# I need a good inexpensive honing guide.



## hkmiller (Mar 6, 2018)

For plane and chisels


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## ChefHDAN (Aug 7, 2010)

I bought this one on Amazon I had to make the modifications shown in this video and then build the set up jigs. For the work and effort I wish I had just bought the Veritas


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## Mosquito (Feb 15, 2012)

Inexpensive and good, figure out how to use these:








Least setup time, and most versatile option

Failing that… Inexpensive:









Or what ChefDAN posted above is solid too. I think I have one somewhere that I got with a group of tools. 
In all honesty, I would recommend if you're planning to stick with the sharpening guide for the long term, spend the money now and get a nicer one like one of Veritas's offerings:
MKII: or The cheaper version

If you plan to just use the guide to get started and switch to freehand sharpening, then I would stick with the cheap one posted above, as it will work


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

I basically did the same as ChefDan. That chinese guide is rebranded as 100 different brands and available everywhere. I used the video from Lie Nielsen on how to modify it. Currently in the transition of learning to sharpen free hand after watching Paul Sellers and Richard Maguire's videos.


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## Foghorn (Jan 30, 2020)

A Japanese tool expert gave a demonstration at a woodworking club I used to belong to. The part of his apprenticeship on sharpening by hand on waterstones was a full year if you can believe it. He sharpened a Japanese blade which he then put into a wooden, pull plane body. Pulling the plane with a string, he easily took an 8' shaving off the edge of a 1" board. You could see through the shaving easily. Apparently they hold competitions for this.


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## hkmiller (Mar 6, 2018)

> Inexpensive and good, figure out how to use these:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I currently sharpen by hand with plate glass and sand paper. Works ok, but I want to get a better edge.

Any downside with the cheaper version Veritas?


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## them700project (Aug 12, 2015)

I have the veritas and I used it a couple times. its great but I should have saved my money and used my hands. Its faster and just as good. I would still go back to it if you have to drop far down in grit to reshape. But for a sharpening in the higher grits hands are perfect.


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## Mosquito (Feb 15, 2012)

oops, it appears both links ended up being the same… 
This is the cheaper one I should have been referencing:
https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/sharpening/guides/33001-veritas-sharpening-system


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## Ocelot (Mar 6, 2011)

i've used a couple of different types of $5 honing guides. They work fine for me. Not good for Japanese chisels because of the shape, however.

A cheap honing guide can help you do better than by hand. I have 3 of them. Sometimes when I've got a really dull thing, I leave it in one of them for weeks and just work it on the extra-coarse diamond stone from time to time as I happen to feel the urge.

A little work with a file will make a plane iron sit flatter on these things.

They all seem similar. Like this.


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## Ocelot (Mar 6, 2011)

By the way…

A magnetic "angle cube" makes setup a snap.


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## hkmiller (Mar 6, 2018)

> i ve used a couple of different types of $5 honing guides. They work fine for me. Not good for Japanese chisels because of the shape, however.
> 
> A cheap honing guide can help you do better than by hand. I have 3 of them. Sometimes when I ve got a really dull thing, I leave it in one of them for weeks and just work it on the extra-coarse diamond stone from time to time as I happen to feel the urge.
> 
> ...


That is a great price on ebay.

Before I saw your post, I had ordered this:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C9X3F98/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## BurlyBob (Mar 13, 2012)

Buy a cheap tool you buy it many times. Buy the best tool and it lasts you a lifetime.


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## CaptainKlutz (Apr 23, 2014)

If you are going to use one of the cheap honing guides, be sure to read a few articles on how to 'fix' the known weaknesses. With some modifications they work much more consistently. 
Such as:
https://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/tune-up-a-cheap-honing-guide/
or 
https://www.finewoodworking.com/2016/09/09/modifying-an-inexpensive-honing-guide


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

https://www.timetestedtools.net/2020/02/12/part-9-final-sharpening-of-the-hand-plane-blade/


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## P89DC (Oct 1, 2017)

> oops, it appears both links ended up being the same…
> This is the cheaper one I should have been referencing:
> https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/sharpening/guides/33001-veritas-sharpening-system
> 
> ...


I used this for years with great success. Last year I upgraded to the mk2, even better! Loves me my "training wheels" after three decades. Never can understand how invested others are in not using a guide, they take it personal, lol.


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## Foghorn (Jan 30, 2020)

> oops, it appears both links ended up being the same…
> This is the cheaper one I should have been referencing:
> https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/sharpening/guides/33001-veritas-sharpening-system
> 
> ...


Yeah, I've used one of those for years as well and other methods. I like the ease of doing a micro-bevel with the flick of a knob.


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## Lazyman (Aug 8, 2014)

Any tips on putting a camber on a plane iron? I know the MK2 has a camber roller available but I was just wondering how you guys do it. I seem to recall that those who do it by hand often just put a little extra pressure on the corners near the end of their sharpening but I have not tried that yet.


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## bilyo (May 20, 2015)

This one has served me well for many years. I like that the wheels do not run on the stone itself. Only the blade touches the stone so, you can use the entire stone surface. This also has the disadvantage that if you are dealing with different stone thicknesses, you will have to re-adjust when you change grit. I haven't found this to be a problem.


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## Mosquito (Feb 15, 2012)

Nathan, a camber or easing the corners? Easing the corners is as you described. For camber, I usually draw an arc, grind to the line, and then hone in a figure 8 like Schwarz showed in a woodwrights episode, works pretty well for me.

But that said, I don't sharpen my cambered irons all that often…


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## cmacnaughton (May 17, 2019)

> Nathan, a camber or easing the corners? Easing the corners is as you described. For camber, I usually draw an arc, grind to the line, and then hone in a figure 8 like Schwarz showed in a woodwrights episode, works pretty well for me.
> 
> But that said, I don t sharpen my cambered irons all that often…
> 
> - Mosquito


Yeah, that's the exact same method Paul Sellers demonstrated in his scrub plane conversion video. Still practicing that figure-8 hone…that level of coordination is not my strong suit. ;-)


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## Lazyman (Aug 8, 2014)

Spam flagged


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## Lazyman (Aug 8, 2014)

I guess I confused the difference between easing the corners vs. a cambered edge. Do you guys generally ease the corners on your plane irons?


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## ac0rn (Jan 31, 2020)

Another simple carriage bolt design for training your hands.



























With the head of the bolt lightly touching your stone, your hands will learn muscle memory, and save the set up time to use working the wood instead


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## Karda (Nov 19, 2016)

I don't have a lot of choice, I have arthritis in the fingers used to support the iron or chisel so I need the guide. I do hand sharpen and would rather do it that way but it hurts.


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## HokieKen (Apr 14, 2015)

Wow. jamsebond is an ass.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

> Wow. jamsebond is an ass.
> 
> - HokieKen


Flag with care ;-)


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## HokieKen (Apr 14, 2015)

Apparently this guy is immune to my flag-ellation.


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## Lazyman (Aug 8, 2014)

Cricket said something a few weeks ago about not always getting notified when we flag something. Maybe that isn't fixed or is acting up again.


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## AlaskaGuy (Jan 29, 2012)

This looks interesting if you can read pictures or know an interpreter.


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## CaptainKlutz (Apr 23, 2014)

nvm


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## Bill_Steele (Aug 29, 2013)

I have both Veritas honing guides-the same one Mosquito posted (Veritas Sharpening System) and the Veritas Mk. II guide. I would recommend the Mk. II. It is the more expensive option, but I find it easier to get the plane iron set to the angle I want.

I usually write the primary bevel angle on the back of the chisel or plane iron with a Sharpie to help me remember when I need to hone it again or regrind the primary bevel.

It's not foolproof-I still find the need to tweak the angle slightly as I start honing. I usually look at the honed section of the chisel or plane iron to make sure that it is being honed straight across and not skewed. If it is skewed I give the opposite end of the chisel or plane iron a light tap to correct the angle-sorta like adjusting a plane iron with a small hammer. I know that is confusing-but I hope that helps.


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## zemzero (Feb 26, 2020)

> Another simple carriage bolt design for training your hands.
> 
> With the head of the bolt lightly touching your stone, your hands will learn muscle memory, and save the set up time to use working the wood instead
> 
> - Jeff


wow, this looks extremely useful. I have a cheap honing guide, the cheap one that every one has, but I would rather learn to not use it.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

The basic Eclipse style work just fine. Make yourself a set of measurement blocks to set the angle easy.

I had to file mine a bit to hold my various chisels due to the side tapers. But for $9 each, easy to have several that are filed to fit everythings. I have seen comments the Veritas guide has trouble holding it firm and slipping, plus by the time you get all the pieces, it is very expensive. Pretty though.

BUT, I have spent a small fortune on jigs and stones. Oil, water, ceramic, diamond, packs of paper and even a Haringa and dust. Tried a clone of a Tomak and have a Makita wet wheel. I have an entire tool chest full of them collected over 50 years. Well, another thread here has convinced me a WorkSharp 3000 might be the most economical as you buy one once.


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## AndyMcKenzie (Nov 5, 2011)

I started out using an eclipse-style jig, but these days I sharpen without a jig. It takes some practice, but it's not actually all that hard to learn. The way I work means that chisels tend to have a slightly convex bevel, which is more or less the same as what I'd get if I used a primary and secondary bevel. The only real difference is I can do it by feel, instead of two different settings in a guide.

That said: There's no real reason not to use a guide, and the ones from Veritas are excellent. I had a chance to handle them at a wood show at some point, and they seemed extremely well made.


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## Phil32 (Aug 31, 2018)

When you get the guide matter figured out, then take up woodcarving and figure how you'll apply that to a half-round gouge or 35 degree V-tool. Many of us have found the "inexpensive honing guide" in our eyes and fingers.


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## Karda (Nov 19, 2016)

phil you are right the best way to sharpen is by hand and I would prefer to do it that way, but the arthritis in my fingers wants a less painful way


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

I don't understand how a jig will help with arthritis. Even with a jig you need to add pressure to the front of the blade. The only real difference is the jig keep the angle.


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## Just_Iain (Apr 5, 2017)

> I don t understand how a jig will help with arthritis. Even with a jig you need to add pressure to the front of the blade. The only real difference is the jig keep the angle.
> 
> - Don W


 Don,

I've been getting arthritis in the fingers that has worsened the last year. I use the Veritas Mk II and all I have to do is apply light pressure so less strain on the joints. Trust me, it helps.

Migrated from Eclipse to Veritas Mark I likely 30 years ago (along with the original Stone Pond) then to full Mark II kit at Christmas (Xmas present to self).

Iain


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Not inexpensive, but playing with my new Work Sharp for the last couple hours has me just about converted.


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