asking about sharpening and grit

[walidantar]

hello, i need to know, for chisels and plane blades, when do i need 320 grit or coarse ? will i need it after i have prepared a new chisel or a plane blade? after a blade is prepared what grit is often used to re-sharpen it .. is 600 grit enough to stop at? or should go more to 1200 grit

[wtnhighlander]

Sharpening processes are as numerous as the people that use them. Personally, I like to hone to 1000 grit or so (can't remember exactly what my combo stone is) and follow up with a strop loaded with chromium oxide compound.

Hitting the strop often delays the need to go back to the stone.

The only time I go coarser than my fine oilstone is when I want to change the bevel angle, or grind out a nick.

[RichardA]

highlander is right.  320 is coarse in sharpening chisels and plane blades. That's for getting a new angle or cleaning up a damaged blade.  Like highlander, I start out with a diamond stone around 600 and work my way to 1200 and the strop at the end. The strop can be used a a touch up when your working those blades.   The thing about sharpening is, that you need "Sharp".  And only time and practice will tell you when you have a sharp tool.  One more thing, the back of those blades need to be "flat" in order to get the two angles to give you a "sharp" edge.

[Tom King]

I stop at 13,000.  When in the middle of a job, with no damage to the edge, I start at 6,000.

[walidantar]

is it possible to strop right-after 600 grit?

[gee-dub]

The difference in size between the scratches from 600 grit and a compound one might use on a strop is pretty significant.  That being said, I strop after 4000 with good result but, prefer to go to 8000.  Also, you can strop as a touch up while working up to a point.  I find this handy for fine work where I am pushing the chisel by hand.  

[walidantar]

thanks you all, really appreciated :)

[Mark J]

2 hours ago, wtnhighlander said:

Sharpening processes are as numerous as the people that use them. 

+1 to that, but I've never heard of someone sharpening a plane or chisel to 300-600 and calling it a day or moving to a strop.  

I use the sharpening system that "The Woodwhisperer" describes:  ceramic stones 1000, 5000 and 8000 with a 300ish diamond plate for flattening the ceramic stones.

[Chip Sawdust]

I start, as has been said, roughing a blade with a 300/600 diamond stone, but rarely use it Inc the blade is sharp. 

I move to a 1200 Arkansas oil stone, thence to 3000 and 8000 water stones (making sure there's no oil on it or the sharpening jig when I move to the water stones). While working, if a blade develops a bit of dullness and I don't have time (haha it's a hobby but you do get in a groove, working so I don't FEEL I have time), I'll drag it across the Arkansas stone for quick touch-up, sans any jig. 

Once I've finished a project of my chisels haven't gone off too much, I'll re-sharpen on the 3000-8000 stones. Waters ones are a bit messy so I don't like to bring them out in the midst of a project.

[Ronn W]

I agree with most of the above.  Sharpening chisels and planes takes you well out of the normal "sandpaper range".  Ou wnat to bee thinkinc about sharpening stomes or diamond plates.  I sharpen to 8000 with water stones.   Water stones are a little messy but they are proboably the least expensive of the sharpening "systems".

[walidantar]

8" Dia-Sharp Continuous Diamond Bench Stone, will to get just only one that is mostly used, that i prepare the blades with sand paper as it's not too often and is almost one-time to flatten and not to much to restore a broken edge, and after sharpening use the strop to refine the edge after some use, so the diamond stone is also not much being used and it doesn't need flattening as water/oil stones ..  for that i got confused what grit is better, i'm not a very high grit enthusiast .. but prefer stropping as it saves/prolongs the pricey diamond stone - for that i asked if it's possible to strop after 600 grit to avoid sharpening at 600 then 1200 grit so i get only one stone instead of to but it seems it doesn't work like this

[Tom King]

I like sharp.  This picture shows a chisel curling up fine shavings on a tenon cheek offcut.   The little curls, ahead of the one being rolled up, were from leveling down the ridges from the backsaw cut of the tenon.  The larger, lighter colored shaving is the one in the micrometer.  It came from an old Stanley block plane that was used on that project for some trimming, but mostly just removing pencil marks.  The sharper you get an edge, the longer it can be used until it needs to be honed again.

[wtnhighlander]

Paul Sellers once demonstrated that a hand plane sharpened to just 250 grit will remove shavings from wood quite readily.

The issue is that 250 grit leaves a "shark tooth" level of smoothness along the edge. Certainly, it will cut, but surface left behind will not be clean and smooth. Possibly suitable for rough work, but absolutely unacceptible as a finish-ready piece. 

Remember that ultimate sharpness is not necessary for every job.

[drzaius]

38 minutes ago, wtnhighlander said:

Paul Sellers once demonstrated that a hand plane sharpened to just 250 grit will remove shavings from wood quite readily.

The issue is that 250 grit leaves a "shark tooth" level of smoothness along the edge. Certainly, it will cut, but surface left behind will not be clean and smooth. Possibly suitable for rough work, but absolutely unacceptible as a finish-ready piece. 

Remember that ultimate sharpness is not necessary for every job.

But I've read, and don't know if this is fact, but it makes sense, that the finer an edge is honed the less micro-chipping off of the steel there is.

[wtnhighlander]

12 hours ago, drzaius said:

But I've read, and don't know if this is fact, but it makes sense, that the finer an edge is honed the less micro-chipping off of the steel there is.

I believe that is absolutely true. In my own experience, while a "rough" edge may cut as quickly, a finely polished edge will retain its ability to slice through wood (or flesh!) much longer.

But does anyone bother to hone a scrub plane to 16000 and strop it to a mirror polish?

[Tpt life]

I don’t see the scrub as the same kind of tool. I am running it with huge camber and across the grain most often. It is half as wide and the camber means I may only be using half the width of the iron. I think mayb some don’t finely hone the scrub because it will still cut and push easily. 

[Tom King]

Even I don't take a Scrub plane iron that far.  I do go through 8k though, since all the sharpening setup if right there to use.  It will probably be used almost a whole day before it gets sharpened again though, and as the picture shows, it can be really dull, and still throw shavings two feet in the air.  We use it to clean up old beams before putting a good edge into the wood. 

It's rarely used for flattening part of anything.  A no.5 with an 8" radius camber usually gets the first call if a part of something needs to get run down before the no. 6's go to work.

 

As another sharpening example, I really admire the understanding this guy has of what it takes, in amount of effort, to put into making something, but the sharpness, or lack thereof, of his handsaws, chisel, and even pencil lines, is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me.