What do you use for sharpening of hand tools?

[RC]

Most other threads here seem to be comparing the Tormek T-7 and Worksharp to each other, but
- Is the T3 any good? Do you need to have machine power to keep stuff sharp?
- Is using stones and the Veritas guide usable and easy for keeping chisels & plane blades sharp? Which grits would you suggest? Oil vs. water stones? Other guide systems?

Since I'm a hobbyist I don't need to sharpen blades by the boatload nor an extra 5min per blade bother me at all, but if setting up is tedious (machines?) or its hard to get the sharpening done right (stones & manual guide) it will be a no-go.

Currently I have absolutely nothing to sharpen anything but kitchen knives (diamond sharpener for them) so anything is probably a win [blink]

Axminster is having a sale on Tormek T-3's and for some time I've been eyeing the Veritas Mk.II Honing system & stones to go with it.

 

[zapdafish]

I switched to this method Paul Sellers - How to sharpen chisels with diamond stones and now my worksharp is gathering dust.  I takes less than a minute to touch up each blade before use by using the 8k grit stone and then diamond paste.

I only bring  out the worksharp if I need to remove lots of material.

 

[Kev]

I went with the T7 over T3 simply because the larger wheel creates less curve in the bevel of a chisel Also the base machine is the only cost variable, All the accessories are common.

I've tried oil stones and have also destroyed a few tools on a normal grindstone. That's why I went to a system with a proven methodology I could follow, having seemingly accurate measurement tools and repeatable/adjustable jig setups.

Generally I don't believe you "need" power to sharpen stuff if you are skilled and patient (I am neither).

If you can get a cheap T3 and the appropriate jig for chisels (and not get drawn into buying all the jigs .... And also don't was to sharpen drill bits ...) it'd probably serve you well.

I know space is an issue for you and you may be better off With a compact light unit. Sharpening can e messy ...

I read this a little while ago ...

http://www.finewoodworking.com/pages/w00003.asp

... Looked all too hard.

Kev.

 

[promhandicam]

I use a worksharp 3000 and waterstones. I had a T7 but sold it as it and bought the worksharp which for what I want to sharpen - chisels and plane irons is a much better system.

 

[Jonhilgen]

In a pinch, a belt sander.  I've sharpened some chisels so sharp they cut through paper. [embarassed]

 

[Kev]

I use a worksharp 3000 and waterstones. I had a T7 but sold it as it and bought the worksharp which for what I want to sharpen - chisels and plane irons is a much better system.

Can you describe "better" from your thinking? Can't see that from my perspective other than maybe quicker and cheaper - but not ultimate edge quality.

 

[mouppe]

I use waterstones and a Veritas mark II honing guide for all my tools. I even gave my bench grinder to a friend, but once when I wanted to change the angle on a plane blade I paid him a visit to use it.

I have Norton stones of 1000, 4000 and 8000 grit. They work very well. I also have a DMT diamond flattening plate to keep the stones flat.

I bought a cheap pine kitchen stand from IKEA to use as a sharpening station- I think it was $40- and I have a couple of granite slabs on top to place the stones on. It stands next to a sink- very useful.

That's all I have and all I need to keep everything sharp. It's super-fast and very efficient, which is important because if you are not comfortable with your sharpening process you will not do it as regularly as you need to. It's taken me over a year to get really efficient but there's no way I would change to another system now since this one works so well for me.

Another factor is cost. Once you buy the stones, the diamond plate and the honing guide you are done for a long time. It's much much cheaper than using sandpaper over the medium and long term.

 

[Alan m]

iv got a tormek (older model than t7 but still larger wheel)
it is a great system . it will easily put and edge that you can shave with (i have tried it). it is slow to set up and you have to fool with water . filling it and draining it (to keep whell balenced). i hate taking it out but love the edge it gives. i have a few sets of chisels and sharpen them all at once.
i have a dmt diamond stone for site use . it works great to just touch up an edge. a small leather strop works wonders as well .

the wood sharp looks good thow. just turn it on and shove in the blade.

 

[jacko9]

Ray,

I use Japanese water stones, I have a 700 grit, 1200 grit and a 4000 grit and they with the aid of the new Veritas Mark 11 is all I need.  I had three other sharpening aids but, the new Veritas is well engineered and overcomes all of the deficiencies of the others I have owned.

Jack

 

[MarkF]

I would suggest to start with the "Scary Sharp" method. A package of medium through extra fine wet/dry sandpaper (search out a local Auto Paint and Body Repair jobber), a section of glossy Granite floor tile or glass (I found a glass medicine cabinet shelf and it works fine), some spray adhesive and one of the inexpensive honing guides like this.   You'll need to construct an angle setting jig like this.  This video Honing Guide Modification will be helpful.
I have a Worksharp 3000 and use it to do the heavy grinding and quick touch up of my narrow blades but still use my "Scary Sharp" set up on wide blades, blades needing a camber and do the final honing on a piece of MDF charged with green rouge.  The leather WS3000 disk is too soft for me and has a tendency to round off the edge.

 

[jmbfestool]

I would suggest to start with the "Scary Sharp" method. A package of medium through extra fine wet/dry sandpaper (search out a local Auto Paint and Body Repair jobber), a piece of glass (I found a glass medicine cabinet shelf and it works fine), some spray adhesive and one of the inexpensive honing guides like this.   You'll need to construct an angle setting jig like this. 
I have a Worksharp 3000 and use it to do the heavy grinding and quick touch up of my narrow blades but still use my "Scary Sharp" set up on wide blades, blades needing a camber and do the final honing on a piece of MDF charged with green rouge.  The leather WS3000 disk is too soft for me and has a tendency to round off the edge.

Cheers for the link love the angle setting jig.

I use the veritas honing guide and a diamond stone.  I'll use a belt sander to grind it down when I need to which is rare.  I do want a worksharp but just not got round to buy one yet.  It does take ages using just a diamond stone but it's doable! I managed!

Jmb

 

[Steven in Iowa]

I use an Eclipse clone to get the angle set and square on sandpaper per the LN video.  Then I use Harrelson Stanley's side sharpening method on waterstones.  This method has allowed me to get sharper blades than I've ever had before and the edge seems to last much longer between touch-ups.

 

[Jaybolishes]

I found a barely used tormek on Craigslist a couple years ago and it is just a great sharpener to have, especially with all the jigs you can get for it.  I do  timber framing and also collect old chisels. I'm always prowling eBay for them and many come in horrible shape and the tormek is amazing at working them back to form.  I couldn't imagine grinding the back flat on anything else after using this. You can so quickly go back and forth from aggressive to fine grinding too.   And the stone will last forever it seems.  I've sharped so many slicks and large thick chisels for myself, friends and family, it's incredible how durable it is.  If you are into festool, this sharpener is for you.  You will never be disappointed you got it.  As far as ease of use, I would say that is the number one reason to get it, it's fast and easy.  The old 2000 tormek is a great machine and I see it sold for cheap all over.  Everyone wants the newest thing, but you could get the old one for half the price and it will also work flawlessly.

 

[jacko9]

I think the last poster highlighted that the kind of sharpening aid you need depends on how you use your hand tools.  I can see owning a Tormek or other power aided sharpening tool if I did timber framing or rough carpentry.  However I build furniture and cabinets and once I polished the backs and set the angle I only need to refresh my edge after severe use on very hard woods and I don't need to do this very often.  A Tormek would be another space waster in my small shop for my applications.

 

[Jaybolishes]

The leather side of the tormek along with honing compound is amazing at just what you are speaking of, but hey if you like what you got, why change.

 

[Ken Nagrod]

I use waterstones and a Veritas mark II honing guide for all my tools. I even gave my bench grinder to a friend, but once when I wanted to change the angle on a plane blade I paid him a visit to use it.

I have Norton stones of 1000, 4000 and 8000 grit. They work very well. I also have a DMT diamond flattening plate to keep the stones flat.

I bought a cheap pine kitchen stand from IKEA to use as a sharpening station- I think it was $40- and I have a couple of granite slabs on top to place the stones on. It stands next to a sink- very useful.

That's all I have and all I need to keep everything sharp. It's super-fast and very efficient, which is important because if you are not comfortable with your sharpening process you will not do it as regularly as you need to. It's taken me over a year to get really efficient but there's no way I would change to another system now since this one works so well for me.

Another factor is cost. Once you buy the stones, the diamond plate and the honing guide you are done for a long time. It's much much cheaper than using sandpaper over the medium and long term.

+1

I also have a couple of other Norton waterstones, one being the coarse and a bunch of the DMT diamond stones in various grits.  The worst tools start out with a fixing on a slow wheel bench grinder or even a hand file.

 

[joiner1970]

I just bought the worksharp 3000 and find it great . I bought some cheap sandpaper discs for 80 grits and also made a load of mdf discs instead of buying the expensive glass ones.

 

[RC]

So are sand paper grits different from stone grits?

In the videos posted above about the sand paper method go from 80 -> 400 grit and stones mentioned seem to vary between 1000-4000 grit?

Is there a difference between waterstone grits and diamond stones (for example the mentioned DMT ones go from 325-1200)?

Would something like this set combined with a Veritas honing guide be a good starter set?

 

[mouppe]

Reiska, this is just my opinion so others may well disagree.

I would not use the diamond plates as the basis for my sharpening system. I do use a diamond plate for flattening my waterstones, and I also use it for kitchen knives, but not my chisels and plane blades. I prefer the waterstones because they cut smooth and fast, and the water lubricates the cutting action. Waterstones are also preferable for more advanced sharpening techniques such as cambering the blade- if you use a diamond plate for this it is possible to dig the corner into the holes and it makes the process more difficult.

Regarding grit numbers, I don't know how a 1200 diamond stone compares to a 8000 waterstone in terms of results, but I can tell you that I use a DMT duosharp diamond plate equivalent to 220 grit to flatten my 1000 and 4000 stones. The flip side of the 220 grit (DMT refer to it as extra coarse) is 325 grit (coarse) and this is what I use to flatten my 8000 stone.

http://www.dmtsharp.com/sharpeners/bench-stones/duosharp/

If you do go down the waterstone route, buy the individual stones, not the conmbination ones. Yes, it is more expensive but they last much longer per grit so that works out the same. You also have two faces per stone so you can sharpen for longer between flattenings. (I dropped my combination stone on the floor and it split in half, so I ended up with two stones anyway but I do not recommend this!)

Lie Nielsen have two great videos on sharpening with waterstones on youtube which I highly recommend.

The Veritas honing guide is terrific, but with two drawbacks. The first regards the registration jig you attach to it to set the blade length. This is made of steel and the depth stop on it can damage the edge of your blade when you remove it from the jig. Remove this depth stop and use a marker to draw a line instead. Second, always remember to set the microbevel back to zero so you do not inadvertently but a microbevel where you don't want one when you next sharpen.

Hope this helps.

 

[hrrb]

Maybe it's just me...but I find a lot of stones to be too short to use with the Veritas Honing guide.

Reiska if you look at the picture with the honing guide you linked to there's something wrong. The brass wheel in the back of the honing guide is supposed to roll over the top of the stone or at least a surface with the same height as the stone. The guy on the picture lets the wheel roll over the edge!

Depending of the honing angle some short stones only give you a few centimeters (or inches) of movement to sharpen the iron.

I have used the Veritas guide on stones but prefer to use it on longer sheets of wet sanding paper on a thick piece of glass or flat granite stone.

I recently bought the Worksharp 3000 on sale at Rutlands.co.uk (actually I believe it's still on sale) and I haven't regretted it one single second. It is much faster than using the honing guide on paper or stone and it is absolutely fool proof! I'm not a pro and I get very sharp chisels and plane irons.

Like Joiner1970 I've also cut some MDF disks and glued fine grid paper on it...much cheaper than the original disks and abrasives. And I made a jig so I can use my Veritas honing guide on the top of the WS3000.

Kind regards
Henrik