Sharpening Planes / Chisels?


Lee Bussy

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Interesting - do you do this for both irons and chisels?

Obviously I have strops - not gonna put rouge on my good ones though. Again for razors we use a slab of balsa with a compound (green chromium oxide being common) for stropping. It doesn't seem like stropping but it's a "with the edge" movement rather than "into the edge so it does the same thing. Wonder if that would work?

I do it every time I pick up a chisel, 10 to 20 strokes. Too lazy to break down my planes every time, but pretty often. My "strop" is just a piece of old leather tool belt glued to a board. The green compound on mdf should work well, too.

Don't forget to strop the back a bit, too. Even the strop can leave a microscopic "wire edge" that should be removed for the smoothest possible cut.

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Here's my suggestions 

 

A review of an affordable honing guide is here  see this style used by folks like David Charlesworth, Christopher Schwarz, LN until recently and Paul Sellers so it can't be all bad.

 

In regard to stones and how far you go that's up to you and how far you want to go. If supreme value is what you're after an India combo stone, some baby oil, a bit of leather and and some polishing compound will take you a long way.

 

If you want to go fine, which can be nice, waterstones and ceramics are a good option. Although they are expensive if you want to do this for a while the cost is diluted. Diamonds are good for the lower grit sizes but the higher grit sizes are still a touch expensive. But as I mentioned if that's diluted over time it's not an issue.

 

 

That honing guide is the exact one I have and I can't get my chisels to stay in it. Plane iron is fine. Plus the instructions list where to put it for a 25 and 30 degree angle and nothing else. 

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I have an original Eclipse that I bought new 40 years ago or so.  I've never had to do anything to it, and it still holds well.  They come up on ebay every once in a while.  I wish I hadn't boogered up the screw head when I was young and foolish.  I use the LV plane screwdriver these days, and it makes it easy to get plenty of torque on the screw.

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One thing I've noticed; once the edge is formed and polished, I just strop with white rouge on leather before each use, just a few strokes. My re-honing frequency went waaaayyy down.

Where did you learn to do this? Are there videos you would recommend?

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Where did you learn to do this? Are there videos you would recommend?

Look for a YouTube vid on stropping a razor - can't be any different. You pull the edge backwards over the leather at the flattest possie angle, alternating sides. No need to go fast, better to get it right. You can even strop on newspaper, had to do it on a trip.

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I keep waiting for Trip H to chime in, but I think he bores when delivering repetitive info. There is a reason that stropping is not recommended for single bevel cutters, but I cannot source the claim. I only know he has mentioned it many times and is typically spot on.

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I keep waiting for Trip H to chime in, but I think he bores when delivering repetitive info. There is a reason that stropping is not recommended for single bevel cutters, but I cannot source the claim. I only know he has mentioned it many times and is typically spot on.

 

I'm just the new guy here, but I do know that there is no such thing as a single bevel on a cutting edge.  Whether the bevel is microns or miles wide, and whether you pay attention to the second one or not, there are two intersecting planes.  Now it's true, a very high angle of intersection will likely benefit less from stropping because it is less likely to exhibit deformation from use.  It will not be damaged by stropping though.  The best argument I can think of against the practice of stropping is on a plane iron if the craftsman does not address the flat each time.  Stropping will begin to develop a micro-bevel on the back (flat) side that will hinder successive honing attempts unless the "flat" is attended to during honing as well.  One should always hone both sides or else a wire edge will form to that side so it's all about attention to detail.  I ASS-U-me that when honing an iron the flat is done regularly?  If not then my argument goes out the window of course.

 
Kamisori (what we call Japanese straight razors) are very similar to a plane iron in this respect.  One may say that there is only one bevel, but that's not exactly true - at least when it comes to honing.  The side with the hollow (Ura) has what one would consider a traditional bevel.  For the sake of argument let's call it 2mm wide.  The other side (Omote) is more of a traditional wedge razor affair, with the entire surface comprising the bevel (let's say the bevel is 20mm wide).  It's all a matter of semantics.  The Japanese call this style of blade Kataka or single-blade.  It is referred to as only having one bevel.  In practice for honing, both sides are addressed.  Much like a plane, when using the Kataka Kamisori, the "flat" is held against the face so you could envision this as "planing" the hair off your face.  I have seen videos where Japanese craftsmen prove their plane iron honing skills by shaving with them.
 

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and in many cases a very experienced person in his field has a level of success that makes it hard to dispute his/her beliefs.  That does not mean however that their beliefs are rooted in indisputable fact, or that adopting their practices will suddenly cause you to match their abilities.  Their practices are comprised of a catalog of abilities, skills and practices that are honed (if you will excuse the pun) over time.  If the person who espouses not stropping is also the one who mentors you with the entire range of practices then you would do well to follow all of them.  You are less likely to be successful taking one practice from one person and a second from another.

 

I've seen a lot of electron microscopy proving and disproving the various arguments - none of what I am saying is "law" in the straight razor world either.  What is absolutely true without equivocation is that I put my edges against my face when I am done.  One might argue that developing a successful honing method on a razor is not  a matter of convenience or efficiency, but of real comfort (or sometimes skin and blood.)  We'll see how much hold when honing chisels and planes.

 

And finally (and to reiterate) these beliefs are brought over from honing straight razors (and listening to/learning from masters in that field).  Within the circle of adherents to Japanese craftsmanship these hold true/traditional.  There could absolutely be something about a plane iron that changes things.  It seems unlikely though, and I'm betting if I honed a plane iron to the same edge I put on a Kamisori, it would work pretty darned well.

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I describe sharpening of metal in four stages: shaped, then cut, then honed, then polished. Though all aspects are sharpening the edge, there's a significant time and quality issue.

 

For shaping, I use 300-400 grit waterstones

for cutting, I use 600-1200 grit waterstones

for honing, I use 2000-6000 grit waterstones

for polishing, I use 8000-13,000 grit waterstones

 

 

I have and use oil stones and diamond stones, too; but I prefer the results of quality waterstones (Sigma, Chosera, Bestor, Shapton Pro, Gesshin, etc.) IMO, waterstones cut faster and leave a better finish. Which ones? that's a matter of preference (and time and feel and dishing, et al)

 

It's  a black hole until you figure out what works for you, and how you should work the medium! Stay at it, and stop stropping on the end of your fingers!!!!

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To semi-close the loop on this:  I picked up the set of 220/1000 and 4000/8000 Norton stones mentioned above.  I had a 1000 but this lets me keep my razor kit over there and my chisel kit over there.  It's an OCD thing.  

 

I'll pick up one of those Eclipse clone guides, do the mods, and the rest really does seem like the mechanics of sharpening a razor.  The bevel angle is "set" (by a guide vs a razor spine) and then you progress down the line of stones.  If I ever go crazy and finish one on my Okudo Gousa Tomae I'll be sure to post a vid of me shaving with it.   :D

 

Here's some stone porn:

 

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Thanks for the help folks!

 

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