Card Scrapers

[Bill Yacey]

By stock, I meant a piece of material that other scrapers can be cut out from. The pieces I have bought are about 1/16" thick, and about 3 X 6".

https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop...r?item=97K5002

https://www.lie-nielsen.com/products...pers&node=4181

I don't see any advantage to using anything thicker than this, unless you are making a scraper plane.
Everything at Stewmac seems over-priced to me. Many in the violin making community purchase blue spring steel stock from McMaster-Carr and make their scrapers from that.

If you're primarily doing flat surfaces, you might want to consider these:
https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop...iABEgJ3_PD_BwE

https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop...e?item=05P2950

https://www.lie-nielsen.com/products...anes&node=4075

I have both the large Veritas Scraper plane and the Lie Nielsen 212; both are fine tools and work excellent.

I bought the large scraper plane for a family heirloom project, a white oak pedestal table that someone scraped all the tabletop surface varnish off at one time. Some of the lamination joins need fixing before I refinish it, and I thought the scraper plane would be ideal for getting the surface ready for refinishing.

[John K Jordan]

By stock, I meant a piece of material that other scrapers can be cut out from. The pieces I have bought are about 1/16" thick, and about 3 X 6".

[URL]https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/tools/hand-tools/scrapers/3267

I don't see any advantage to using anything thicker than this, unless you are making a scraper plane.
Everything at Stewmac seems over-priced to me. Many in the violin making community purchase blue spring steel stock from McMaster-Carr and make their scrapers from that.
...

Thanks. BTW, both you linked to say they are about 1/32 thick. I have a couple of the Lie-Nielsen and they are good quality.

I too think the StewMac scrapers are over-priced, although the way they machine the dished portion at the middle of the scraper on both sides is great and makes it quite comfortable to grip and control with one hand and makes it easier to use for longer times, especially for older hands. (the dark area is the dished portion, probably made with some type of ball mill on a CNC) The hole is nice too.

SCRAPERS_StewMac_IMG_20171019_081858_098.jpg

(I am slowly grinding on the one on the right, probably give it shallow curves on the ends.)

After using these for a while I do like the 1/8" thickness as a hand scraper. It is sharpened differently than thin card scraper and there is no burr, either from the grinder or a burnisher. I use an extra fine diamond hone to remove any grinder burr. It works surprisingly well for a rigid hand scraper, better than a card scraper with burr in some instances, not as well in others - I often try several scrapers on certain grain and curvatures to find what works the best. I think part of what makes the thick scraper work so well is the very slight concave edge from the bench grinder. (I use a 600 grit CBN wheel for sharpening.)

I called and asked what kind of steel they use and all the guy would say was "tool steel."

JKJ

[Bill Yacey]

There are a few different ways of sharpening a scraper; some just put a flat 90 degree edge on the scraper, some put a hook on the 90 degree edge; others sharpen to a 30 or 45 degree bevel, and then some others take it a step further and turn a hook on the edge. All can work well, as long as they are making shavings and not crumbly sawdust.

The most important thing when grinding a scraper is to not overheat the steel, otherwise you remove the hardness. a wet, slow speed grinding wheel is probably the best choice, followed by finishing off on a water stone, by hand. You want a razor sharp edge in any case, before you turn the hook.

[lowell holmes]

I will straighten the edge on a diamond hone and turn the curl with a triangular hone.
See Lee Valley web site.

[Jim Becker]

The StewMac scrapers are just an alternative design that has advantages in some situations since they do not have to have pressure applied for that slight bend needed to fully utilize a more traditional thin scraper. And as John noted, the machined finger holds are a very nice feature. They are absolutely premium priced and one could make similar (minus the finger recesses) if they have the ability to cut thicker steel cleanly and then dressing the edges at a grinder with the edge perpendicular to the wheel.

[Derek Cohen]

Just to amplify the point that these thick ("Stewmac") scrapers are easy to make oneself, the one I posted here at the beginning of this thread was, in fact, made from the rear of a 3/16" thick plane blade. I've made a few this way. As long as the steel is hard - not all plane blade are hardened throughout - then you could be good to go.



The secret is in the sharpening ...

Create a fine hollow grind with wire edges using (in my case) a CBN wheel ...







Think of the thick scraper blade as the jack plane. Then the more traditional cabinet scraper is the smoother ...



Gossamer shavings cleaning up the join in a book-matched panel ...




I've made many cabinet scrapers from old panel saw blades. One can also get floor scrapers in hardware stores. Sandvik, Lie Nielsen and Lee Valley all sell excellent versions.


Tutorial on sharpening cabinet scrapers: http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Woodwor...29Scraper.html

Regards from Perth

Derek

[andy bessette]

...Tutorial on sharpening cabinet scrapers: http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Woodwor...29Scraper.html
...

Thanks for posting that.

[Randall J Cox]

I've had one for many years, with a burnishing tool also. Never used it. Been playing at woodworking for over 35 years, guess its time to dig them out and learn to use. Its been on my "woodworking to do" list for a while - "learn to use card scraper". This column has inspired me!! Thanks. Randy

[John Jardin]

Derek,
Do you strike a burr on your thick scraper or the StuMac scraper?
My first attempt at using the StuMac scraper with no burr, yielded some nice shavings.

fullsizeoutput_85d.jpg

[Jim Becker]

Derek,
Do you strike a burr on your thick scraper or the StuMac scraper?
My first attempt at using the StuMac scraper with no burr, yielded some nice shavings.

fullsizeoutput_85d.jpg

The process is different for these thick scrapers. The burr comes from hollow grinding the edge, rather than drawing a burr after filing with a thin scraper.