Posted on What's your sharpening rig?
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#1 posted 385 days ago |
Hi Russel I am pretty new to hand planes myself. I started out sharpening the blades using a MK II Veritas honing guide. I used the scary sharp sandpaper system for a few weeks then bought a set of waterstones. The MK II honing guide is good for a person that might not have the physical dexterity for holding a plane iron at the correct angle while while sharpening/honing. But personally, I think it is a waste of money for anyone without physical limitations.. You can do the same thing with a block of wood cut at a 25 degree angle and use it to get the feel for holding the iron at the proper angle. It might take a while but once you get the feel for holding the iron and working it on the honing material, you will be forever liberated from all the bullshit grinding/honing systems that companies love to pimp out. Once you know that you have the initial bevel down pact, all it takes is a slight bump of the pinkie to get the micro bevel. A grinder is a good tool for conditioning a damage blade. A good tool rest wood be far more important than a holding jig.. A fine to medium grinding wheel will do most anything you need to shape the blade. I mix my sharpening systems at this point. I use a grinder for a damaged blade to square it up. Blades with minor imperfections can be conditioned with 150 or 220 sand paper. After that I will work it on 1000, 4000, and 8000 waterstones. After you have a good working blade, you really only need the finer grits to hone the micro bevel. |
