# Hand Tools Odyssey



## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*What is Sharp?*

*Intro to Hand Tools*
Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.

Previously we have taken Basic Woodworking, Cabinet Making and a Furniture Lab together. I have also taken table making and a few more lab classes. I have a pretty good grip on basic furniture making and power tool use, but have been frustrated in my use of hand tools. Kristin is not a fan of huge power tools and recently inherited some old tools from her Grandpa. We finally decided to take the class and good thing as they are discontinuing weekend courses after this semester due to crummy state budget here in California.

By the end of the course we will learn to sharpen and restore chisels, card scrapers and planes. The final project is a small tote/box that features hand cut dovetails, through mortises, and wood that is S4Sed using hand tools. We are excited to learn.

*Week 1: What is Sharp?*
After a few introductions we went right into a discussion of:

1. Why use hand tools?
2. What is sharp?
3. Wood structure and tree anatomy

For a few great answers to these questions I recommend (based on our syllabus we bought and are reading these)
1. Why hand tools?







"The Nature and Art of Workmanship" by David Pye. This is a somewhat esoteric but interesting book about the execution of workmanship as a dying art. It is too complex for me to sum up at this time. I do think it is required reading for all woodworkers.

2. What is sharp?
The Complete Guide to Sharpening by Leonard Lee is a must have for all woodworkers.

To quote: ... " a sharp tool can be defined as one that has a keen edge that will hold its shape in repeated use for a given material and technique while producing a good surface finish on the the wood."

*Week 2: Chisels*
We came back to class with some of our old planes in hopes that our teacher would evaluate them. The course can get pricey as the list of required hand tools is quite extensive.

Week 2 of class began with a recap of chisel cutting dynamics. A similar discussion can be found in the Leonard Lee book leading to the conclusion that correct sharpening angle is balance between efficiency of cutting and durability of the edge.

Our instructor demonstrated his process of sharpening chisels which involves:
1. Lapping the face
2. Grinding a double bevel
3. Honing and polishing the bevel

Sounds easy? Hmmm.

*Homework* 
Our first assignment: Lap the face of the chisels. Our class defines lapping as transferring one shape to another. In this case we will transfer the flatness of our stones to the face of our chisel. (Note: I will the refer to the flat part of the chisel as the face as per my class).

Supplies:
In our sharpening arsenal:
Granite Surface Plate
Wet Dry Sand Paper
Bucket
Rags
Set of Norton Combination Stones
King 800/ 4000 Combo Stone
Leather Strop
Aluminum Oxide Honing Compound

All of this will set you back somewhere between $150 and $200 U.S.

*The Method*
Overview: Lap stones… Lap chisels… Repeat









Our chisels to be sharpened. My older set of Marples at the bottom. They have been abused by a Work Sharp Sharpener (more on this evil machine later). In the box: a set of Irwin chisels (newer Marples) I got for $17 bucks with 50% off coupon at a Rockler clearance sale (cha-ching).









Also my black handled paint/ glue scraping chisel and a crummy Harbor Freight Chisel.

We filled a 5 gallon bucket with water and soaked our stones. Meanwhile we got out the new Granite Surface Plate.
















We set it up on our workmate on a towel in preparation for flattening our stones.







In preparation I "broke the back" of some 220 Wet Dry paper and soaked it in the bucket. The idea here is that it prevents the corners from turning up when I adhere it to the paper.








Here Kristin "Squeegees" it down to the granite.

You would think your stones would come flat. The Nortons actually were, but best practice is to flatten 'em. My King stones were dished from prior use. Also, you the Nortons cut fast and wear away quickly which requires constant flattening. The surface plate is a necessity (you can use plate glass or a DMT stone too). The Norton kit comes with a flattening stone that keeps its shape fairly well but also requires maintenance








We drew pencil lines on the stones so we can watch our progress. You can see a sheen where the light reflects off the worn areas in some light, but the pencil marks help.









To flatten: just rub the stones on the Wet Dry paper









Chamfer the edges to help prevent cuts. They are extremely sharp after flattening.









I alternated between a skew angle and a horizontal approach. For one grit I would move with the chisel set at an angle this created an even scratch pattern that I could remove with the next grit.









My pressure is all on the left hand being careful not to tip the chisel up.









For the new set of chisels, Kristin removed their factory finish with lacquer thinner.









Most of the new chisels started off with grind marks from the factory. This is the HF chisel but the Irwin's have a similar pattern. 








A new Irwin chisel.









Here is one of my old Marples after lapping but before stropping.

After lapping from 220 to 1000 to 4000 to 8000 I polished the chisels on a leather strop with aluminum oxide. Here are the results on three (the instructor said we have it down). 









I have a Work Sharp and I am almost convinced that it is one of my least useful tools. I devastated a 1/4" chisel on it a few months back. Check it:








It is too easy to roll the narrow chisel on the fast moving plate of the Work Sharp








After lapping on the 220 stone you can see that I am starting to flatten the back. I am pointing at the area. The cloudy diagonal marks indicate where I have begun to flatten.








A bit later as the pattern "spreads".









Finally the same chisel after moving through all of the grits and polishing on a strop.

With narrow chisels I have learned to use a back and forth (as opposed to side to side) motion.

We have 9 chisels lapped between the two of us. We each worked for about 10 hours.

Next time: The bevels.


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## interpim (Dec 6, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


very nice… you could shave in the reflection


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Nice work on the chisels.

For me, the strop is the key to a really wicked sharp chisel.

A carver taught me to strop regularly and sharpen less. This has worked well for me.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Thanks for sharing


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Giz, this is a nice blog on sharpening. And it is wonderful that you two not only are able to take classes together but also have had the classes available as well. I am sure you will enjoy the rest of the course and keep us posted on the progress.


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## Walnut_Weasel (Jul 30, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Great blog!! I will be sure to put this one on my watch list!! Thanks for all of the great detail. This is very useful for me since I do not have a good class on this within a 2 hour drive.


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## Julian (Sep 30, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Looks like they are sharp alright. I'll stick to my method using the grinder and a particle board wheel for sharpening, and sandpaper on glass for the initial flattening of the back.


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## HokieMojo (Mar 11, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


EXCELLENT blog! Thanks so much!


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Hi all…. Thanks for reading and the comments.

At this point the chisels are not sharp, the faces are simply flat. The bevel still needs to be ground and honed.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


I've read about and tried different sharpening methods including good quality jigs with limited success. Most say that good quality waterstones are the very best, but I haven't tried these. Instead, I bought a diamond stone with medium on one side and fine on the other.

I spray a little water on it and sharpen by hand. I've learned the proper technique for this and I get a razor edge in about two or three minutes after initial grinding when grinding is necessary. That means I can shave hair off my arm with it. From then on, as long as the edge isn't damaged, I just touch it up with the fine side of the stone as needed. This normally takes about 30 seconds. I know some people finish with a leather strop getting excellent results. Be aware though that good hand skills are necessary here to avoid rounding over sharp edges. That's why I don't us a strop.

My chisels are always sharp and even though they are inexpensive ones, they perform very well with a minimum of fuss. I suppose they could be even sharper, but sharp enough is good enough for me. I hope you will find some value in my comments, I am not being critical of anyone else's methods, but just to show that different people have different attitudes and approaches to this subject. As they say, all roads lead to Rome. Good luck in your quest.


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## Walnut_Weasel (Jul 30, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


I have one water stone and compared to sand paper, it is a LOT faster. I would like to compare it to a diamond stone one of these days…


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## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *What is Sharp?*
> 
> *Intro to Hand Tools*
> Three Saturdays ago, Kristin and I woke up early and headed down to good ol' Cerritos Community College to start our new class, Woodworking with Hand Tools.
> ...


Looks great!


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*Razor Sharp*

Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.









In the next phase of chisel sharpening we learned to hone the bevels. In order to more easily hone the chisel by hand we ground a double bevel. 








For the purpose of the class we used a Tormek Super Grinder, however the same can be accomplished with a bench grinder and more care to not burn your steel.








Here is a chisel that has been hollow ground…








Hollow ground chisels provide two surfaces for you to rest the chisel upon, which makes it easier to maintain the chisels on the stone.

One interesting aside on the use of mechanical sharpeners: in order to square the tip of the chisel to its edge, you may have to shim the back of the chisel. I don't have a clear picture of this, but it involves slipping a piece of paper or tape in between the back of the chisel and the honing guide on the long side of the chisel. This helps to roll the chisel and create an even and square edge. It is a finesse thing.









Here is my 1/4" chisel before hollow grinding and covered in paste wax.









After grinding on the wet grinder. Notice the hollow area.

Starting at 1000 grit on t the waterstone, we honed by setting the heel of the bevel and then "clicking" down the tip. Then pushing the chisel backwards. This is the biggest tip I can offer as learned in the class: Think of the move as pushing the chisel instead of pulling it.









We hone just long enough to create the bevel. Due to the hollow grind, you can see flat areas at the tip and heel of the bevel. 









Honing on 4000 is to remove the 1000 stones marks. It is critical to flatten the stones often.









Moving up to 8000 grit erases the 4000 marks and moves towards polishing the bevel.
















I also removed the wire edge / burr on the back by gently lapping the other side (face) on the 8000. For some chisels you have to chase the wire edge back and forth from the face to the back. But working gently seems to remove it without pushing it back over.

Finally I polished the chisel on a leather strop with honing compound.








Here is the finished chisel. it is razor sharp and easily cuts hair.

Sweet.

Next time: Card Scapers.


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## Berg (Aug 31, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Enjoying your posts. Thanks for sharing.


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## spanky46 (Feb 12, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Well done!


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Giz, thanks for the post. This is certainly an interesting tutorial.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Great tutorial on sharpening.

A few days ago I went through and tuned up all of my chisels. The back of both my wrists have been shaved clean.


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## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Now that is sharp!


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## Jimi_C (Jul 17, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


I just ordered a 1000/6000 stone, though I would have liked to get the full Norton beginner set (promised the wife I'd only spend $50 a paycheck on tools…). I plan to use some 240+ grit sand paper for the flattening of the backs, though I do see HF has some cheap diamond pads I may try out. I made the mistake of trying to use a Dremel to sharpen a couple, and I really really screwed up one (it's about as sharp as my thumb…), so I may need to get a bench grinder to fix that one if the sand paper/diamond pads don't work out. Really, they're cheapo Lowes chisels, so I'm not too worried about it.


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## DanYo (Jun 30, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


scary sharp ! fun quick read … perfect photo blog


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## Walnut_Weasel (Jul 30, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Razor Sharp*
> 
> Last time I showed the process for lapping the faces of the chisels. Here is the back of the 1/4" chisel.
> 
> ...


Another nice post. Thanks!!


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*

*Falling Behind*
The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
Sharpen four chisels
Sharpen a card scraper
Tune and Sharpen a Smooth Plane
Tune and Sharpen a block plane
S4S boards with hand tools
Cut Dovetails
Make dovetailed box with mortise and tenon handle.

So far we have finished our chisels and card scraper and worked a bit with the chisels. Our instructor has given demos on how to tune a plane as well.

*Sharpening A Card Scraper*
For the last two weeks Kristin and I have been sharpening our card scrapers. This was one of the things I have been interested in learning.

I started out with an old Two Cherries scraper that I had done unspeakable things to. Kristin bought a new Bahco.

We took two different paths to scraping. She spent lots of time lapping her scraper and I rushed through it (ten times). In the end I got a 19 out of 20 on my scraper and she got a 20.

Here is the basic process with photos
*Step 1: Draw out the old hook.*









Oil the burnisher and scraper. Set the scraper on the bench top and press down and diagonally across towards the edge a few times. Feel that any old hook has been compressed.

The idea here is that the hooks will now be pushed up by the burnisher in prep for jointing.








*Step 2: Joint.*










File with a single cut file set at 90 degrees. We chucked the file in our vise and pulled the scraper across it. Inspect the edges of the scraper for a nice even grind. (Some people stop at this step and use the scraper which now has a square edge.









*Step 3: Lap*










Using waterstones or other sharpening surface, lap the scraper. Kristin worked on hers for a long time (hours). I did as well. After jointing with the file there is a rough hook that needs to flattened. Move up through 4000 grit.
After the first sharpening this wont be a big deal. Notice that a wood block is being used to keep even pressure on the scraper.
*Step 4: Hone edges*










Holding the scraper at 90 degrees step through the grits to get a mirror finish on your scraper edges. This removes the rough surface left by file.










Now the scraper is approaching as square and polished as possible.
*Step 5: Compress the scraper.*










Chuck the scraper into the vise and oil both the scraper and the burnisher. Holding the burnisher to the scraper use moderate pressure to compress the edge.
*Step 6: Draw the edge*










Just like Step 1. This will draw the hook in preparation for turning it. 
*Step 7: Turn Hook*










Chuck that scraper back into the vise. Now hold the burnisher at about 5 degrees down off normal. Use light to moderate pressure. Our Crown burnisher is round and requires more pressure than the Veritas Tri-Burnisher's teardrop shape.










Video: Burnishing motion.
http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=71377

*Using the scraper*










The most amazing thing for me is how light the downward pressure is when using a well sharpened scraper. When I used the file method only: You have to put quite a bit of sweat into using the scraper. This scraper brings effortless curls.

Scraper Video:
http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=71377









Walnut Shavings

Next time: Tuning a smooth plane.


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## rickc (Jun 27, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Great blog thanks for the info. This makes you appreciate a well tuned workshop.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Thanks, Giz. It certainly looks as if Kristin's efforts paid off well. Her scraping technique looks almost effortless.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Great entry Giz. You have a great advantage to learning how to sharpen the card scraper by someone teaching you personally.

You wil find yourself using the card scraper everyday that you work in the shop.


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## TraumaJacques (Oct 25, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Is she single because I would marry her …wait I am oh well ! nice shavings.


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Thanks for the comments.

My wife Jacques. Sorry pal.


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## Newton (Jun 29, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Very well written and illustrated….....Thanks!


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Hey John
This is a great Blog on the sharpening of a scraper . fantastic illustration and video a great aid . I will include this blog on must see for my students.


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## AaronK (Nov 30, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


nice entry.

i have to ask though - why so long lapping the sides of the scraper?


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## DaleM (Feb 18, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Great blog. I especially like the drawings of what the edge would look like for each step since my eyesight isn't quite sharp enough to see that small of a burr.


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## scottishrose (Sep 25, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


John,

Where are you taking your class? Did you bring your own tools or were they provided? Is this a residential program or something you do on an evening or weekend? It sounds like a great program and I appreciate the emphisis on making the tools work for you instead of just getting a project to take home. This is infinitely more condusive to learning as you take home the skills that will last. The box will no doubt be a keepsake, but the skills will be a real keeper!
Sorry I havn't had time to read the whole blog - I am new here and yes, as folks warned me with their welcomes this is an addictive site.


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Scottish Rose:

Cerritos Community College has a full woodworking aa degree. This is a weekend class, but due to budget constraints the classes are Mon- Friday for the upcoming semesters.

For the power tool classes the tools are provided. The hand tools class provides some sharpening supplies and a few of the less common planes for use. Otherwise this class requires purchases.


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## Walnut_Weasel (Jul 30, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


Great job. Thank you very much for taking the time to put this information together!!


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## naterajj (Nov 19, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Sharpen this! (Card scraper)*
> 
> *Falling Behind*
> The class is about halfway through with an agenda of the following:
> ...


I am taking 101 on Sundays at Cerritos College 

Do you learn to do this in 201 (Working with Handtools?)

I spent 2 days of my thanksgiving weekend hand sanding the inside of my box, which sent me looking for better ways to achieve the same results.

After looking at many videos and 2 separate tries to sharpen my scraper, I have managed to get small shavings from a bahco, but nothing like in your video and it leaves scratches like a coarse sandpaper (say 150 grit)

Would you say a scrapper sharpened like yours could completely replace hours of tedious sanding?


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*Smoothing Plane Restorations*

Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.









My plane before tuning.

*Step 1: Flatten Sole or pay a guy to do it*








The sole of the plane before grinding.

We set up wet-dry paper on a granite plate and tested the soles.

















Given the condition of our planes, we decided to take our teacher up on an offer to send the planes to his machinist friend who ground the soles and squared one cheek for $25. We are just running out of time for lapping.

Here are the planes after machining:

















*Step 2: Sharpen Iron*








Just like sharpening a chisel.
Lap the face. 









We set the honing guide for 25 degrees up and honed up to 8000 Grit
















We ground camber (curve) into the blade. Both of them are aggressively cambered and we plan to regrind and home one to make it more subtle.

*Step 3: Tune Chip Breaker*
We ground the chip breaker so that it sits flat on the plane iron.








Smoothing the top of the chip breaker so that chips rise easily.
















*Step 4: Tune Frog and Bed*
We removed the frog, taped the lateral adjustment and then ground the frog flat on a diamond plate.








Before








After
We put a silicone carbonate powder in grease and then ground the frog against the bed to seat it properly.








*Step 4: Assemble*








Now I should say that I did lose the frog adjustment screw and tote nut to Kristin's plane. A few days later and a new set arrived it in the mail. I left the dog house.

*Trial*
The planes cut like a dream.
















Restored….

Next time: Block Planes


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## WayneC (Mar 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


Very nice guys. Really like the 4c. It looks like a great find.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


Big Job but worth it.


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## sikrap (Mar 15, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


Nice!! I just took a class on tuning a plane, but we didn't get into grinding the frog. What is the purpose of that?


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


Best piece of sandpaper you'll ever own…LOL…Blkcherry


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


sikrap-
Flattening the Frog ensures there is a good mating surface for the blade to rest on when in use. A non-flat frog will cause "chatter". As the plane iron skims across the wood, it will unseat itself and bounce around on the surface of the frog, causing an inconsistent cut.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


This is a nice post, Giz. I have a couple of planes that I need to tune up and this post is certainly a motivation to do mine.

Nice job.


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## sikrap (Mar 15, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *Smoothing Plane Restorations*
> 
> Our next project in class tune a smoothing plane. We bought a No. 3 Stanley for Kristin at the Swap Meet and I bought a Stanley No. 4C on E-Bay.
> 
> ...


Thanks JL, I appreciate that. I would also like to point out (just in case there's anyone out there as ignorant as I) that its really not that much work to "tune" a plane. I had always put it off thinking it would take days. We tuned ours up in about 30 minutes and that included flattening the sole, grinding the hollow bevel, and working the stones up to 8000 grit. It was amazing to see how differently the plane performed after versus before.


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*

*Block Plane Tuning*
Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.








This is pretty simple. We started by lapping and sharpening the blade as described in our prior blog entries.








We lapped the sole on a diamond plate to flatten it and then polished it on water stones.








We tuned the lever cap by removing paint from the underside on the grinding stone.








and then polished the curve of leading edge of the lever cap.








Here are the finished planes which cut like dreams.









*Tool Gloat One*
I bought and antique Staley no 7 in good shape. A few replacements but I tuned it up just as described in the prior blogs. Check it out.

















The plane will make its appearance in a future blog.


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## WayneC (Mar 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*
> 
> *Block Plane Tuning*
> Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.
> ...


Very nice. Any shots of the planes in action?


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*
> 
> *Block Plane Tuning*
> Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.
> ...


Upcoming Wayne.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

gizmodyne said:


> *Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*
> 
> *Block Plane Tuning*
> Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.
> ...


Looking good


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*
> 
> *Block Plane Tuning*
> Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.
> ...


Giz, I think that it is admirable you are getting into hand tools. I know that I have long neglected to develop these skills and focused on power tools, largely neglecting to develop my hand skills. But I have found that they do have a place in any shop.

Nice score on the #7 too by the way. I have one that belonged to my father that needs to be tuned. These posts have been an inspiration to get started on this project.


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *Block Planes and Tool Gloat One*
> 
> *Block Plane Tuning*
> Our next step was to tune our our block planes. We tuned a Stanley 220 and a Stanley 60 1/2.
> ...


At this point I have spent more time sharpening then woodworking, but the knowledge is invaluable. I am looking forward to incorporating the skills into my power tool work.


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*100% Handtools Box and Tool Gloat Two*

*Final Project*
Our final project for class is to build a 100% hand tools built box / tote.
The tote requirements:
Through Dovetails
Rabbeted Bottom Panel glued up from two pieces
Handle with through tenons.

*Practice.*
I practiced surfacing a rough poplar board and cut my first set of dovetails. Not great, but it was first time.









*Lumber Prep*
We bought an 11' foot African Mahogany board to build our two totes.








We started by halving to share.








We then each rough cut two 24" pieces to use as a pair of sides and ends for each box.








We tried out the Veritas Scrub Plane to take the lumber form +1" to 5/8" by taking 1/4 from each side. We planed one side to stabilize it ….








...then guaged 1/4" off the other side and scrub planed like crazy.
















Kris uses the scrub plane.









I used my fore plane to clean up the faces. I am at around 5/8" now.

















I still have some surfacing to do on these pieces and Kristin has a even more to do.

*New Toy*
We enjoyed using the scrub plane so much that we stopped at Woodcraft and picked up a new toy. (Plus we have more to surface and no class time for several weeks).










































We will be giving it a test run later this week.

Next time: more box work.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *100% Handtools Box and Tool Gloat Two*
> 
> *Final Project*
> Our final project for class is to build a 100% hand tools built box / tote.
> ...


Giz, that is a gorgeous plane. Again, it is wonderful to see you and Kris spending time together developing your hand skills. It does look like a lot of work but I am sure you two are having fun.

But just got just one plane? After all doesn't Kris need her own plane as well?


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## gizmodyne (Mar 15, 2007)

*S4S the Hard Way..First Dovetails and my new favorite tool is ...*

When we left off on the last blog, we were scrub planing to rough thickness. I was a little ahead of Kristin on the project without any pictures, so many of these are pics of her working the steps. We each made a box. I have more pics of her working and my finished box. 
*S4S the Hard Way*








Flatten one side. We roughed it out with the scrub plane and finished with our No. 7. The longer plane really makes a difference in getting the stock flat.









Then we used a marking gauge to scribe the thickness around the edges. I really like the blade style gauges which slice like a knife.

Plane to the lines.









Once two faces are parallel we jointed one edge, and then scribed the final width. (missing pics of this step.

Then we rough ripped the board staying clear of the line.









Again. Using the jointer plane to hit the width.









We did a pretty poor job on documenting with pics due to the fact that we fighting to shoot the edges square. Hand tools are rough!

*Dovetails*
We used a basic bevel gauge to mark the dovetails.
















Here is a tail board ready for work.

Then we cut….








and cut….








and cut.









There was also a lot of chiseling, but we didn't film it.

Here is a pic of my first successful set of dovetails.








Now to be fair I cut three sets of awful looking practice tails, but these are pretty nice. Not bragging, but I am proud of the little guys.

And here is my box with the four sides joined together.









*Panel Time*
One requirement of the project was to glue up the bottom panel. So I had to rip it apart and then glue it back together.









Then I used my new favorite tool. The router plane. I spent a few hours sharpening a quarter inch bit and then started grooving the panels. 








There is more to it than this, but to suffice to say: it is fun; smooth rolling cuts.









I used my shoulder plane to rabbet the panel edges.

Here is the box bottom fit into the grooves.









*Some thoughts*
I have finally learned to S4S a board by hand, to joint two boards for and edge glue up by hand, and most important to me, to dovetail.

Next time: I mortise the sides and make a handle for the tote.


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## Jimi_C (Jul 17, 2009)

gizmodyne said:


> *S4S the Hard Way..First Dovetails and my new favorite tool is ...*
> 
> When we left off on the last blog, we were scrub planing to rough thickness. I was a little ahead of Kristin on the project without any pictures, so many of these are pics of her working the steps. We each made a box. I have more pics of her working and my finished box.
> *S4S the Hard Way*
> ...


I love those router planes, ever since I saw Tommy MacDonald using one on his bombe chest. Congrats on the nice looking dovetails. I've tried one set since getting my new chisels, and they didn't come out great, but I haven't had a chance to try and adjust them to fit right yet… to dang cold in my garage right now to be out there for long.


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## Ecocandle (Jan 2, 2010)

gizmodyne said:


> *S4S the Hard Way..First Dovetails and my new favorite tool is ...*
> 
> When we left off on the last blog, we were scrub planing to rough thickness. I was a little ahead of Kristin on the project without any pictures, so many of these are pics of her working the steps. We each made a box. I have more pics of her working and my finished box.
> *S4S the Hard Way*
> ...


Wonderful blog post. I am very new to all of this, and I have to ask, what is S4S? You used it twice and I don't know what it means.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

gizmodyne said:


> *S4S the Hard Way..First Dovetails and my new favorite tool is ...*
> 
> When we left off on the last blog, we were scrub planing to rough thickness. I was a little ahead of Kristin on the project without any pictures, so many of these are pics of her working the steps. We each made a box. I have more pics of her working and my finished box.
> *S4S the Hard Way*
> ...


Giz, it looks like you and Kristin are really getting into your hand tool routine. I think it is great to see these talents developed. And, yes, you should be proud of the dovetails. They look pretty good to me. Let's just say I have cut more than three practice sets and am not ready to post any photos yet.


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