Card scraper

[Darren Almeida]

I have been (slowly) learning to use hand tools. I finally learned to sharpen a card scraper today. Yes, pretty basic for some (ok, most) of you on here, but hey, one step forward for me. This was the first time that I used a scraper to make shavings and not sawdust. It was a total a-ha moment and I had to take some pictures to share. I have to say it was awesome to see a card scraper work the way it is supposed to work. My immediate impression was "wow, those guys hundreds of years ago really knew what they were doing."

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I used the process in Mike Pekovich's "The Why and How of Woodworking" book. This one skill alone is worth the $24 I paid for the hardcover on Amazon.

[David Eisenhauer]

Nice Darren. I got some good ideas on the subject from a Mike P You Tube video. I was able to get an edge previous to watching his video, but am now able to get the edge more consistently and quicker as well. I have seen other stuff of his over the last couple of years and I like what he says/does.

[Dan Schocke]

I My immediate impression was "wow, those guys hundreds of years ago really knew what they were doing."

I'm glad I'm not the only one. Having grown up in the '70s and '80s, all I ever heard about was how difficult things were to do with hand tools. Woodworking books and magazines were mostly filled with ways of using power tools and jigs to get the job done. Hand tools were for kids (before they could be trusted with the real thing, power tools) or that crazy guy on PBS that walked through town with an axe over his shoulder....

Then you use a well-tuned plane or handsaw on something like walnut or mahogany (or even cherry or poplar) and wonder why anyone ever decided that power tools were somehow better. Of course, woods like hard maple and hickory eventually set the complete context and bring you back down to earth a bit. There is wisdom in both crowds, and it's a great feeling when you discover it .

--Dan

[Bob Glenn]

Yes, the old guys really knew what they were doing. The card scraper is a small miracle IMO.

[Kevin Smira]

I still can’t sharpen a card scraper...might just spend one afternoon in the shop learning...

[Edwin Santos]

I still can’t sharpen a card scraper...might just spend one afternoon in the shop learning...

Kevin, I found it a bit challenging also. But the William Ng video on card scraper prep cleared it up for me. His method works beautifully, at least for me. You can find the video on YouTube.

Edwin

[David Eisenhauer]

Kevin, Mike Pekovich also has a video on You Tube that demonstrates his process as well. Recommended along with William Ng's.

[Tony Zaffuto]

OK, you bunch of pups, what defines an old guy?

[Bob Leistner]

I think one of the more important things to sharpening a scraper is to stone the whole scraper. As in both sides completely flat. Once you do that it is alot easier to sharpen the scraper and it stays sharper a little longer. For some reason, I never see that mentioned and yet it needs to be flat if you ever expect the edge to be 90 degrees to the faces. Just like four squaring a board .

[John K Jordan]

Of interest may be an article in Dec '18 Fine Woodworking magizine. Starting on page 20 Peter Galbert shows how he sharpens curved scrapers. The principle is the same for flat scrapers.

I've been using both flat and curved scrapers on my woodturnings for a bunch of years and his article puts good words on some of the things I've found effective, for example the importance of keeping the edge precisely 90-deg to the flat sides. I shape the curves on a 1" belt sander before smoothing on a 600 grit CBN wheel, flattening with a file and/or diamond hone, and burnishing with carbide. I put curves all the way around so I can fit the curve to the work and use the same scraper in different ways. (I keep a dozen or so, most shaped differently, some duplicates.)

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JKJ

[bill epstein]

I just watched the William Ng video and I have no doubt the gentlemen gets great results and does fine work but it's sooo OCD.

My Brit friends call the scraper a "ticketer" because the way they (and I) prepare the card for a fresh edge is to lay the card flat on the bench, put a drop of oil on the burnisher and run it flat back and forth making a tick-tick sound as the burnisher hits the surface of the bench after each pass. The dull burr is now gone. Do that 3 or 4 times. Now move the card so it sticks out from the bench a half inch and push the burnisher at about 3 o 4 degrees angle, softly, 2 or 3 passes. The card is horizontal, the burnisher at about 93 degrees vertical. What Ng does to burnish is just as valid.

The whole process takes about 2 minutes and the scraper is ready to go.

I vary the angle and pressure just a bit for each of the 4 edges which gives me 3 or 4 different "grits".

You can do this over and over until finally it becomes necessary to stone the card, vertically on edge then horizontally to square and smooth. Now burnish it again.

I take issue with burnishing the burnish the scraper or a plane imparts to the surface, as the video shows done with a rag. I learned long ago that it's necessary to sand the scraped surface with 220 grit Garnet paper to re-open the pores of the wood to accept a finish. That may not be true with softwoods but certainly is for hard, especially scraped burls and wild grain.

The Internet, mis-information and unnecessary anguish over incidentals at your fingertips.

[Richard Jones]

.......My Brit friends call the scraper a "ticketer" because the way they (and I) prepare the card for a fresh edge is to lay the card flat on the bench, put a drop of oil on the burnisher and run it flat back and forth making a tick-tick sound as the burnisher hits the surface of the bench after each pass.......

Actually, its called a ticketer because the sound it makes is like some sort of British ticket machine that was used of old..............

I take issue with burnishing the burnish the scraper or a plane imparts to the surface, as the video shows done with a rag. I learned long ago that it's necessary to sand the scraped surface with 220 grit Garnet paper to re-open the pores of the wood to accept a finish. That may not be true with softwoods but certainly is for hard, especially scraped burls and wild grain.

Gonna have to disagree with this, too.

The Internet, mis-information and unnecessary anguish over incidentals at your fingertips.

One doesn't have to look far to know this is true.

[Rob Luter]

I need to keep practicing. I can never seem to achieve the level of sharpness I see on the instructional videos.

[bridger berdel]

OK, you bunch of pups, what defines an old guy?

Older than me.


Bridger, rapidly approaching old guy status....

[Richard Jones]

I'm not an expert, but I have done lots of research and experimentation and here are several things that have helped me:

Very little pressure on the burnisher. The burr is going to be a lot smaller than you think it should be.
It's a cutting tool, it doesn't really 'scrape'. Sharpen it like you were going to sharpen a chisel, meaning, don't stop at 400 grit..........I finish up at 5k prior to turning the burr. Maybe overkill, but works for me.
Try holding the scraper at a more vertical angle to begin with. I was surprised that I didn't have to lay it down so flat. It does take some technique and strength.
I can usually get 2-3 re-turnings of the burr, but the 3rd is marginal. Then, start over. It really isn't that hard, you just have to practice to get good results.

I also like Mike Pekovich's video, and for another, a but more minimalistic, try this one from Elia Bizzarri. You certainly can't argue with the results or his workmanship. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMuaGqSMjIs&t=62s