What should I sharpen chisels with?

[Josiah Brown]

I am purchasing a set of 12 Narex chisels for my grandfather.  I have practically no experience using chisels and absolutely none in sharpening them.  Any advice on which sharpening stones are best to begin with? I need something that is relatively cheap, but will do the job right.   I've looked online and it seems to be a rather controversial subject.  

I would greatly appreciate any help!

Josiah Brown

[wtnhighlander]

#canoworms. There are as many different opinions about sharpening systems as there are systems.

My advise is buy one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01DR6I1Q8/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1481432096&sr=8-2&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=honing+guide&dpPl=1&dpID=41GhZ8TIBUL&ref=plSrch

There are several brands for around that price.

Once you have the guide, I have no more advice, but here is what I do, and what I hope to change some day.

For really dull or nicked edges, I have a set of cheap diamond plates from Harbor Freight. They work, but are pretty small, and will probably not last too long. For finer honing, I use a medium India oil stone, mostly because it is longer and easier to use with the guide. I follow that with a 'razor hone' (intended for straight razors, and a bit small for this task), then a polish by 'stropping' the edge on a flat pine board coated with green buffing compound. This does the job, but is certainly not the most efficient method.

What I plan to change: upgrade to the 8" x 3" DMT diamond plates, two or three grits. Add a japanese style waterstone of the same size, perhaps a double-sided version with 'fine' and 'extra-fine' grits. And stick with stropping. The polish given by the strop seems to make the edge last much longer.

And remember to flatten at least the first inch or so of tge chisel back, to provide a true flat plane to intersect the bevel.

[Al Capwn]

Personally, I went middle of the road and picked up the DMT DuoSharps and an inexpensive honing guide. Each plate has two sides, and I picked up XCoarse/Coarse and Fine/XFine. So roughly four "stones" for ~150 bucks.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001EBZOD2/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a leather strop and some honing compound from Veritas. The honing compound is great on bringing back a lightly used edge to scary razor sharp.

Pretty happy with the results I get - probably quicker than traditional stones, but not as nice as Shapton stones and the Dia-Sharp diamond plates.

[Chet]

I bought a Norton 4000/8000 grit water stone from Lee Valley.  Its 4000 on one side and 8000 on the other and was around $86.00.  That stone and the guide that Ross mentions above should get you going on new chisels.  You don't need to do a large amount of work because you are talking new chisels, not ones that are damaged or worn down so those two grits should be fine.

Also if you step up to the Veritas Guide it has a little easier set up.

[Isaac]

I use various water stones I bought from Amazon and do it freehand over a sink. I have a chisel guide as shown above, but I find I tend to wear grooves from the little wheel into the stones with it, so I take my chances going without it.

[sheperd80]

^Yep, japanese king water stones are cheap and effective. There are better methods if you wanna spend alot but i dont think its necessary. I recommend getting 1 course dmt diamond plate as well to quickly flatten the water stones before each use. Chisels are very easy to sharpen free hand, no guides needed in my opinion. Search Rob Cosman on youtube for the easiest techniques.

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[Jim DaddyO]

Lee Valley has the "basic cabinet makers" sharpening set and it is a pretty fool proof way to start out without breaking the bank.  The Mkll guide is a breeze to use and the 1000/4000 stone will get you working.  Add a strop later at your convenience to up the game.  If you can afford it get the set with the wider stones.  I got the ones with the narrow 2" stones and I think the wider ones would have been a wiser choice.

[gee-dub]

wtnhighlander caled it,  there is no one answer. Relatively cheap is also a relative term :-) how much are you looking to spend?

I have everything from microabrasive film on glass plates to India stones,  a Worksharp  with various wheel materials to leather strops. For general bench chisel sharpening a Worksharp is hard to beat but, the relative price tag may not be what you consider relatively cheap. 

[Llama]

13 hours ago, Josiah Brown said:

Any advice on which sharpening stones

It really comes down to this. It really doesn't matter what you use. Pick one and stick with it. In a year you might decide to go in another direction, but for now just get something and use it.

[Barron]

The honing guide above is good and a Norton 4000/8000 stone for most of the time and one of the black/blue diamond plates for re-grinding will work. Just my opinion, but I can't see the value in a 12 piece chisel set.  Really, even a 7 piece set is overkill.  You could consider three chisels and a better sharpening system for the same amount. 

[Al Capwn]

4 hours ago, Barron said:

The honing guide above is good and a Norton 4000/8000 stone for most of the time and one of the black/blue diamond plates for re-grinding will work. Just my opinion, but I can't see the value in a 12 piece chisel set.  Really, even a 7 piece set is overkill.  You could consider three chisels and a better sharpening system for the same amount. 

Which 3 would you suggest? I personally use 1/4", 1/2", and 1" the most. I also have 3/8" and 3/4" to round out the most common sizes. The rest would be good money to toss towards sharpening stones or guides.

[Ronn W]

I use a Veritas MK II honing guide and 2 sided (1000/4000) Norton water stones. I love the secondary bevel feature it has. I also have a 4000/8000 stone but only use that for paring chisels and hand plane blades.

[wtnhighlander]

Which 3 would you suggest? I personally use 1/4", 1/2", and 1" the most. I also have 3/8" and 3/4" to round out the most common sizes. The rest would be good money to toss towards sharpening stones or guides.

I would suggest 1/4 (good for tight spots, like dovetails), 3/8 (very common mortise width) and 3/4" for general work, like cleaning up dadoes or tenon cheeks. I have maybe 12 sizes of chisels, but I use those three almost exclusively.

I also find the longer paring chisels much more useful that the shorter bench chisels.

[Tom Cancelleri]

I usually drag mine across the road while tied to my bumper. give them that rustic charm. 

[Denette]

I usually drag mine across the road while tied to my bumper. give them that rustic charm. 

See, I do the opposite. I sharpen up through the grits from 10 to 2,000,000, then put on the final polishing with a 4,000,000,000 grit stropping compound rubbed onto a live kitten. Leaves a surface so smooth I can see into the future.

[Barron]

I'd go with 1/4", 3/8", and 1", although 3/4" would be s good. Actually if you can get the metric sizes that are just a little smaller then the imperial sizes.  Supposedly the smaller size chisel makes squaring up a mortise easier. I bought my chisels before hearing that advice, but it makes sense.

[xxdabroxx]

25 minutes ago, Barron said:

I'd go with 1/4", 3/8", and 1", although 3/4" would be s good. Actually if you can get the metric sizes that are just a little smaller then the imperial sizes.  Supposedly the smaller size chisel makes squaring up a mortise easier. I bought my chisels before hearing that advice, but it makes sense.

Cut your tenon fat and shave the cheeks to fit.  :thumbsup:

[Isaac]

28 minutes ago, Barron said:

I'd go with 1/4", 3/8", and 1", although 3/4" would be s good. Actually if you can get the metric sizes that are just a little smaller then the imperial sizes.  Supposedly the smaller size chisel makes squaring up a mortise easier. I bought my chisels before hearing that advice, but it makes sense.

I like the 1" specifically because it is wider than the commonly used 3/4" stock, making it a good choice for taking off some material from a tail or pin.