Hand tools for $100 #4: Sharpening for Cheapskates
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- Опубликовано: 19 апр 2017
- More videos and exclusive content: / rexkrueger
Struggling with sharpening? Thinking of spending big money on some gizmo? Don’t. Sharpening is both cheap and easy. In this video, I’ll show you how to get started with common abrasive paper and a cheap honing guide. Once you’ve outgrown the sandpaper method (and it won’t take long) you can move on to cheap, durable oil stones. I’ll also show you how to free-hand sharpen and get rid of the silly jigs and guides forever. 
Хобби
I can take a moderately dull knife or chisel and, in only a few moments using sandpaper, oil stones, or diamond plate, I can turn it into a lump of steel that won't cut butter.
Have you tried a jig? They're a great way to get started.
Heat it. Remember “like a hot knife through butter?”
Hopefully you didn't spend hours accomplishing it like I did.
@@RexKrueger I have a whetstone that I inherited with my ship, its face is concave, how do I fix that?
@@svchineeljunk-riggedschoon4038 fill the valley with bondo and beach sand. Trust me.
Rex you are so right. Perhaps it's time to turn our back on those tools that promise instant gratification (or instant disappointment) and sit down and learn a new skill in a calm and thoughtful way. Thank you.
hi rex i just want to thank you! i am a 20 year old carpenter and for years now i have been making some truly amazing projects with some sharp but not sharp enough chisels/planes i have always struggled to sharpen them, i was so focused on getting that perfect 20 degre angle and i think that was were i was going wrong, and as soon as i saw this video i ran into my shop and attempted to sharpen my tools using this technique, and im amazed i managed to sharpen them razer sharp on my first attempt, thank you !!!!!!!
Excellent explanation of plane iron maintenence. I bought a set of soft, medium, hard, and extra hard Arkansas Stones for my first sharpening system. I was in 8th Grade. Over the years I learned how to maintain the flatness of my hand sharpening system. Accumulating stones Wow! "Ain't it the truth?" I have a dedicated tool box that has so many stones in it it is very difficult pickup. It must weigh at least 200lbs. I have been doing woodworking with hand tools since elementary school in the 1950's. I'm still learning.
LOL! We're both "Of an age". The way I put it is, "They used to call me 'Young& Foolish'. Now they just don't call me 'Young' anymore".
Good video. You might let viewers know that the second bevel you ground is commonly called a microbevel. In addition to being quicker to sharpen, it removes less material from the tool iron since you only work with the microlevel. I use almost nothing but sand paper, up to 10,000 grit on a scrap (but flattened) piece of granite. My final strop grit is a .5 micron diamond paste on leather or Flexcut Yellow Compound (.6 micron and non-toxic to kids and pets). Also good to mention that the grits used in sand paper (there are 2 types, US and Euro) and the grits sizes for waterstones, Arkansas stones, Aluminum, Ceramic and diamond plate are all different. A 1200 grit USA sandpaper is around a 9 micron grit size while a a DMT x-fine Diamond stone is also around 9. The Shapton 4000 grit waterstone is a 3.6 micron stone while the Norton 4000 grit is 3 microns and the Lee Valley is 2 microns. As a result, when I go to fine grit papers on Amazon, I look at the particle size as opposed to grit. Not a big deal when the paper comes from AutoZone or Lowes but as the skill level increases and need for finer edges continues to go up, it can make a noticable difference.
Rick Price ....I think you are a pain in the ass.
What I love about this video is it gives you a starting point. I have been spinning my wheels buying water stones, oil stones and diamond hones in all the wrong ways for years and struggle to get a sharp edge. This method will get you where you need to be at minimal cost. And for a glass plate I just took a shelf out of the refrigerator. To keep the wife from know what was up I cleaned and rearranged everything in the fridge so she would not even notice the missing shelf. Worked like a charm.
I found this all by myself, and learning from others, but I like the way you put this together, easy to follow and very well presented and explained! Congrats again!
Having declared my dissatisfaction with this sharpener last night ruclips.net/user/postUgkxDcr-y2Pf6xdnrFHrSP7dl9kpKaCozcSQ I thought about the problem some more. It occurred to me that I might be undoing each attempt at achieving a sharp edge by the repeated attempts. So, I tried to clean up the unsatisfactory result by honing with only positions 3 and 4.Miracle!! A really nicely sharpened chef's knife, more than enough to handle my needs. Admittedly, it did not reach professionally sharpened razor-fineness, but it is now significantly sharper than it was. A bout of breaking down carrots convinced me. So, major apologies to the manufacturer, Amazon, and all happy and potential owners! Follow the directions: don't buy it if you have ceramic blades; and don't overwork your knife blade.
I can't tell if you are best at being friendly, teaching, or wood working. You are so awesome. I always thought that sharpening was so tough.
I bought one of those fancy waterstone grinders a few years ago when I had the money and was equipping my workshop. I now only tend to use it for grinding the bevel and I would say the main advantage is its quick and easy if you have a damaged blade. I still do the final hone on a flat waterstone or oilstone as its probably just as quick and easy. Great video.
this is a really good video, thanks. clear and through explinations and demonstrations,.nicely done.
i agree that the sandpaper on glass (scary sharp) method is probably the best for begenners, but isnt the most echonomical in the long run,.as you mention. for grinding in the bevel and especially flattining the back, something that stays flat is a real advantage, so i like scary sharp or diamond stones for this stage.
I do agree that sharpening can and should be simple and cheap to start out with, but a few things i would like to add for those wanting to get a bit more in depth:
*its verry important to flatten the backs of your chisles and plane irons as a first step in sharpening, otherwise your nicely honed bevel wont be meeting a nicely honed surface on the back.
*the reason for a more accute bevel is because you can acheve a keener although less durable edge, for some woods this really helps your finish
*its a good idea to crown your smoothing plane blades slightly to avoid plane tracks
*the advantage of waterstones vs oilstones is mainly they cut faster, each stone is more flexable in the finishes it can acheve with varrying presure, and they are avalable in much finer grits than oilstones.
i generally recomend waterstones because i think they have allot of advantages over oilstones. a "fine" oilstone is generally between 350-400 grit, this should really be considered a coarse stone. a "finishing" waterstone is atleast 3000 grit (different grading system but similar enough in this range) and usually closer to 5-8k. generally the only option for an equivelent oilstone is a quality translucent or black hard arkansas, which are getting harder to find, and generally fetch a higher price than a good japanese finishing stone, which really proforms better.
you can get a good combo waterstone for $55 (the imanishi combo stone is good) and it will outproform any oilstone combination that i have seen in both speed and finish, and i have some verry nice vintage translucent arkansas stones that are essentially flawless and extremely fine. you are correct that oilstones tend not to wear as much or at all, esp at the finer grits, but its a tradeoff for the proformance i think is worth it.
Great tutorial for a basic sharpening methods. It's more than enough to start. Fantastic job also with video editing.
Thanks for the complements! I'm glad you like the editing. Now. I'm working on better lighting.
Made my own whetstones with my angle grinder, a $15 diamond disc, and free rocks from my local beach. Just cut them flat and rub it on another cut flat rock until smooth. Works great on chisels, knives, and axes
Demon Axc : Sharpening a blade is really just rubbing a piece of steel on a rock. The rest is all bells and whistles.
@@censusgary I agree. It's just more fun to make you're own at least i know the quality is good
Demon Axc at least you know it wasn’t made by slave labor in a dictatorship...
What a great tutorial! It makes perfect sense, and doesn't contradict any of the other sharpening videos I have been watching. It just takes some of the nitanoid detail that I agree, is probably just nonsense. Thanks for the simple explanation.
Thank you. You have just saved an old glass topped weighing scale from going in the bin.
Very well done Rex. Very greatful to you for providing such great content. Looking forward to seeing more of your work. God Bless.
Rex, you did it, demistafy a hard to master skill. Thank you.
James Smith My pleasure!
I started out using Japanese water stones, but it didn't take long before I switched to the glass/sandpaper method (scary sharp), going up to 2000 grit paper. I found this gives me the best edge. Still using it today. Love it.
Same
I just found your channel, I really like it. I've been a power tool guy for many years then a few years back I caught the hand tool bug. I have been slowly been collecting more and more hand tools from the second hand store and I also inherited my great grandfather's hand tools. This gives me great joy using them. I have been making a series of videos using timberframing techniques to make a squeeze chute for Texas longhorn cattle. You have greatly simplified the sharpening process. I just like your style. Thank you! I hope your finger is feeling better too. Take care
Great explaination. I've been sharpening chisels for years. I started with the plate glass and sandpaper method.
I would lock my wrists and elbows to maintain the perfect bevel angle. Your drawing of the clearance behind the edge really clicked for me.
Now I can unlock my hands and hone more naturally.
Keep up the good work.
Sharpening stones and honing guides I have had for a number of years, and always managed to grind and hone a nice sharp blade.
Thanks for showing me the right way round to fit the blade into my plane, I always had the bevel on top 🙄, no wonder I failed at planing flat surfaces.
You are literally the reason that I got into woodworking. Now teach me how to build an over the top extravagant tree house. Thanks in advance.
I like the tip about the appleseed bevel on the plane iron. There is a reason swordsmiths use this for a tough edge... ahem. I also personally didn't have access to leather so I used some heavy denim for my strop. Worked well for me anyway.
Best video I've seen on hand sharpening - I've made a 30-degree jig, which I use all the time. Sharpening really is as easy and as uncomplicated as Rex shows you.
Excellent. Thank you for sharing and helping us through the unknown...
I've watched a TON of videos about sharpening over the last few years, and I have to say, this is probably the best one. You explain the theory of sharpening, you explain how clearance works and how the bevel angle isn't that important on bevel-down planes, and you demistify all the supposed secrets of sharpening. Very scientific video in my opinion, which makes it great. Even if I don't agree that much with the "change the iron angle as you sharpen" thing (not because it doesn't work, but because I find it hard for beginners to do that instead of just keeping the angle), I have to say this is the best video about sharpening I've ever seen, so thank you very much for that :)
My pleasure! Glad you like it!
"That coffee table you had when you were really in to Duran Duran."
That is **really** specific.
AND accurate
This is an excellent video Rex. Thank you!
Very clear explanations. Great job.
great video. I have found that Auto wax rubbing compound works really well for stropping as well.
Your skillful presentation and factual grasp is impressive. You condense years of knowledge and experience into rich minutes. Thank you.
Granite countertop is also a great flat surface, you can get the cut outs from sinks from any granite countertop production company. I pulled 200 lbs worth out of their dumpster.
Richard Solomon true. Polished granite tiles work as well
@@Sadowsky46 they are easy to break if you aren't careful, the thing I like about free countertop cutouts, is you can easily turn it into a table top for all your lapping and sharpening needs.
My wife didn't take kindly to sandpaper glued to our kitchen worktops, but you are right.
Nice video, since I'm still pretty new to woodworking, this sharpening video has definitely helped
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. You have made me look at how I was doing things, and how complicated 'and' expensive they had become.
your Channel is going ti grow a lot, you reason smartly.
thank you this was great. I've been wanting to hone my chisels and planes but have been lazy and this vid really helps!!!
I'm glad you liked it. Sharpening isn't that tough. Just keep at it until you get what you want!
Your introductions always makes my day
Thank you!
Best sharpening video I've seen!! Great job thank you!!
i just happened upon your channel. I think you do an EXCELLENT job here. Very easy to follow along and you go into depth without all the mumbo jombo.
Benjamin DeBellis That's great! getting to the point and skipping the BS is my goal here. thanks a lot!
This helped me so much learn the basics of sharpening. I ended up getting a combo norton india stone. I need to find a piece of sturdy glass for some sandpaper for the fine grit. I a fine grit oil stone. I sharpened a chisel today that was just a frustrating piece of steel and it pared down a piece of wood like I was cutting butter on a summer day. I really appreciate you making these videos!
My pleasure. Sharpening is frustrating until it clicks and then you're good for the rest of your life.
I use a $1 dual-grit whetstone from Dollar Tree to sharpen my planes and chisels. Works just fine.
I have a WorkSharp for the Kitchen AND now for my work shop and love them both! I’m sucky at sharpening, gave up and just bought good tools to sharpen... I have a slow speed grinder also (not a water cooled), have not used it at all... my expensive gizmo solved my problem :-)
You're god damn right. I can get chisels, knives, plane irons, razor sharp in a few minutes using two old india stones that belonged to my dad, and are dished all to hell from nearly 60 years of use.
Is the bevel on my chisel 24.5 degrees? Buggered if I know! But they cut through wood like butter. I learned the old fashioned way from my dad, and it served me well.
Great video. Love the series. Keep up the good work.
Alton Brown esque shots, great stuff. Love it
Great videos! I’m not a total newbie but I always learn or am reminded of something. Additionally the videos are very well done and entertaining.
Really glad you liked it! I'm going for informative and fun, so I guess mission accomplished!
I've really been enjoying your work. Very informative but in an approachable and entertaining style. This was the best video yet, I thought. You took a very confusing and decisive subject and boiled it down to its core principles very effectively. The animation was absolutely AMAZING! Thinking I'm going to be a donator. Work like this needs to be supported. Thanks for the effort.
My pleasure! Really glad you found it useful!
I've learnt more in these 4 videos about planes, chisels and sharping than in my whole 53 years. Not that I'm a woodworker but me Da was a Joiner (old school with hand braces and old wooden planes etc though he did progress to the Stanleys etc, my Bro has most of his old tools, must go get them!). I did some basic woodwork at school for a couple of years and even built a guitar (of Lowden design, coached by an ex-Lowden luthier, see Lagan Luthier School) a few years ago! Hope there's more videos in the future. Superb!
Man, what high praise! Thanks so much for your kind words and taking the time to write. I bet your dad knew a lot of things I'd really want to know. Here's to his memory!
Like your idea of keeping a small piece of sandpaper near the edge. I always rolled the honing guide wheel on the sandpaper which wore many flat spots on the wheel and was surprised it happened. The wheel is not hard and I never expected wear just from rolling on fine grits.
3:47 Duran Duran is the bomb. Now you've got "Girls On Film" stuck in my head.
If there were a block of wood next to your stones the same height as the stones you could continue to use your honing guide working diagonally across the stone.
Really enjoying your videos .... instead of just showing .... you're doing a great job of transferring knowledge.
Kreg layout tool - wouldn't be without one (although I was for years)! Very versatile for so many tasks. Don't have one? Get one!
thanks for the intimate detail - i see the alure of the world of wood working
Still got my original Indian oilstone from 33 years ago which I've had to re-flatten once. Used on all my planes chisels and knives etc which are always shaving-sharp. It grinds and hones. I strop on my left hand.
Excellent job. Thanks for sharing your experience. 👍🏼
Your philosophy for finding good tools at a reasonable price also applies to sandpaper. I have found all the sandpaper I need at flea market, garage sales, and estate sales for next to nothing. Another good video. Thanks
Tony Lenge That's a great point and something I haven't mentioned a lot. I buy a lot of consumables at estate sales, etc. Even things like mineral spirits can be had cheaply.
I use sandpaper and the strop on a piece of glass and can shave with it and get a wood shaving you can see through with my #5. I restrop the iron to keep the edge as I'm working. Great video.
Very good introduction to sharpening, the curse for the apprentice who had to learn to sharpen, freehand, running. The 25° bevel and the 30° honing bevel were the angles that Stanley and later Record advocated as the correct angles but as we did it freehand and normally in a rush with the foreman breathing down your neck, the angles were not strictly adhered too. We did not use protractors in the 1950' and 1960's. I was always told and still do, place the 25° bevel on the oilstone and raise the iron until the oil oozed out under the edge, to the front and that was the honing angle. It works and probably has for centuries. We ground the 25° angle on a grindstone or something near it.
That is the best tip I've found after hours researching sharpening on the internet. Would this tip work for gouges too?
@@BigHenFor Gouges are a special kind of frustrating creature... Straight-edges on bevels work really well with the "until oil oozes" trick... BUT those that have a curve or are concave (as gouges are wont to be shaped at least occasionally) the applied surface to the stone isn't large enough to really push any oil around...
They can still be "hand sharpened" in a couple of methods...
1. Either find or carve an approximately similar concave shaped utensil and stick abrasive (like wet'n'dry paper) to the appropriate curve.
I've found that bamboo segments or river reed (basically Bamboo grown natively here in the States) work pretty well. You don't need many, but the particular choice for collecting a few very close shape to start is kind of important. Just hack the thing down and at home (at your relative leisure) saw out a segment and then cut it length-wise in half. Each segment is "walled off" from the others, so there's a little carving to be done and smoothing before you can lay the paper inside... You'd be well advised to go ahead and really sand a decent finish to the outside as well, so glue will stick... AND about any good spray adhesive will do the job. I like to keep around a few different sizes for just the occasion there's a curved utensil that needs abrasive shaping, and I can usually do a pretty damn decent job with the river-reed improv'...
2. Similar to the first option, only you usually end up cutting a piece of tubing or pipe for a "guide jig" to use on a power grinder... Remember to be gentle, and it's wise to test the surface to surface "mating" between the gouge and the stone BEFORE you start the grinder... NO sense in grinding away a bunch of material before you're fairly confident it's the right thing to do...
3. A Dremel tool can be had for a reasonable price, AND of all the over-bearing marketing doo-dads out there for sharpening... You will get a LOT MORE versatility and use out of the humble Dremel (or similar rotary "hobby tool") than about any of them.
I'm not a fan of using power tools to sharpen anything. Frankly, power equals speed, and speed equals HEAT... Heat is BAD on steel, as it destroys the temper...
BUT in a pinch and no better solutions, I'm certainly not going to bash a man who just wants the g** d*mn thing to work! SO here's a couple tips...
1. Take your time. Power tools will get you into trouble quickly... AND a regular pause to touch the utensil you're sharpening will give you feedback about how quickly that particular blade will heat up... If it's uncomfortable to touch with a finger, take a break and cool it...
*THE TRUTH* is most of the time, steel won't start "breaking temper" until its around 400F (nothing off the top of my head, for C)... BUT the easy way to tell is that it's losing temper ANY time the metal CHANGES COLOR, and it will literally Turn BLUE first...
BUT if you just remember to stop and douse (with a large-ish container of water) the thing to cool it any time it gets uncomfortable (no, don't burn yourself... I really mean "uncomfortable") you probably won't have any problems with temper.
ANGER on the other hand... well... a therapist will help you better than me.
2. Electricity and water don't mix... SO PLEASE do NOT go trying to sharpen the damn thing in a big bucket or pond or swimming pool of water just to keep it cool. That's not a good idea. It might seem good, but you're even better off just raking an old file over it and calling it a day...
3. Lower speed settings (and variable speed IS GENIUS) will do better work than higher as long as they're actually doing work.
4. FINALLY, if you DO go with the power tool, let the TOOL do the work. Even a Dremel is a well engineered piece of equipment and those stones don't have to look like much to do a good job removing metal... which, at the end of the day, is really ALL sharpening is about.
The only real trick to gouges is getting the edge EVEN. ;o)
I learned a long time ago that if you put 11 people in a room and each demonstrates their go to method for getting a super sharp edge, you’d see 11 reasonable methods to get the job done. Thanks for number 12! I just discovered your site and enjoy your way of describing and explaining detail.
Thanks so much! There are PLENTY of great ways to sharpen. Mine is simple and cheap, but hardly the only game in town.
Excellent video! I've done a fair bit of woodworking, but almost none with handtools. That's what I really want to start learning more. I'm really glad I found your channel. I've tried sharpening a set of chisels a couple of times and had a wide degree of success. I haven't tried it with the two different bevels though. I know my weekend plans!
Good luck and don't get discouraged! It takes a little while.
@@RexKrueger thanks!
I'm soo glad I found this video. I may finally get some sharp chisels. Thank you.
You'll do great. I'm sure of it.
Lots of options. I’m cheap so I use sandpaper. Thanks.
I like ur videos. you motivate me to get out in my shop
I have been sharpening almost everything by hand for 41 years. I started when I was 6. My arms are bald from testing what I sharpen. I would share how I do it but don't feel like writing a book. I find people lack patience and get started on the wrong path. I carve wood and use a lathe and I keep my tools razor sharp. Knives are easy once you learn. I do make money sharpening knives for people. I don't use a grinder for anything. My grandpa's files work great. I learned very young because I was stuck cleaning all the fish my family caught.
Best sharpening guide I've seen yet.
best tutorial and explanation i have seen so far.
I do really like your whole presentation style and from those I've watched they are factually accurate as well. Keep them coming please :) Another type of stone used for the final stages of sharpening is slate. It is often used by those who use old style cut-throat razors. I've picked up a fair few really cheaply (£1-£2) at car-boot sales here in the UK although they do tend to be rather dished it doesn't take much to get them flat again.
I've never even heard of slate sharpening stones before! That's fascinating. I'll keep my eye out for some. Thanks for the tip/
Another nice thing about the slate stones is that they can often be found in widths greater than 2". Also found this video that might be of interest to 'financially challenged' woodworkers like myself - ruclips.net/video/H1iOIMWYUMI/видео.html
Yes it is because folk are selling stuff and each item must have edge real or perceived and Rex be thankful they are because that’s how we get the good or cheap stuff we want or need. Remember everything in the shop/store is their because some smart ass sold it in!!
I do love all work a rounds for little money it’s not my thing , may become so soon, but I would always choose the ‘new exciting thingy’ rather than glass and sticky stuff and bits of paper. Just me and one or two others.
This video did take the fear out of the sharpening thing for me, you were right in as much as I had made it into rocket science. The tip to run a marker over the end to show your progression is brilliant!!
This burr thing I never knew it was my friend I always thought it was a sign my technique was wrong! Big relief Rex.
I really am getting to love the way you speak and present your concepts, I also love very much that your ideas word etc stay consistent throughout your videos, you don’t waiver amazing how many do Rex.
Thanks
Bob
England
Regards from Puebla, México. Thanks for your videos.
Really enjoying these. Well made, great presentation, very wachable.
i meant watchable!
Great guide! Thank you.
On the bevel angle: Making the edge too thin (with loads of clearance) could contribute to chatter if the iron is flexing in the cut.
Lol I just sharpened my only plane iron in my garage to like really sharp in like 15 minutes this stuff is awesome
Glad it worked out for you!
I recently changed floor in my kitchen and realized that the scrap cut offs from floor tiles that go at the edge can be used as strops for polishing edges.
The floor I bought has a thin layer of cork at the bottom which makes it similar to leather and the tiles are nearly 10 mm thick.
If you want to be really cheap, you can just order free samples and have a few strops for free.
I have used one piece of a tile for a few weeks now and I can't see any difference in results compared to my leather strop.
Maybe it will wear out faster but it's basically free.
600grit paper is surprising versatile: as it wears it becomes more like 1200grit, so you can use it instead of finer paper. For coarse grit, the very, very cheap diamond plates work very well and their coarseness is an advantage. A decent, inexpensive combination oilstone is probably a better, cheaper, longer lasting, simpler, cleaner option than papers though (e.g. Dekton/Draper/Faithfull/Stanley 8" combination stone for about £5 - go for name brand, really cheap stones don't work in my experience, too coarse or too soft). Yes freehand - learn this useful skill. :)
I've found it not so difficult to sharpen without a guide as long as, like you said, keep the pressure even and in check
i thought i had missed something, or that everone was MAGIC. I couldn't do it by hand and keep my hand perfectly straight without a bit of rocking... when in fact its necessary for clearance ( whew! ) glad to know this... it was the bane of my existence for a quick moment lol. i shall resume, oh and thnx Rex.
Anytime. I also just did an updated version of this video. It's better and shorter.
One little point to make: if you established a burr and you flipped it over back to the bevel side once, than it's a way to go just to make edge leading motions with very light pressure. Than you can avoid secondary burr and angle decrease in microscopic level witch makes the edge prone to roll over. Than honing on leather or polishing on a buffer is an option of course.
I thank you for the make of the wooden mallets
Glad you liked it!
At school, 60 yearsa ago, we were expected to sharpen freehand from the beginning. I went on to sciences and maths in the final years of high school, and never really used that knowledge. In particular, I didn't remember the angles.
The only strop I ever saw was a leather strap used to sharpen knives and cut-throat razors.
Love your style. Good content. Subscribed.
Best video I've seen on sharpening.
I got my combination oil stone off eBay it was hardly used and had the original box and receipt from 1957....it cost £15 shipped but I'd only ever buy an old oil stone as that's what I learnt to sharpen on in college, I found found a matching medium grit one again boxed just for the kitchen at the same price but I'm looking for a fine and course for my main set so my combination stone can live in the kitchen
"call it a sharpie" lolllll. I love your videos
Thank you!
thank you you have a smart dad !!!! how can you tell what is fine side coarse side on a stone is there a way to tell grit size of a stone
awesome ! sharpening things has always been a bugbear. not anymore - thanks !
I use Tormek for turning tools. Its accurate and fast for tools that are a nightmare by hand. Can also do planner blades. For chisels and planes water stones are fast cutting and not to hard to master by hand. Sticking paper to glass is a pain imo. But yes if you are on a very tight budget paper is the way to go.
I'm liking your channel. I was very impressed with the drawing effect you did. For a moment I thought it was actually a time laps of you drawing the image of the plane. I thought I might throw this out there. I actually got a combination stone at the dollar store. Like you I bought it to see if it was any good. It was not perfectly flat but it was very close. I flattened it and it actually works very well. I don't really use it because I do have better options. For a beginner on a budget it would be a good place to start.
Tony Matarrese yeah, there are a lot of surprisingly good cheap stones out there. I wouldn't have even thought to look at the dollar store. that's a good tip! I get the drawing effect with a program called video scribe. it still takes a lot of work, but I can't draw. thanks for the nice comments!
And If you are persistent, in the kitchen utensils aisle of some supermarkets you might be able to find these big ass combination stones, like I did. 3x8 3/4x1 11/2 inches, for just $2.59.Rex, Can I beg you to tell us what do we need to learn to use that great effects you used in this video? I'm a consulting engineer and this would certainly help me convey tons of info in a very effective manner. Keep up the great work!
Useful stuff. The only thing I would add is to back off or round over the corners off your plane iron, otherwise, they will dig into the wood and you'll get tram lines. Paul Sellers does this. I don't use oil stones. I used to but they are messy and eventually, I found they bowed in the middle. I'm lucky enough to afford diamond stones which don't need flattening and use water as a lubricant. Also, the honing gauge you used is ok for planes but tricky if you want to put in a 1/4" chisel. I also use honing guides all the time. Mine are by Veritas - their one for gripping narrow chisels is excellent. Finally, I found that by sharpening stuff by hand, I'd get crooked blades. Honing guides makes sure that doesn't happen. Cheers.
The Alton Brown of woodworking, i love it!
Another source for glass is shelves in old refrigerators
All you need is a combination oilstone. Maybe a strop too if you like.
My dad was a butcher and the son of a butcher. His logic on stones was exactly the same. He always used baby oil though. He said it allowed for a good balance of metal contact and lubrication.
Old ball bearings from inline skates make nice rollers for a cheap sharpening wedge.
Ordered some new, cheaper, chisels that were due to be delivered today along with an assortment of cheap wet-dry silicon carbide sandpaper. Found a piece of highly-polished marble tile at a big box store yesterday, $2 because one corner was slightly chipped; I figure it's plenty flat enough to flatten chisel and iron backs and bevels. It all came in today so I dug out a tiny little hand plane with a die-cast body. I had previously flattened the sole on it but I knew the bevel on the iron was not square to the sides, so it needed to be straightened out. Set to work with some 150-grit (too fine, I found out) and straightened out the bevel then put a very approximate 5 degree micro bevel on it. Finished up the micro-bevel on a combination medium-fine oil stone I had and tested it: worked quite well on some SYP pieces I had laying around. None of it was hard, but it was a little time consuming due to my poor choice of grit starting out and the fact that the bevel was so far out of whack to start with. I didn't go far enough honing to produce any sort of "finish-ready" surface, but I'm going to be using everything to build a strong back then an older design canvas covered kayak, so it's plenty good enough. Thanks for the instructions to know that tackling this would get me started back to working wood with hand tools; that;s much more enjoyable than power tools!
Iam a newby in handtools like planes ans chisels also sharpening
You explain and demonstrate so Great i Think i could manage to get an edge
Enjoy your Videos and usefull Tips
Great thanks from germany
I'm sure you can do this!
Rex...i have bought a cheap silverline no4 plane on Amazon and i kicked it through the sandpaper FREE HAND like you have explained
What should i say...its leveled Razor sharp and i get nice shavings
Thanks a lot man i dont know if i Made it without your Great videos
Excellent lesson! The devil is in the detail and your demos always fully address all the details. Thanks
I have a decades old Sears Craftsman that probably cost less than $20.
It's a slowish speed round water stone that makes fantastic hollow grinds on my chisels.
Other than that sandpaper on a sheet of glass works great.
Love this series! I'd love to set up a sharpening station like you have, but I'm having a hard time finding actual oil stones instead of water stones. (The Norton combo stone is on Amazon for just over $20, but I haven't found higher grits!) Any tips on where I can get these? Seems like all the sites are pushing water stones or diamond stones, and charging crazy high $ for it all...