. I bought the Worksharp 3000 instead. I love the Worksharp for wood chisels (not the carving chisels) and for the electric hair clippers. I use the strop on most everything. I bought the Razor Sharp system and a bench grinder. On knives and several of my carving chisels it works great, and the $45 dollar price plus bench grinder is hard to beat. My knives are razor sharp with a mirror finish. Still I was not happy since I have turning tools to sharpen as well. I bought the Tormek system. I love it! Still not perfect for all the carving tools. I also have water stones and Diamond Hones. I started the Nora Hall training program of European Carving style. Nora Hall recommends the Koch system which she or Woodcraft sell. I have seen the system and it is interesting. My wife is cringing--think she suspects that I won't stop until I can sharpen everything known to mankind.:D I do recommend the Tormek, and the Worksharp Is good though limited and not really a good choice for carvers. You might want to check out Nora Hall and what she recommends.
That has been my experience. I hope it helps some.

Doug Bartos
11-01-2008, 6:19 PM
Phillip, Why did you send the Grizzly back? I've been thinking about buying it. The Tormek is just too expensive.

Mike Henderson
11-01-2008, 8:31 PM
You can sharpen carving tools for a lot less money than a lapsharp or a tormek. All you really need is a power honing system. And I recommend "power" because it's faster than hand stropping. Randall Rosenthal has made several posts about his system and I've mentioned the one I use, which is a leather on MDF hone. Mine is turned by my lathe but I had a student who brought in a system that was purpose built for power honing- but I don't know who made it.

But, in general, you shouldn't be grinding your carving tools very often - only when the edge is really beat up - you should mostly just hone the edge.

Perhaps Randall will post some pictures of his system. And if there's interest, I'll post pictures of mine. But my main message is "think cheap" - you don't need to spend hundreds of dollars to sharpen carving tools.

With my system, you could probably buy a mini-lathe (especially if you catch it on sale) and fit it with my honing system, and you wouldn't spend more than for a lapsharp or tormek. And you could also use it as a lathe.

Mike

[For example, here (http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65345)'s a Harbor Freight knockoff of the Jet for $200. An even cheaper one is here (http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95607) ($140). The Jet is about $375 with free shipping at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/1014I-Inch-Indexing-Mini-Lathe/dp/B000MIR9JA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1225586412&sr=8-2).]

Phillip Bogle
11-02-2008, 11:38 AM
Let me say that my comments only apply to the sharpening unit NOT the company Grizzly Industrial. Grizzly customer service was honest, fair, and very helpful in exchanging the unit for another product.

For starters: The grinding wheel needed to stay on the machine. It always fell off! When the designers copied the Tormek they did not think that there would be anything so important about how the wheel shaft was threaded. After the wheel loaded with water the wheel would unscrew by itself and fall off. The speed of the rotation was inconsistant and much too fast, about 3 times the speed of the Tormek. When I use my Tomek there is no water thrown everywhere, not so with the Grizzly. With the Grizzly you need to wear rain gear -- until the wheel fell off. The tool rest lacks the refinements of the Tormek so you guess at it with the Grizzly. The attachments were the cheeziest I have ever seen and there were no direction on how to use them. I bought the Tormek after trying a friends unit and there is no comparison. The new Tormek has some very cool attachments that allow you to do some of the new style sharpening, like the Lacer skew and the Ellworth Bowl gouge. None of the other sharpeners out there have the attachments that allow the special grinds. You will still want a high speed grind stone for edge shaping. There is a distinction between shaping and sharpening. The shaping will take forever on the Tormek style units. Sharpening on the other hand takes less than a couple of minutes. Shaping is a major regrind and usually done seldom or once only. Sharpening is as needed and takes off little steel and hones frequently. I do all my carving tools, turning tools, cabinet building tools, my wife's sewing instruments, and the dogs grooming supplies. I use the Tormek frequently, the Worksharp 3000 alot, and the Razor Sharp (the laminated paper wheels for the high speed grinder, $40.) almost daily. I also do frequent touch ups on my water stones and the leather strop.

As you may have noticed I do a wide variety of tools. I seldom use the Tormek for my carving tools. Only when I drop a tool and the edge gets damaged. I do use the honing side of the Tormek to hone the edge, but usually I use a leather belt blank and rouge. Some carving tools I use the Razor Sharp.

randall rosenthal
11-02-2008, 7:56 PM
mike....i really dont have to post a picture...its that simple....a really old two spindle standard shop grinder on a steel pedestal. a cotton 6 inch wheel....................thats it. no water, no mess......sharpens tools as sharp as possible. requires a little practice and finesse....but not much. cost me 10 bucks at a yard sale 30 years ago