# lathe tool sharpening



## glycerine (Aug 26, 2009)

I don't have a grinder, I do have a disc/belt sander.  I don't have any sharpening jigs, but I can make some.  What's the best and easiest way to sharpen my gouge, skew chisel, etc with my sander?


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## Wildman (Aug 26, 2009)

Before getting my grinder & Wolverine, used a belt sander to sharpen my tools. Made a jig to hold the belt sander & freehand sharpened my tools.


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## glycerine (Aug 26, 2009)

Wildman said:


> Before getting my grinder & Wolverine, used a belt sander to sharpen my tools. Made a jig to hold the belt sander & freehand sharpened my tools.


 
And I guess that worked well enough?  my sander is a benchtop kind, not a handheld belt sander, so I could probably do that as well.  I just don't know if I trust myself to get a good bevel.  especially on the curved tools like the gouge.


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## Wheaties (Aug 26, 2009)

I got a $20 grizzly grinder. Works great. I just free hand it, and am getting pretty good at it. Just another option if you don't want to break the bank on a fancy grinder.


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## Majorbdk (Aug 26, 2009)

Until I can afford the pro setup I made this but it does require a grinder.


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## titan2 (Aug 26, 2009)

glycerine said:


> I don't have a grinder, I do have a disc/belt sander. I don't have any sharpening jigs, but I can make some. What's the best and easiest way to sharpen my gouge, skew chisel, etc with my sander?


 
Check out this site for Robert Sorby's ProEdge Sharpening System......
Looks pretty neat......

http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/


Barney


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## bitshird (Aug 26, 2009)

titan2 said:


> Check out this site for Robert Sorby's ProEdge Sharpening System......
> Looks pretty neat......
> 
> http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/
> ...



Looks pretty expensive as well


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## JimB (Aug 26, 2009)

I still use a $20 grinder from Big Lots and a home made jig.


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## jleiwig (Aug 26, 2009)

I just use some diamond hones.  That's all you really need as long as your not changing the profile of your tools.


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## thewishman (Aug 26, 2009)

I used oilstones freehand for the first 18 months. Moved on to honing with leather and a honing compound for another 6 - 8 months. Finally got a slow speed grinder. The oilstones came from a variety store for a few dollars. 

You don't need fancy equipment. Now, I mostly use a diamond credit card hone for most of my sharpening.


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## Wildman (Aug 27, 2009)

A lot of turners use nothing but a belt sander to sharpen their tools. Just takes practice. 

Many years ago read an article in AAW, guy used something similar to 1" x 6" Delta model belt sander. Wood Turning Design showed a guy that uses model similar to my Hitachi belt/disk sander.


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## dasimm (Aug 27, 2009)

Not to be the contrarian...

I used to use a sander to sharpen my tools up to about a month ago... but then I went to a class with a pro-turner and he changed my mind. 

After the class I spent just under 100 bucks for a grinder & jig setup. I could have done it cheaper - but I chose not too.  If money is really tight - look for a used grinder (craigs list or ebay), an inexpensive one from Harbor Freight or Grizzly (for the warranty), or pick one up at a garage sale. Recently I picked up a premium Jet Bandsaw for $50.00 at a garage sale - so they are worth checking out.

IMHO it's worth the few extra dollars  for the grinder as it should last you a lifetime. The difference between my tool sharpness before and after are worlds apart.

just my 2 cents worth.


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## wb7whi (Aug 27, 2009)

I use the flatbed sander to clean up and sharpen the skew but you should really invest in a slow speed grinder for the gouges.


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## NewLondon88 (Aug 27, 2009)

Up until the last few weeks, I used a belt sander to sharpen tools. I sort of
'guesstimated' the angle to start, but right away you can feel if you're changing
the angle or not. They got plenty sharp.. but I probably wore away more of the
steel than I needed to. Certainly more than if I had a proper jig for the grinding
wheel.

btw, I have low speed and high speed grinding wheels, wet and dry.. the belt 
sander was just much faster. I've also had them professionally sharpened, but
that just cost more money. They didn't cut any better than than doing them freehand
on the belt sander..


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## glycerine (Aug 28, 2009)

Thanks for the info everyone.  I guess it wouldn't be a problem for me to spend the money on a grinder or add one to my Christmas list, but I'm just trying to find a way to use what I have.  On the other hand, I want to make sure it's done "right".  Sounds like some of you use a grinder and some of you use a sander, so I'll give my sander a shot and see how that goes.


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## MDEdwards (Aug 28, 2009)

I have an expensive wet grinder, but the most valuble tool to me is the felt tip marker. By painting the edge then maching the angle, I'm able to quickly get scary sharp tools.
Michael


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## glycerine (Aug 28, 2009)

MDEdwards said:


> I have an expensive wet grinder, but the most valuble tool to me is the felt tip marker. By painting the edge then maching the angle, I'm able to quickly get scary sharp tools.
> Michael


 
So you are freehanding it and using to marker to make sure you're touching the whole edge to the grinder?


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## dcavazos2000 (Oct 15, 2009)

Wolverine Jig VS Worksharp

The Wolverine Jig is a good tool to have. My setup is a Craftsman (full speed) 6in grinder with a White Extra Fine Disk and a Gray Fine Disk (this disk was included on the Grinder)

You can buy the Grinder and wolverine for $120 (both) and this is a one time payment
or until the disk completly done

The Worksharp is a great equipment with a good price (180-200) but the down side is that the sanpaper is expensive and you will have to replace it very often.

a 1 inch belt sander will do the work but your can damage your tools very easy


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## edman2 (Oct 15, 2009)

When I first started to turn pens I walked into Grizzly to look for ''stuff" and the salesman told me to always color my bevels with a felt tip marker before I sharpened so I could tell if I was holding the tool at the correct angle. I was using a belt sander at the time.  I still color the bevels while using my Wolverine to be sure I am getting the correct contact with the wheel.




MDEdwards said:


> I have an expensive wet grinder, but the most valuble tool to me is the felt tip marker. By painting the edge then maching the angle, I'm able to quickly get scary sharp tools.
> Michael


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## NewLondon88 (Oct 15, 2009)

dcavazos2000 said:


> The Worksharp is a great equipment with a good price (180-200) but the down side is that the sanpaper is expensive and you will have to replace it very often.



You can put *any* sticky backed disc on it, they don't have to be the ones
from Worksharp (yeah, those are too expensive)

You'll have to trim a little, poke a hole in the middle etc.  but it works just
fine. It's just an adhesive backed 6" disc.

BTW .. the Worksharp is just a 6" disc sander and built in jig. You can get
more accessories (I got several glass plates on sale for short money) and
mount successively finer grits on the Worksharp until you're polishing with
6000 MicroMesh. And like other sanding discs, you can clean them to 
extend the life of the discs.


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## nwcatman (Nov 4, 2009)

i have a TORMEK w/all the bells and whistles that i rarely use. just sits there staring at me all the time. i would probably make someone a hell of a deal on it if i got caught in the right mood. hate to see a fine tool not being used.


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## snyiper (Nov 4, 2009)

I mainly use a Skew and a Carbide bit tool. I just sharpen my Skew on 400 and 1000 grit paper glued onto a piece of glass. I color the edge with a sharpie or Dychem fluid and hand stroke them, only takes a few passes and your good to go!!!!


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## glycerine (Nov 4, 2009)

nwcatman said:


> i have a TORMEK w/all the bells and whistles that i rarely use. just sits there staring at me all the time. i would probably make someone a hell of a deal on it if i got caught in the right mood. hate to see a fine tool not being used.


 
Well, let me know when you're in the right mood and we'll talk!
Yeah, I just didn't know if it was worth buying a dedicated sharpening tool for or if I could just use what I have and still get the job done somewhat correctly.


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## Daniel (Nov 4, 2009)

I have the Wolverine set up. It is expensive for the simple job it is doing. I bought it at a time I meant to pamper myself so I am not sorry. I also woudl not hesitate to advise someone to make there own. all the gouge jig is doing is holding the end of the handle at the correct distance so that the cutting edge is getting ground at the correct angle. the verigrind jig is a bit more complicated but you only need it if you want to put a fingernail grind on your gouge. the skew jig basically does the same thing as the gouge jig except it need to be able to hold the tool off to each side of the grinding wheel to get the correct angle on the cutting edge. they are really nothing fancy or heavy duty. The cost of an actual pro set up is more about they look good than work any better or worse. The wolverine is very fast and easy to set up so that is a plus.


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## Mark (Nov 4, 2009)

I just ordered the Jet Slow Speed Wet Sharpener with the Tormek add-ons.
It should be here in a couple weeks.

I've been using a craftsman grinder (I already had) and a fine wheel. I'm hoping I see a difference with the new system.

We shall see...


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## NewLondon88 (Nov 4, 2009)

I just sold a Delta slow speed wet grinder.. and found a conversion kit to turn it
into a Tormek style grinder.. and it will take all the bells and whistles.
Might just have to go back and find another Delta..


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