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What System do you prefer for sharpening your chisels?

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Formerly know as Mandodiddle.

I settled on the Veritas Mark II guide and use it with diamond stones and 1200 grit on granite surface plate. I've used the MarkII for maybe 15 years. For sharpening, I use the MKII guide to diamond lap at 700 then 1000, then move to 1200 Wet or Dry and finish with a leather strop. I use the micro bevel feature. With a microbevel I can resharpen in 3-4 minutes. It takes longer to get then clean and stow the diamond plates. I use dollar-store windex on diamond stone and 3M paper.
I can touch-up an edge maybe 4 or 5 times on a leather strop before having to go back to the stones.
https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/to ... em=05M0920 .

For repairing damaged edges, I use a bizarre drill press system from Taylor Tools- I give it a 9 out of 10 for effectiveness- it works amazingly well. You have to build your own holder, and it needs to be pretty precise. It would require a separate thread to describe it but there is a very good YOUTUBE video on it. https://taytools.com/products/drill-pre ... 777f&_ss=r

YOUTUBE video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3Y1AANySkY

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Measure Twice,

Karl Borum

We really should not be discussing religion, which is what sharpening discussions seem to devolve to on most of the woodworking fora.

Two issues here: grinding and honing. Grinding is done infrequently, while honing is a relatively frequent activity if working more abrasive woods.

For grinding: An 8" low speed bench grinder with CBN for most flat work and a ceramic/aluminum oxide wheel for work which the CBN is unsuited. A LV steady rest works, but I don't bother with their guide thingie as it adds nothing but complication once you understand how to grind a chisel bevel on the slightly crowned CBN wheel. I usually grind at 25 degrees, and only when the honed bevel extends more than 50% of the way across the ground bevel.

Equipment:

- 8" low speed grinder (I have a Rikon 80-808 1 hp model) - About $250 when on sale at Woodcraft; $320 otherwise.
- 8" 80 grit CBN wheel from Tools for Working Wood (about $140)
- 2 x Veritas Grinder tool rest (about $60 each)

For honing: I use the same two-stone system that I spent years using at Greenridge, with a chisel taking about 60 seconds to resharpen and a block plane about two minutes. In a side-clamping jig (or free-hand... if you really enjoy honing versus just need it done), I knock off the dull edge with a coarse DMT diamond stone (a large 10" DuoSharp C/CX combo) and go immediately to an 8000 Norton waterstone. A hard strop can help polish the edge from a coarser stone, such as the 4000, but it does nothing for the edge off the 8000. The stones will last at least 20 or so years of shop use, so get the larger diamond stone and the Norton or Shapton, and consider a 4000 for getting the back polished out on a new tool if you do not have a diamond paste setup. The great virtue of the Norton is it is reasonably priced, cuts relatively fast, and polishes the bevel to a very usable polish... but feel free to drop several times that if you are really into natural stones.

- Side clamping jig (I have the Lie-Nielsen, but the Eclipse style works well with a bit of tweaking and can be had for $35 or so)
- DuoSharp 10" C/XC diamond stone (about $140)
- Norton 8000 (about $140)

Maintenance: The C/XC diamond stone is used to flatten the waterstone.

Finally, if you add things up, about $800 or so less tax and shipping...not cheap. If on a serious budget, the ScarySharp TM wet/dry paper system works, but is just too much work for ongoing professional use. For hobby use, even profligate use of paper will still not come up to the $800 mark for many years. There are also a number of grinding options available... I used a Tormek for the first year at Greenridge, and hated it - slow, messy, and did I mention s-l-o-w? The CBN wheel was a revelation. if you already have a bench grinder, and preferably a low speed one, the CBN wheels can be had in 5/8" and 3/4" arbor.

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We have become a civilization that elevates idiots, prostitutes, and clowns. Am I still to defend it? Yes, for its principles. Yes, for what it was. Yes, for what it still may be.

-Mark Helprin, The Oceans and the Stars: A Sea Story, A War Story, A Love Story (A Novel)

I use the 'scary sharp' process. It fits my (amateur) budget. My time has no billable value and twenty bucks goes a long way. Often I see the amateur with cash spend way more on his tools, fixtures, and shop equipment than the working craftsman who likes to eat and pay their bills, not just in lutherie, too.

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Peter Havriluk

Apprentice…

8x3" Dia-sharp XXC and XXF. Initially you'll need something for polishing, but don't spend much money on it. Adhesive-backed lapping film on glass or acrylic is fine. By the time it wears out, the XXF should be worn in enough that you won't need anything else.

The XXC doubles as an everlasting ultra-flat sanding block for wood. It clogs up pretty quickly, but if you have a sink nearby you can wash and dry it in a few seconds so it's not too much of a problem.

I use a Kell no.2 honing guide, but I'd like to find or make something similar that either has sealed ball bearings or is easy to disassemble and clean when the wheels start sliding on the XXF. This one uses giant circlips, which I'd probably never be able to get back on if I take it apart, so I just feed oil in the gaps as best I can to get it moving freely again.

I use the Todd Stock method also: Slow speed white grinding wheel, coarse diamond Stone then right to the 8k Shapton using the little angle jig.

Sent from my SM-A526B using Tapatalk

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Pat

Several roads to the same place. For motorized sharpening, I enjoy owning and using a Sorby Pro Edge. We had a fellow come to our local woodworking club meeting a few years ago. He owns one of these devices that measures the sharpness of an edge tool by how much force is required to slice through an artificial hair. I came in second place with a chisel I had taken from garage sale condition to pretty darn sharp in about a half hour of work from very coarse grits through to polishing.

But I still use other means, too. Grinder, diamond plates, jigs, etc., as mentioned already. I think having choices allows you to figure out over time what meets your needs best, and it might not be the same all the time.