Forum topic by MaroonGoon | posted 08-18-2013 06:38 PM | 1874 views | 1 time favorited | 22 replies | ![]() |
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08-18-2013 06:38 PM |
I have to admit that I have been a bit intimidated by cabinet scrapers. I had heard about the difficulty in sharpening them and a lot of the talk about hand tools seems (to me) to be centered around planes, saws and chisels and cabinet scrapers aren’t brought up a whole lot. I figured the best way to learn is to just buy one and start playing with it. I ended up getting this one last week from amazon. From reviews I expected it to come sharp but realized I was wrong when it wasn’t producing even any sawdust or anything. So yesterday I picked up a file, got a screw driver to be used as a burnisher and watched a quick video on sharpening cabinet scrapers. I felt I understood it well enough so I went at sharpening it. After I finished I could feel a slight burr on the scraper but I was still skeptical of it working since it seemed so easy to sharpen (the guy on the video made it seem as if it was rocket science to get a perfect burr on the scraper or it wouldn’t work at all). I went and began scraping on a piece of walnut I had hand planed down and sure enough I was producing fine shavings as soon as I started shaving. But who knows, maybe I just got lucky, maybe it is harder for others to get a good burr on their scrapers, I don’t know. I just happened to get it right and by doing that gained a big sense of satisfaction in doing so. Lastly, I must say, I am very impressed that such a simple tool (regular sheet of steel) can be used so effectively even for a beginner like myself. I look forward to using my cabinet scraper regularly now that I have the fundamentals of it down. -- "Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone." -- Pablo Picasso |