181 – My Sharpening System

Video - August 31, 2012

Note – This video was captured from a live session back in 2011. It was posted on the site (you may have already seen it) but because Ustream only allowed me to download a Flash version, I wasn’t able to put the video into the official feeds and folks with Apple devices couldn’t see it at all. Let me warn you ahead of time that both the video and audio are not up to my usual standards. But the information is really good so I thought it was worth posting in a more official sense. I hope you enjoy!

For me, sharpening is purely a utilitarian task. Therefore it needs to be both easy and fast. I would much rather spend a little more money on a product that will help me reach those goals than to save a few bucks and wind up making things more difficult for myself. After all, the easier/faster it is to put an edge on your tool, the more likely you are to do it. Unfortunately, many folks tend to over-complicate sharpening and look at it as a skill to be mastered. In my opinion, sharpening is the woodworking equivalent of filling my car with gas. Do it right and the car goes. Do it wrong and I’m going no where. Perfecting my ability to swipe the debit card and insert the nozzle with style and flare doesn’t really change the fact that all I’m doing is filling my tank with gas. The primary goal is to get you back to work with as sharp of an edge as is required for your work. Hopefully this video will give you a few tips that show you how easy sharpening can be, with the right tools.

We’ll talk about water stones, Shapton Stones, the Veritas MKII jig, DMT plates, free-hand sharpening, scary sharp, and a few other topics from the chat room questions. Please enjoy this live presentation. And as always, I have no control over the commercials that show up in this embedded video.

Special thanks to Shannon from The Hand Tool School for helping me field questions in the chat room!

Discussion

Chuck M July 27, 2011 9:34 am

Thanks for recording this. I need to get a sharpening guide.

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- Steve Yandell September 7, 2012 4:26 pm
  
  Great video, i’ve never gotten into self-sharpening, but I think it’s about time! Thanks for the tips on quick sharpening, I always find myself in the middle of using a chisel and I HATE having to stop, but this seems like a method I could have ready to go.
  
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Erik July 27, 2011 11:30 am

I had a question that got lost in the chat log yesterday:

I noticed that when you honed your primary bevel it looks skewed on the face of the chisel. I get this as well with my MKII jig. Do you pay much attention to that or is it not that important?

Thanks!

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- thewoodwhisperer July 27, 2011 11:43 am
  
  Generally, you want the tip to be nice and square. So if the original factory bevel is not perfectly square to the side of the chisel, using a jig that DOES keep things perfectly square will result in a new bevel that seems to be skewed. When in reality it is actually now square. The other side of this is if the original bevel is square and you start seeing a skew, that means the jig is slightly off. Personally, I don’t think its a big deal as long as its not too significant. Bottom line is once you start using the jig a lot, all your chisels will be exactly as “square” as your jig. So you’ll be nice and consistent across the board. In my case, my jig is square but some of my chisels have a factory bevel that is not square.
  
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Tom Buhl July 27, 2011 8:19 pm

Initially I had mixed results with the MKII. Mostly a result of skewing troubles.
Lately, I’ve decided that you must really crank down on those knurled knobs or the chisel is too likely to move. With the leverage, just a tiny amount of movement has significant effect.
Since I notice you really crank on those knobs, seems design-wise, LV should make those knobs twice (?) the diameter to assist a firm hold. Small chisels are more troublesome as there is a small amount of contact area.

What aspect(s) of the Shapton stones won you over? Compared to say, Norton waterstones?

Thanks much

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- thewoodwhisperer July 27, 2011 10:49 pm
  
  You definitely touched on one of my major annoyances with the jig Tom. After 5-6 chisels, my fingers are pretty darn sore! And if you use pliers to do the tightening, you will damage the knobs. So I just power through the pain like a champ. :)
  
  As for the Shaptons, what won me over was the fact that they last longer and don’t require any soaking. Just spritz and go.
  
  Reply
  - Tom Buhl July 28, 2011 6:32 am
    
    Think I’m a about ready to go Shapton. My initial Norton 1000/4000 combo stone has plenty of material left, but the soaking thing, while no big deal, actually is, because it adds to the time dealing with it. Not a lot of time, yet, it gets in the way. While the Norton?s are not physically worn out, they might not be as efficient cutting as they once were.
    
    Re: jigs
    At a Lie-Nielsen road show I picked up a Side Clamping Guide. I appreciated this quickness of set up. Knurled knob has fat screwdriver slot so one can get it tight without resorting to pliers. Quicker to set up than MKII. Downside is that about half of sizes of my plane blades and chisels do not fit securely. So I’m still figuring out the when?s to use either jig. As you say, there is benefit to sticking with one method. The Side Clamping jig is not a LN product, they just carry them. Cost of $14 makes cost of experimenting less painful than many of our adventures.
    
    Thanks for the quality videos and followups. You do good work (ahem, play).
    
    Reply
  - John Davidson December 13, 2011 7:18 pm
    
    I’m not 100% sure, but I think you could replace the knurled nuts with ones that you can use a phillips or flat screwdriver to loosen and tighten. These are found on some ceiling fans and light fixtures. If I find a source I will post it. Anyone know the tread count and size of the ones on the MK 2?
    
    Reply
Johnathon July 27, 2011 8:49 pm

One question I have, that everyone just touches on, is the flattening of the back of the chisels. I have two different sets: Marples and Lie-Nielsen. My Marples are my “everyday” chisels and the LN are for delicate work. I have spent quite some time trying to completely flatten the Marples but I can never seems to get them flat. On the other hand my LN came from the factory dead flat (I have a Starrett straight edge that I use for reference). So, my (long winded) question is how important is a dead flat chisel? I would like to get the Marples to match the LN but I have literally spent hours trying to flatten them.

Reply
- thewoodwhisperer July 27, 2011 10:54 pm
  
  Hey Johnathon. I feel your pain my friend. I pretty much have the same experience with my Marples. This is why I refer to my Marples set as my “utility” chisels. I don’t expect them to be nearly as sharp as my Japanese chisels or my LN mortising chisels. And part of the reason is I tend to have the same issue you do. It seems that you can work the back for ever and it never looks consistently flat like higher quality chisels. So I simply try to focus my flattening effort on the bottom 1″ or so of the chisel back. I can usually get that close enough to flat that sharpening the bevel still produces a decent burr. If that doesn’t work, you can always try the ruler trick. Now most folks say NOT to do the ruler trick with a chisel. But with a utility set, I think its perfectly fine. The ruler trick is usually done with a small metal ruler. Google it for a little more info on it. But I recommend using a set of long feeler gauges instead. This will allow you to prop up the chisel only slightly, putting all of your flattening focus closer to the tip, which raising it up quite as much as a metal ruler. Give it a shot and let me know how it works out.
  
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  - Johnathon September 1, 2012 7:35 pm
    
    Hey Marc, I am stubborn if anything else and I am still trying to get those Marple’s backs flat. Mainly because I want to have a good understanding of sharpening before I tackle the LN’s. I recently got a Dia-Sharp Diamond plate and have been using that. I am still not able to flatten even the first inch of the back of the chisels. One thing I have noticed is that the middle of the Dia-Sharp actually feels less “rough” then the ends. I have only sharpened on it for about an hour, but I don’t think that amount of time would dull the Dia-sharp. You might not be able to answer this, but do you think it could, or can the Dia-Sharp get “clogged” and cleaning it (not sure how) would restore the “roughness”?
    
    Reply
    - thewoodwhisperer September 2, 2012 9:30 am
      
      Hey Johnathon. The DMT stone will definitely feel a bit smoother in the areas where it gets used most often. I find just a good water rinse is usually enough. As for your chisel, have you tried using the trick where you prop it up ever so slightly, putting the focus near the tip? That’s why I do with my Marples. Gets the job done.
    - Hans September 7, 2012 8:51 am
      
      I feel your pain. I dropped my iron from my Lie Nielsen boggs spoke shave and had to fix it. I have a DMT dia sharp d8C and I literally spent 3hrs trying to bring it back. i felt like my stone was dull. I talked to a my local dealer and he told me it’s worth getting the extra course DMT dia sharp d8x. In about 15 min I removed all the damage and moved to the d8c for clean up before hitting the shapton pro’s.
Tobbe Arnesson July 28, 2011 12:20 am

Hm, Ustream seems to not work with Firefox today but it worked fine in Internet Explorer so no biggie.

Good info (as per usual), just recently ordered my first planes and chisels along with a double sided water stone. Need to get a DMT and jig as well, I have no interest in the philosophical aspects of sharpening.

Is the chat log saved? I tried looking at the “Live Chat/Video” pages but could not tell, will I get access to that if I register a Chat Name?

Reply
- thewoodwhisperer July 28, 2011 9:00 am
  
  Hey Tobbe. The chat log is not saved. Sorry my friend.
  
  Reply
Marilyn July 28, 2011 6:00 am

Simple! I love it!

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Patrick July 28, 2011 1:01 pm

Mark, have you ever used oil stones and if so what didn’t you like about them. I noticed that the “Schwarz” stated in a recent blog he was going back to them.

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- thewoodwhisperer July 28, 2011 1:17 pm
  
  Its all just personal preference really. For me, it comes down to the fact that I absolutely despise anything oily on my skin, and that goes for lotions, chapstick, etc, lol. I’d much rather have my hands in water than the oily residue created by oil stones.
  
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Renzo July 28, 2011 1:39 pm

Hey Marc…

Can I ask where you got the Shapton stones? I love the idea of spritzing and going rather than soaking.

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- thewoodwhisperer July 28, 2011 2:07 pm
  
  I got mine years ago on Amazon. Click on the picture in the show notes and it will take you right there.
  
  Reply
Chad E July 28, 2011 2:11 pm

Perfect timing. I’ve been wanting to get into using hand tools more but my lack of sharpening knowledge has kept me from doing just that. I’ve got some old stones but didn’t know how to flatten them, thus, anytime I sharpen something, it doesn’t work so well. I’d love to save up for those Shapton ones. They sure have good reviews and I’m a sucker for not buying things twice. I’d rather be patient and save up for the good stuff if it’s something I’d be switching to sooner than later. Thanks!

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Glenn Folley July 28, 2011 5:22 pm

Marc, I have used the stones for years with good results. After watching you video I picked up some tips to bring my skills up a notch. Thanks for the help.

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Wirenut July 28, 2011 8:55 pm

Never used stones or sharpened a chisel in my life except for that time with the bench grinder ( brrr… brrr… ) which totally destroyed the temper on the steel BTW. Thankfully, that was only a cheapo chisel.

Now that I have decent chisels, I need to take good care of them and you’ve just demystified the whole process of sharpening with stones and made it simple for me.

Thanks Marc

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TennesseeYankee July 28, 2011 10:54 pm

Jigs make sharpening so much simpler. I am sure there are experts out there that can free hand it down to a bevel that is 1 micro thick, but while they are perfecting the edge, I just finished my first four parings. (Or so I would like to think :^)

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DeGauss July 29, 2011 9:16 am

Mark,
Do you have any skewed (non squared) blades? If so do you just free hand those?

Thanks

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- thewoodwhisperer July 29, 2011 9:40 am
  
  I actually don’t have any skewed blades to worry about. But if I did, I would likely do my best to go free-hand. And if I had lots of them to do or if I couldn’t get good results by hand, I might try this: http://www.leevalley.com/en/wo.....3072,43078
  
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Jon McGrath July 29, 2011 9:24 am

I posted this on the google+ stream but I needed to reiterate and expand on my opinion of the chat this week on the topic of sharpening.

@WoodWhisperer @RenaissanceWW Awesome Sharpening chat tonight, thanks, huge insight on 2 things JUST DO IT and KEEP it SIMPLE!

Marc, I think this was one of the best ever sets that TWW has produced. It is why I joined the guild, and why I follow the site/your productions. This is what I need, quick informal go at it hands on, focused walk or “show and tell”

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- thewoodwhisperer July 29, 2011 9:38 am
  
  Thanks very much Jon! Very happy you enjoyed it. I’ll have to make time for more events like this in the future.
  
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Larry Whittington July 29, 2011 6:04 pm

How do you handle your planer and jointer blades? Veritas offers a jig to do smaller jointer blades up to 8″ with that I’ve had pretty good results with. Just curious how you handle yours.

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- thewoodwhisperer July 29, 2011 6:56 pm
  
  I package them up very carefully and have them sharpened professionally. :)
  
  Reply
  - Larry Whittington July 30, 2011 8:35 am
    
    Thanks. You taught me more in that 45 minute video than all the other videos combined that I’ve seen on sharpening. Loved it. Keep up the good work.
    
    Reply
VitalBodies July 30, 2011 12:52 am

Awesome as always. Learned a lot and then learned more. You might have said and I missed it, but is this the same thing you do for hand planes?

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- thewoodwhisperer July 30, 2011 9:14 am
  
  For the most part, yes. But there are certainly some additional considerations with plane blades when introducing cambers and sharpening for bevel up vs bevel down planes. But in general, in terms of creating a flat back and a bevel, the concept is the same.
  
  Reply
  - VitalBodies July 30, 2011 11:58 pm
    
    Looking forward to more on sharpening as your time and To Do list allows. You covered the basics/concepts in a way that the foundation stuff makes sense and is there to build upon which really helps.
    
    Also a side comment and question. Nice use of two cameras.
    
    The sound was not a high as usual, had to cranking it up on my end, might be the Ustream – I say not expecting a answer but just to let you know.
    
    What is that ball/robot/death star on the tripod?
    
    Reply
    - thewoodwhisperer July 31, 2011 8:02 am
      
      The ball on a stick is the reason for the sound, lol. These live demonstrations are always trick to get good quality sound on. I’m working on a solution that should allow me to have top-notch with a much more convenient setup. Although quiet, this is much better than what I had last time where it was peaking out every couple of words. This is why I used to actually film the live sessions with my regular camera and edit them down later. Unfortunately, that’s just too time consuming in setup and post…..
Paul July 30, 2011 8:59 pm

Marc have you tried the Sigma Power brand stones. Lee Valley is the only North American company that I’ve seen carries them. I’ve read good things about them but would like to hear some opinions from someone who actually has one. I’ll be buying my first “real” stones soon and I’m on the fence between those and the Shapton Pro.

Btw in case anyone is interested chefknivestogo.com has a great deal on Shaptons. If I go with shaptons I’ll probably get the 1k, 5k, 8k set which they sell for $209.

Thanks for the video Marc. Only wished I caught it live.

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- thewoodwhisperer July 30, 2011 9:56 pm
  
  Thanks Paul. Unfortunately I have no experience with the Sigma Power stones so I can’t help you there. Maybe someone else will be able to chime in.
  
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PickeringMike July 31, 2011 9:08 am

Thanks for this one. It just reinforces my need to stick with one method instead of hopping between methods to try and find a quick fix. Cheers!

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Paul July 31, 2011 5:08 pm

Hey Marc. Quick question about Japanese chisels. What happens when you’ve sharpened it past the hollow? Is the chisel useless then?

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- thewoodwhisperer July 31, 2011 8:36 pm
  
  Nope. Just take more material off the back and you’ll expose more metal at the bevel. And honestly, most hobbyists and small shop pros probably will never have to even worry about that.
  
  Reply
  - Jeff Waggoner August 6, 2011 12:23 pm
    
    Wilbur Pan has a couple great post about this.
    
    http://giantcypress.net/post/9.....qus_thread
    http://giantcypress.net/post/5.....ap-revenge
    
    Reply
Jay August 1, 2011 6:19 am

Does anyone know the difference between the Shapton Pro Ceramic Stones and the Shapton GlassStones? The glass ones are a lil cheaper.

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- Paul August 1, 2011 8:33 am
  
  I’m no expert but this is the info I’ve gathered in preparing to buy my first set of premium water stones. The glass stones are thinner. They’re 5mm useable thickness compared to the 15mm. According to Shapton’s ad though the glass stones are supposed to last most other stones that are 3x thicker. They don’t advertise any such comparisons to their pro model. Also when the pro gets too thin you have to glue it on to a hard surface otherwise it will break. Not so with the glass since it’s already glued on to a piece of glass :D To add to all the confusion there’s also a US and Japanese version of the Pro. :)
  
  For anyone interested here’s a comparison of many waterstones. Including Shaptons. First link shows how many strokes it took him to get a burr and the 2nd link shows stone consumption. Now this was done by someone who actually sells stones for a living so take that into account. Really nice guy. He goes by Schtoo on woodnet if you have any questions for him. As you can see the glass seems to do better with 02 steel while the pros better with A1. The glass in most cases however seems to wear a little better.
  
  http://www.toolsfromjapan.com/wordpress/?p=672
  http://www.toolsfromjapan.com/wordpress/?p=678
  
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Jim August 4, 2011 12:41 pm

Thanks for this video Marc! This did much to help me understand how I’ll sharpen my new Narex chisels that arrived today (the ones currently on sale from Lee Valley).

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- thewoodwhisperer August 4, 2011 12:55 pm
  
  Lots of folks have been inquiring about that set. Be sure and report back with your thoughts.
  
  Reply
  - Jim August 4, 2011 6:15 pm
    
    Will do Marc. They should be an upgrade to the basic Craftsman ones I have now. I’ll look to try them out “out of the box”, then again after sharpening.
    
    Reply
    - Jim August 7, 2011 9:42 pm
      
      Hi Marc,
      
      I got a chance to play with the chisels some out of the box – no work done to them yet. From this somewhat new guy’s perspective, they seem like very good working chisels. Comfortable to use, the handles feel nice to me. I should be getting some sharpening stones in tomorrow, which I will use to flatten the backs, etc.
      
      Since you mentioned other folks were interested in them, I decided to post an “unboxing” video and tested them out on a child’s worktable/desk I’m working on. If folks want to check that video out, it can be found at http://thewoodlab.wordpress.co.....ve-part-1/
tony August 5, 2011 7:04 pm

hey marc,
do you put a secondary bevel on Japanese chisels or you leave the primary? what primary do you use?
thank you

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- thewoodwhisperer August 5, 2011 7:42 pm
  
  Hey Tony. That’s actually what I demonstrated in the video. I sharpened one of my Japanese chisels. I usually go with about 30 degrees on the primary and then add a secondary bevel.
  
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Manfre August 11, 2011 9:01 pm

Are there any benefits to water stones compared to wet/dry sandpaper on a granite surface stone?

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- thewoodwhisperer August 12, 2011 7:17 am
  
  Generally speaking, the two main benefits of stones are you can go to finer grits and you don’t need to buy sand paper.
  
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Tom Buhl August 12, 2011 7:32 am

My impression of this exercise is that the finer grits get you finer polish, which yields fewer/smaller micro jaggies. Fewer jaggies mean less chance of edge failure/breakdown. So if waterstones (or ?) allow you to go to finer grits (i.e., higher degree of polish), your edge lasts longer, which means less or fewer sharpening sessions.
Yes?
Or?

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Steve Colvin August 13, 2011 6:54 am

I found this video just when I needed it. I just bought a set of the Narex chisels from Lee Vally, and I also have Shapton glass stones (1000 & 6000) and the Veritas honing guide. So, I was able to get help on exactly how to use my setup, and have produced some nicely sharpened chisels. Thanks again.

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BillyBob August 14, 2011 9:14 am

Love how you take a “dull” topic and make it entertaining. Must be your dry humor. Thanks for taking the time to make a video on a easily ignored, I’ll do it tomorrow topic. If it’s simplified we’re more likely to keep sharp tools.

I’d like to know if you find it worthwhile to sharpen router bits with a mini-honing stone?

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- thewoodwhisperer August 14, 2011 10:26 am
  
  Thanks very much BillyBob! I actually do sharpen some of my bits if they have nice, big, easy to sharpen surfaces. But anything complex I don’t really touch. I would probably be worse off after sharpening, :).
  
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Barr Tinney August 17, 2011 7:49 am

Hi Marc:

A few months ago I purchased the DMT Duo-Sharp Plate to use as a lapping plate for my waterstones. I made the purchase because I read that the DMT Plate was very flat and I read that a number of veteran woodworkers also use this plate for the same reason. Since purchasing the Duo-Sharp I noticed that DMT came out w/ the Duo-Flat 10″ Plate that is designed to be used as a lapping plate. I called DMT to see what the difference between the two products is. I was informed that the plate that I purchased, which is similar to the plate that you have, was not designed for flattening waterstones due to the way that the diamonds are bonded to the plate.
How long have you been using your plate for lapping and have you seen a performance decrease over time?

Reply
- thewoodwhisperer August 17, 2011 8:03 am
  
  I’ve been using it for about 4 years now and I haven’t really seen any performance decrease so far.
  
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Tom Buhl August 17, 2011 10:35 am

Shapton stones and holders arrived yesterday. Bloxygen case was the shipping carton (from Woodcraft). Nice connection ; )

I love the Shapton packaging. Realize that we should be sensitive about wasteful packaging, but these are tasteful and sweet.

off topic: being a graphics person I so love Apple’s packaging. They are cutting back on volume, but so far have managed to (mostly) stand out as packaging marvels. Cool that they’ve been able to maintain that over the years. It is so easy to companies (people) to make the big splash but then wander back to the norm.

now it is time to make more sawdust.
with super shape tools
thanks, Marc and all woodwhisperer readers and viewers

Reply
Marianne August 17, 2011 12:33 pm

There is a video, right? Browsing with my iPad I don’t see it – just blank space where it is usually is placed. I’m doing something wrong?

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- thewoodwhisperer August 17, 2011 1:06 pm
  
  Yep but its Flash unfortunately. No iPad on this one.
  
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  - Pete October 11, 2011 3:02 pm
    
    Bummer! I’ve watched every video on your site that I could with my iPad. Wish I could see this one.
    
    Reply
    - thewoodwhisperer October 11, 2011 3:08 pm
      
      Don’t blame me. Blame Apple and/or Ustream. I don’t care which. :)
Gerry Rovner August 17, 2011 1:43 pm

Marc,

Thanks for you clarity. I’ve had more than good results using a Work Sharp system, for my chisels and my planes. There are some limitations, as there are with every system, but, as you have said, getting the sharpening done, and getting back to work quickly, is the objective. The Work Sharp does that for me.

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Jay September 14, 2011 11:56 am

It seems like the 5000 grit is no longer available on Amazon, Japan Woodworker, etc. I was adding the 1k and 5k to my list, but am somewhat stymied now. It seems like the grits available are 120, 320, 1000, 2000, 8000 and 12000. 5000 seems to have gone off the map.

So…my question is…what grits would you recommend. To me what is available is like sanding wood going from 80 grit (1000), 100 grit (2000) then to 400 grit (8000). I’d like to have an option for the intermediate equivalent of 220 grit. Thoughts?

Reply
- thewoodwhisperer September 14, 2011 1:28 pm
  
  Yeah that’s a bummer. I wonder if they are phasing them out and pushing their glass stones more… You might consider going that route then. I believe they have a 4000 grit stone in the glass line.
  
  Reply
- Tom Buhl September 14, 2011 1:58 pm
  
  There are credible folk (Mr. Cosman for one, might want to check LN Denebe (sp?) vids as well) who go directly from 1000 to 8000 or even 16000. At least for their microbevel sharpening (1000) then polishing (16000). This is the most common sharpening we do and you are not removing a lot of material once you get a consistent and sharp 1000 session. Think that applies to both waterstones and the Shaptons.
  
  If you are doing the initial tuning of large surfaces you might want an intermediate stone I guess.
  
  I agree that it is frustrating to decide on a course of action, only to find that the options selected are not available.
  
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  - Jay October 10, 2011 8:25 am
    
    Thanks for your input both Marc and Tom. I’m fine going with glass stones if that’s the way of the future, but I don’t want to drop hundreds on something that’s not tried and true. Not that Marc’s recommendations are the be all end all, but I thought if it works for him (and I’ve read other good reviews of the stones he has) that was the direction I wanted to go. I’ve used the sand paper on glass method for some time now and I’m just not getting that true flat quality. Dubbing is definitely an issue. Also, Tom, I’ve found other sources that go from 1k to 8k. Makes sense. I’m ready to make the move to the next step. Anyone have additional thoughts on the Shapton Pro versus Shapton Glass?
    
    Reply
    - Jeremy October 19, 2011 4:20 pm
      
      You can still get the 5000 grit here: http://chefknivestogo.ecomm-se.....0&y=0
Jeremy October 22, 2011 3:22 pm

Marc, which side of the DMT do you use for lapping the shaptons? Will you ever need to flatten the DMT?

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- thewoodwhisperer October 23, 2011 8:39 am
  
  The coarsest (black) side. And you shouldn’t need to flatten the DMT ever…..only replace it when the grit wears out.
  
  Reply
Jeremy October 27, 2011 5:44 am

Ok, I just received my set of shapton stones and the DMT Duo Sharp for lapping the stones. Did you flatten the shaptons before using them for the first time? I am a little apprehensive to damage the shaptons by doing something stupid. I am glad to not have to deal with sandpaper for sharpening anymore…

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- thewoodwhisperer October 27, 2011 7:51 am
  
  You should be able to just use the Shaptons. I am sure they are flat from the factory. But there is no harm in giving them a few passes with the DMT just to make sure.
  
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Jeremy October 28, 2011 4:58 pm

Just finished sharpening my first chisel using Marc’s system. I really like the MKII honing guide. It was easy to setup and use. All I have ever used in the past was sandpaper and this setup was a joy to use in comparison. The water isn’t so fun, but the results were well worth it.

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pmelchman October 28, 2011 9:40 pm

Marc,

These Shapton stones, are they the ceramic or the glass ceramic stones? what is the difference?

Regards,

Patrick

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- Jeremy October 30, 2011 5:52 am
  
  The ones Marc uses in the video are the shapton ceramic stones. I am not really clear on the differences between the ceramic stones and the glass stones.
  
  Reply
  - Paul October 30, 2011 8:24 am
    
    The glass stones are thinner but supposed to last longer. Also since they are backed by glass you can use the entire stone. The ceramics when they get too thin will crack unless you adhere it to something solid. But you’d have to do a whole lot of sharpening to get either that thin.
    
    Reply
Jeremy October 29, 2011 9:44 am

I am noticing one strange thing now that I used the MKII honing guide more. When I rotate the roller knob to put on the micro-bevel, I notice that it is not parallel to the primary bevel. The micro bevel is really the tertiary bevel since I changed the primary bevel to 30deg. When I changed the primary bevel to 30deg, this resulted in a new shiny band that was parallel to the original edge. Marc discussed this in the video, and it should indicate that the chisel was no square to begin with. No big deal. I am very confused by the micro bevel not being parallel though. Anyone have any ideas?

Reply
- Jeremy October 29, 2011 9:46 am
  
  One correction here:
  “When I changed the primary bevel to 30deg, this resulted in a new shiny band that was NOT parallel to the original edge”
  
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Ron Kellison November 3, 2011 4:59 pm

I started with a set of King stones about 25 years ago, then moved to Norton shortly after they hit the market. The King’s wore very quickly and the Norton’s less so, but the Norton stones didn’t seem to work as quickly. I’ve used the Shapton stones in the higher grits and they were impressive. While considering the amount I would need to invest in getting 3 basic stones I was given a chance to use the Sigma Power Select II ceramic stones. WOW! They are fast, even with A2 steel, and the price isn’t that prohibitive to anyone considering a set of Shaptons. I got the 1000, 3000 and 8000 stones from Lee Valley but they are also available from Stu Tierney at Tools from Japan. Anybody want a good price on a full set of Norton’s?

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Ron Kellison November 3, 2011 5:01 pm

I should also mention that I use the Veritas Mk II and love it. Since the Sigmas work so well I’m also considering selling my Veritas Power Sharpener. Going once…going twice…

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- Jeremy November 7, 2011 7:43 am
  
  Ron,
  Do you have any issues with the micro bevel not being parallel to the primary bevel when using the MkII?
  
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Ron Kellison November 7, 2011 3:06 pm

Jeremy,

I’ve never noticed a problem but I will also admit that all I look for is a micro-bevel that goes completely across the blade. I also suspect that the wood doesn’t care…sharp is sharp. I’ll look more closely the next round of sharpening.

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- Jeremy November 7, 2011 3:47 pm
  
  Ron, I suspect your are right about the wood not caring about parallelism! :-) I guess the only real downside is that you have to remove more material when creating the micro bevel. I will say that using the MKII with the shapton stones has given me the sharpest edges that I have ever gotten. I can actually shave with them, which is a first!
  
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John Davidson December 11, 2011 10:44 am

I can’t get this video to work. Very interested in topic. This one is not on itunes. Help.

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- thewoodwhisperer December 11, 2011 10:48 am
  
  Hey John. This is an embedded Flash video. Make sure you have the latest version of Flash installed and press play on the player above.
  
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  - John Davidson December 13, 2011 5:58 pm
    
    I had 3rd party cookies turned off. Oopsies. That 3rd party better have peanut butter.
    
    Reply
John Davidson December 13, 2011 6:47 pm

Ok. Now that I can finally watch this video, I think that was awsome. I think Veritas should probably throw you some sponsor money because that is the best video I have seen on how to use it (or any other guide).

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Jason August 11, 2012 8:04 pm

Hello,
Thanks for the info. Clear and easy to understand in a topic that has as many variations as there are woodworkers. So in preparing a new/old chisel, when does a bench grinder come into play in your sharpening system? Can I use the system you just demonstrated (it may just take longer) and do without a grinder? Can a normal bench grinder be used if one is required (as opposed to a slow speed grinder like tormek or Jet)?
Thanks for your time!

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- thewoodwhisperer August 12, 2012 1:19 pm
  
  I really don’t use a bench grinder at all. I have a wet grinder though, which is much slower. And I use that only when I need to reset a bevel or if I do some serious damage to the edge. Although you can also accomplish the same thing with low grit stones if you wanted to. So no, you really don’t need a bench grinder. Especially after you have your tools at the bevel angle you like, you may never have use of one again. If the chisel comes at the angle you like, or close to it, you’re golden. And regular grinders can be used but you have to be very careful. They heat up quickly and can ruin the blade so you have to be very cautious. I have a variable speed bench grinder that I dial all the way down and it’s still a little too fast. But you could use this setup if that’s all you had.
  
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Jason August 13, 2012 4:06 pm

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions!

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Bob August 31, 2012 10:51 am

I already seen it but I went through it again. Very well done and easy to follow.
Marc, Lee Valleys offer planes with either A2 and O1 steel blades. http://www.leevalley.com/en/sh.....px?p=54986

One is harder and the sharp edge last longer but is harder to sharpen and the other is softer and last less longer but is easier to sharpen. Which would be best for an 1 year hobbyist.

Thanks

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- thewoodwhisperer August 31, 2012 2:08 pm
  
  Well I can’t say either is best. It really is about personal preference. I don’t think sharpening is a hard thing to master when using guides like I do, so I say go with the steel that suits your personality. Do you want to sharpen more often or less often. That’s how I decide.
  
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  - Bob September 1, 2012 4:41 am
    
    Thank you Marc for the response. I’ll choose A2 type steel as I don’t want to sharpen that often.
    
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Tom Pritchard August 31, 2012 11:58 am

Sharpening has always been my down fall mainly for my carving tools. I know a diffrent holding method would be required for my tools, but for sure I like the ‘Wet Stone” idea. Thanks for illustrating so well.

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Frank August 31, 2012 12:18 pm

I like how you said debit card and not credit card. :)

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TennesseeYankee August 31, 2012 12:53 pm

Now I am leaning towards a Sharpton. You certainly do persuade.

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Matthew August 31, 2012 10:32 pm

Very cool and so topical as I have a new set of stanley 750’s I’m planning on tuning tomorrow. It’s almost like you read my mind!

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EFG September 1, 2012 6:28 am

hello,
i’m fan of your site vewing from japan for long time. and I’m japanese.
it is fun and also proud to watch japaese chisels in use in Amerian woodworkers shop.
my grand father was wood ship carpenter, so I know little bit about woodworking, also I am hobby woodworker.
and just wanted to comment about “when you run out of round shape on back of chisels, how to fix it”
To fix that we do something called “Ura-Dashi” just meaning ‘Revealing the Back’
we hammer from bevel side and flaten the other side. it is very hard to tell by written word with my English skills but seached on the net and found japanese site showing picture.
http://pub.ne.jp/craftWAKU/?entry_id=515251
but you have to know that it’s very hard to do and you might break it.

if anything i can help(like translating some japanese) you can e mail me.
thank you for very nice video, and keep it comming!

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- EFG September 1, 2012 6:37 am
  
  found many article on google for “Chisel Uradashi”
  also this nice tool.
  http://wnwoodworkingschool.com.....cts_id=480
  
  Reply
Andy S. September 1, 2012 9:21 am

Thanks for posting this again. I have been recently looking at different sharpening solutions. Have you seen or had any experience with the M-POWER DMT PSS SHARPENING SYSTEM? Woodpeckers carry them here http://www.woodpeck.com/dmtpss.html

Thanks again for all your great work.

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- thewoodwhisperer September 2, 2012 9:33 am
  
  I have seen it, but I have no experience with it at all.
  
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  - Andy S. September 12, 2012 1:50 pm
    
    Thanks Mark. Do you have any thoughts on the parallel vs perpendicular motion to the edge? How about the grinding in one spot on these types of stones? Would they need to be flattened like you do with your stones?I like your setup, but am looking for something decent in an affordable price range.
    
    Appreciate all you do. Keep it up.
    
    Reply
    - thewoodwhisperer September 12, 2012 2:48 pm
      
      No input on the side to side vs parallel motion. Never really tried it before. As for flattening, these diamond stones don’t really need flattening. Maybe it’s more accurate to say they can’t be flattened. They are just a metal plate with the diamond grit applied in a thin layer. So all that’s really going to happen is the plate will eventually wear out.
Shannon1066 September 1, 2012 11:58 am

Thank you so much Marc for reposting this video. I’m one of those users that could not hear your previous video on sharpening. Your information is very valuable to me. Thanks again.

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Doug Hoffer September 4, 2012 9:30 am

Marc, your site is fantastic. I have not found a better collection of videos anywhere. I get sucked in as soon as I press play! Thank you for everything and I hope to join the guild this year! Your new shop is looking awesome and Mateo is growning so fast! Keep it up!

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Billiam September 4, 2012 11:31 am

This is one of my favorite session Mark. I’ve read and read about how to do this many times and I’ve attempted it my self, but actually seeing it done along with your thorough explanation really helped me figure it out. A lot of others explain the right way to do it, but not why the wrong way IS wrong.

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John C September 4, 2012 1:07 pm

Mark. One of the biggest issues I am having right now is sharpening chisels that are 1/8″ or less. I’ve tried Veritas MKII, Ecipse Style, Kell, free-hand. Do you have any suggestions that will allow me to re-establish the 2ndary bevel on the smaller chisels?

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- thewoodwhisperer September 4, 2012 2:29 pm
  
  Get a wider chisel? lol Actually, I find this tricky too. I find that the only way I can sharpen them is to go free-hand and not worry so much about a secondary bevel.
  
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Neil Hutchison September 4, 2012 4:00 pm

Thanks for reposting this Marc. I’ve recently been cutting a lot of mortises by hand, and keeping the chisels sharp really makes all the difference to the amount of effort needed. My chisels may not be the highest quality that you can buy, but with a sharp edge, they cut pretty well. I just have to sharpen them a little more frequently. Great info, and very useful to anyone wondering about a method to keep the edge sharp.

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Tomfoolery September 4, 2012 5:30 pm

Marc,
Once of the best things about sharpening is to make it easy so you sharpen often – this really helps to keep your tools sharp – maybe a future project should be a dedicated sharpening station that can “pull out’ from the shelf of the Roubo?

Just a thought….
-Tom

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- Jeremy Scuteri September 4, 2012 6:28 pm
  
  I can certainly see that being useful for the people that “sharpen on the fly”. I don’t really fall into that camp (maybe I should though). I rarely stop what I am doing and sharpen a tool while I am in the middle of doing something. I generally realize something needs sharpening, and then make time to sharpen a bunch of tools at once. It seems hard to get myself to pull out the sharpening stones, spray bottle of water and honing jig while I am in the middle of doing something….
  
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Sean September 4, 2012 6:13 pm

Perfect timing I just recieved my first set of chisels and the information about sharping This helps clear things up thanks

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Chris September 4, 2012 7:19 pm

Thanks for the reminder! I watched this a while back when I got a new set of (cheap) chisels and it worked like a charm…I’m pretty new to hand-tools and didn’t know you had to sharpen them before using them. I was trying pretty hard to square up some mortises and it just wasn’t working. I took a break, watched the video, sharpened, and got back to it…this time it worked MUCH better!

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Sean September 4, 2012 8:14 pm

Hi Marc ,
thanks for the demo. I had a few thoughts. I am new to wood working,a padawan you might say. Sharpening my hand tools is still a mystery to me. I have only had moderate success. I have done a fair amount of research on the topic and came to the conclusion you have. I know for some it is an art form and a skill that takes dedication and patience, but for me it will be a utilitarian skill. So with that in mind I have been leaning towards buying a wet grinder such as the tormek t7. For me it seems like the way to get the most consistent results with the least amount of skill and technique. I also think it is more versatile than a traditional wet stone. I could be wrong but don’t you almost need a grinder to sharpen turning tools. I know I have watched David Marks demonstrate sharpening his turning tools with a grinder. My only concerns with using a grinder is how you would flatten the back of a chisel or plane iron. Any way sorry for rambling just thought I’d give my 2 cents.

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- thewoodwhisperer September 5, 2012 7:10 am
  
  Hey Sean. I actually do use a grinder for my turning tools. If you do a lot of turning, the Tormek style systems will indeed be a good investment. And these systems are certainly capable of sharpening your chisels and plane blades. But I don’t think the learning curve is any easier and I do think you can get a finer edge with regular stones. Your point about the back flattening is an important one as well. Definitely something to consider.
  
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Jay Brown September 5, 2012 6:21 am

Mark,
You always seem to have the information that I am looking for and the correct way to do it. I am in the process of learning hand cut dovetails now. I have been doing it for a couple of days and have been impressed with how well they have come out. I think i have killed enough pine trees and now want to move on to some hardwood and actually try to make something. Sharp chisels are a must on hard woods and speed the process. Your lesson worked for me and made it very quick to get back to the work in progress.

Thanks you

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Paul W Gillespie September 5, 2012 7:36 am

Great video. Helped me get the nerve to try sharpening my chisels and plane irons myself. I got much better results on them then when I dropped them off to a local sharpening service. Thanks.

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- Peggy Schaefer September 5, 2012 10:21 am
  
  Thanks, Marc! I have a new set of chisels I received for my birthday last month and have not used them yet since I was so unsure of how to sharpen them properly. Your video has given me the confidence to jump in and hone away! I do have a question about stones. There are five hunters in my family and to say we have a metric ton of different wet and ceramic stones would be an understatement (knife edges are VERY important to hunters) Is there a difference in stones used to sharpen knives? It would be great if I could use what we have on hand but if I must buy something specifically for my chisels, I will.
  
  Thanks again for all your great videos!
  
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  - thewoodwhisperer September 5, 2012 10:24 am
    
    Hi Peggy. Metal is metal, right? So if these stones can sharpen a knife, they should be able to sharpen a chisel too. The trick is making sure you figure out which stone is which grit. If you can get two or three that span 500-5000 grit range, you’re in good shape!
    
    Reply
    - Morgan September 6, 2012 6:43 am
      
      Replying to Peggy’s question about using ceramic stones that are normally used for hunting knives. Be aware that stone flatness is waaaay less important on knives (yes yes, depends on how you sharpen, but generally speaking), and I’d bet lots of the stones around the house are dished or bellied.
      
      Before using stones from the kitchen drawer, flatten them really well and then set them aside for your chisels.
Riley R September 5, 2012 11:05 am

How do you sharpen your jointer / planer knives? I just purchased the Duelen sharpener from Eagle America and i am not 100% satisfied probably because i like carbide tip knives so its even harder to sharpen, any thoughts?? Thanks

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- thewoodwhisperer September 5, 2012 11:13 am
  
  I send them out for sharpening. :) I find them a little too difficult to do myself.
  
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Rayk September 5, 2012 12:02 pm

Thanks for another useful episode. I’ve used a basic honing guide for a while now with a 1000/4000 stone and been pretty happy. However you’ve really shown some advantages of the Veritas guide. What about sharpening mortising chisels? When I got a set last Christmas I sharpened them freehand as they wouldn’t work with the basic jig. The Veritas doesn’t appear to handle the thickness of the mortise chisel either.

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- thewoodwhisperer September 5, 2012 12:41 pm
  
  Generally speaking, anything i can’t fit into the jig gets sharpened by hand. The mortise chisels are so darn beefy that they are incredibly easy to do by hand so it doesn’t become too much of an issue for me.
  
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- Jeremy Scuteri September 5, 2012 3:29 pm
  
  Some of the less expensive jigs hold the chisels on the sides. This would work for thick chisels.
  
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Justin September 5, 2012 7:38 pm

The DMT Bench Stone link you have for Amazon points to their “Fine/Extra Fine” which appears to be an equivalent 600/1200 grit. The video makes it sound like you use the “Coarse/Extra Course” for your first step which has an equivalent 220/325 grit.

Any reason to use a “Fine/Extra Fine” DMT bench stone with the 1200 grit side instead of the Shapton stones?

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- thewoodwhisperer September 6, 2012 6:43 am
  
  That was a mistake. Fixing now.
  
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JGreasy September 6, 2012 9:49 am

Howdy,

Having just bought my first set of cheap chisels to learn with, I’m considering also buying a cheap 4 sided sharpening block (200 to 600 grit) to learn sharpening on.

It seems there is always the rule in woodworking of “buy the best you can afford.” Does that apply here or am I just asking for trouble?

And as many more have said, thanks a ton for what you do!

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- thewoodwhisperer September 6, 2012 9:54 am
  
  Personally, I see nothing wrong with a stone that has multiple honing surfaces and grits. As long as you don’t get the cheapest stuff out there… Norton has some nice ones if I recall correctly. If i were in the market, this is the one I’d probably try out: http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ.....dwhispe-20
  
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Don September 6, 2012 8:48 pm

Hey thanks Marc, I picked up a few things that will help me with my chisels. I was having the edge chip and wasnt sure what to do about it. After watching this i’ll try a higher angle.
I’ll let you know how it goes.

thanks Don

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deltaphisig September 6, 2012 9:53 pm

Marc–Thank you for posting this. It is one of the many important skills that I need to master. I have been looking at all the tools available, and I think I am going to steal your system. It happens that I also share your view on the utilitarian purpose of sharpening. Maybe I will master hand honing over time, but I am not going to make it a focus.

On another note, do you have any hints for sharpening jointer knives?

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John Fitz September 7, 2012 4:27 am

Great article. I agree that sharpening is a utilitarian activity. I do not take a lot of joy in it, other than enjoying the use of a freshly sharpened chisel or plane iron.

I also use the MK II and I like it a lot. The knurled knobs are tough though, so I am considering cutting some slots in them to allow the use of a screwdriver. I have seen replacement rollers for it has anyone had to replace their roller?

I started out with scary sharp and found it easy to get good results. When I got myself a good set of chisels I decided to try waterstones, so I got some Norton stones in 1000,400, and 8000. They are ok – I keep them in a tub of water so getting a quick touchup is easy. I will say though that I get a much more mirror like finish from 2000 grit sandpaper than I do from the 8000 grit stone. I still use both systems, depending on my mood and what I feel is easier at the moment.

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Virgil Mullins September 7, 2012 7:26 am

After watching this video in 2011, I bought this system. At the time, I had a new, cheap block plane that was terrible. I used this system as Marc explained and the results were amazing. The hardest part was getting the backside of the plane iron flat. I too hate sharpening but this system is well worth the investment. Thanks……..

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Ralph September 7, 2012 10:11 am

I do not know if I commented on the original sharpening video while digging through the archives. I did want to thank you for this tutorial! While I am not by any stretch of the imagination a serious woodworker. Dull chisels have really been a pain with the few times I have needed to use one.

While I could not afford the higher end jig that you use. I found a low end get the job done better then freehand jig. Boy what a difference it made on my two chisels!!

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rkwoods September 7, 2012 3:53 pm

great video, I use the same method and same jig. I was sharpening my chisels the other day and was trying to use the built in microbevel adjustment on the mkII and was having some difficulty. The micro bevel was not parallell to the primary bevel. It was like i was applying more pressure to one side of the chisel. I played with this for a long time and could not figure out what i was doing wrong. Could the jig itself be faulty?

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- thewoodwhisperer September 7, 2012 4:21 pm
  
  My bevel is always off from 90 degrees, but that extends to the micro-bevel as well. If your micro-bevel is off from the primary bevel, that’s a little different. I wonder if we can get LV in here to address some of these issues. I know I really would prefer my bevel be dead on at 90 degrees.
  
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rkwoods September 7, 2012 3:55 pm

Have you ever experienced this?

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Tom Collins September 7, 2012 11:24 pm

Great video. Its always nice to have a refresher course. I am going to buy the DMT bench stone to flatten my backs and my stones. Thank you.

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Brandon September 8, 2012 5:23 pm

Another great video Marc. This is a great starter video. I think a more in depth sharpening video in the future with better quality would be a good addition to the site.

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Greg September 8, 2012 7:04 pm

I like this video – it gets right to the point and emphasizes sharpening and then getting back to work.

I was wondering if anybody had ever sharpened a straight razor – and shaved with it? I wonder how much trouble that would be?

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David Staskiewicz September 9, 2012 6:13 am

Has anyone used the DMT Diamond stones in place of the Shapton Stones? If so how do your results compare to using Shapton stones?

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Rob September 9, 2012 9:10 am

Enjoyed the video have you thought about doing a segment on sharpening turning tools

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Jon McGrath September 9, 2012 6:47 pm

I am commenting on this one again ! I originally posted when video was first posted. This is probably the simplest from eyes and ears to hands and tools you will find on the ominous sharpening “thing” that to many seems so mystic. Of course like with any specific topic, you can dig much deeper, more online info, great books – Like Ron Hock’s the Perfect Edge.. But this is the most bang for the least investment of your time. I still today am a better and more consistent sharpener due to this live session – which I think I originally posted when aired that it was brilliant and these whisper mini’s and a half? maybe? were great and hoped to see many more on topics like this. Great job Marc, thanks! Jon

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Nick M. September 14, 2012 9:26 am

Hey Mark,

Just want to say thank you for an awesome explanatory video on your sharpening system. I will be purchasing an MKII soon and possibly a DMT plate for good measure. As always, I learn a ton from you and your approach to woodworking. If you ever make it out to the East Coast, you are always more than welcome at our shop!

Best, –Nick

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mark Bridgewater October 2, 2012 6:47 pm

hi Marc

i have been trying week to get a set up like yous for sharpening, do you think one of your sponsors would put these items to gether as a kit so they can be shipped in one go to New Zealand

cheers mark,

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Mark Bridgewater October 21, 2012 10:21 pm

I just received my Shapton water stones, DMT and the veritas Honing jig, i could not believe how bad my chisels were, it took me 1 hour to get the back of my chisel flat on the DMT.. but WOW after doing that and then honing on the 1000 then 5000 Shapton’s , it feel like I have a different chisel, so much sharper, but the biggest difference is that you have far more control of the cutting than ever before… well worth the cost and the wait .. BIG Thanks Marc

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Javier Petrelli December 19, 2012 6:31 pm

I have just buy a planer, and it came all dull! not even a little sharp! some guy told that i must sharp the blade in a bench grinder!!! can i do that? or that will ruin the blade??
Saludos desde Venezuela!

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Rick D December 21, 2012 3:49 pm

Great instructional tool. I would like to see something on carving gouges and tools too.

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Peter Johns December 30, 2012 8:54 pm

Also, does further honing using a tough leather strop with green chromide crayon give a finer edge?

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- thewoodwhisperer December 31, 2012 8:07 am
  
  It sure could. I don’t do it myself but you can certainly polish the surface to an insanely razor sharp edge.
  
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- David August 19, 2013 11:56 am
  
  Be careful using a leather strop. The ultimate goal of a bench chisel is to have 2 flat planes intersecting each other along a line. while using the strop the soft leather will compress and form a slight hollow, making it possible to curve the bevel you are trying to hone.
  I’m not saying this is horrible (its almost like putting a micro bevel on the cutting edge) but usually its preferable to have flat surfaces you can reference off of while cutting. If you do decide to use a strop, always pull the chisel, never push. The leather is easily cut by such a sharp blade.
  
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Mike February 4, 2013 1:36 pm

Love the Videos! You do an Excellent Job at them too; the only caveate is that I’m a bit envious!

Just a quick note, to flatten most stones (not metalic/diamond) you can just use a thick piece of Glass with a sheet of sand paper on it. Start as course or fine as you need to.

Modern glass is made by letting it flow out onto molten tin so one side is perfectly flat.

As for Threading Wood, Have you ever used a Helicoil? If the wood should ever wear out (or just using soft wood) I would think that using/gluing a Helicoil in place would work out great.

That is all, Carry on.

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- thewoodwhisperer February 4, 2013 2:20 pm
  
  Never heard of a helicoil. I’ll have to check that out. Thanks!
  
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Mark Lewus February 12, 2013 3:18 am

Terrific video on sharpening! I just wanted to make a few comments specific to sharpening Japanese blades (chisels, planes) as they are very different ‘animals’ than western chisels. You mentioned that when you wear (grind) away the flat in front of the hollow you should remove material by more or less grinding the entire bottom on your stone until you re-establish the flat. It can be done that way on a chisel, and some westerners do it that way, but it’s not the way they do it in Japan, and it won’t work on a plane blade where the hollow is much deeper. Also, given the extreme hardness of the bottom of a Japanese plane blade, it’s a lot of work.

For those unfamiliar with Japanese tool blades, they are made from two or more layers of forge welded steel of very different characteristics. The top layer (Jigame) is very soft wrought iron. Modern wrought iron can be used, but, traditionally a material known as Kamaji is used. Kamaji is made from wrought iron from ship’s anchors, anchor chain, and old bridge parts made before the mid-1880’s. This material is still prized for chisel making and is used today in the best quality chisels and plane blades. The bottom layer is made from a much harder material – Aogami (blue steel) or Shirogami (white steel). These are both much harder than the O-1 or A-2 steels used in Western tools and so Japanese chisels hold their edge for a longer time, but these materials are very brittle. If they were used alone they would chip or shatter in use, but the soft Kamaji layer prevents this. As Marc said in the video, this is the reason for the hollow – the Aogami is so hard that it is not practical to try to flatten an entire blade made from it. Also, since the hard steel layer is usually quite thin – usually only a couple of mm (<3/32"), it's critical that you take off as little material as possible when re-establishing the Ura, which is the flat in front of the hollow.

In Japan they use a process known as tapping out where you tap the top of the blade (the soft steel) above the end of the hollow with a small hammer, with the bottom of the blade supported on a small anvil. This causes the bottom to bulge in the immediate area of the Ura. Then you only have to remove a very small amount of material to get it dead flat and re-establish the Ura. This greatly extends the life of the blade compared to grinding the whole surface and is much less work.

You do need to proceed cautiously since the steel on the bottom is very hard and you can crack it if you hit it, or if you hit the wrought iron too hard, or if the moon is in the wrong phase :-) . Japan Woodworker sells the anvils, and readers can find instructional info on YouTube or just Google it. If you don’t want to do it yourself any reputable Japanese tool dealer should be able to get it done for a fee. Prior to being acquired by Woodcraft, Japan Woodworker (www.japanwoodworker.com) used to charge around $20 to have it done in Japan.

Marc, I joined the guild a little while back and I just want to say how satisfied I am with the content and the quality of your videos and your work. I like the sweet spot you have found between hand and power tool use. But what do I know? You guys should join and see for yourself. Great videos, well drawn 3D plans for you CNC guys, and well worth the cost of admission. Thanks!!

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- Marc Spagnuolo February 12, 2013 7:34 am
  
  Thanks for the additional information and the kind words Mark. Very much appreciated.
  
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Mark May 26, 2013 4:30 pm

Hello,
I love your site and am really glad I stumbled onto it. I’m new to woodworking and have been eating up articles and videos in order to develop some good habits from the start.

I noticed near the end of the clip, you flattened your 1000 grit Shapton stone by rubbing it on your 220 grit DMT bench stone. Pardon my math but wouldn’t that put 220 grit striations into the surface of your 1000 grit stone; effectively ruining it?

Would seem to me that you’d need a DMT stone with matching grit ratio for every Shapton stone you have in order to flatten them properly.

That would add to the cost of this system substantially. Unless you’re a professional furniture maker or such, that seems far too expensive for any average Joe.

Thank you,
Mark

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- Marc Spagnuolo May 26, 2013 5:21 pm
  
  Hi Mark. Thankfully, that’s not how it works. One low grit plate can be used to flatten all higher grits. The reason is because there’s a big difference between a scratch pattern and a grit value of the medium itself. The 220 plate does put a 220 grit scratch pattern into the surface. But the surface is still made up of 1000 grit particles. So a 1000 grit stone flattened with a 220 grit stone will still sharpen effectively at 1000 grit. Let’s take it to the extreme to see what I mean. If I were able to cut the top surface of my 1000 grit stone with my tablesaw and create a bunch of little 1/8″ wide grooves in the surface, those big “scratches” would not affect the grit of the stone. As long as I can still get good contact with the tool while sharpening, it will indeed sharpen at 1000 grit. The big spaces will only slow things down a bit simply because there is less stone in contact with the tool at any given time.
  
  So 220 grit scratch patterns are just teeny tiny version of that saw blade cut concept. It’s a weird analogy but hopefully it makes sense.
  
  Reply
davey r (0sd1 in chat) May 31, 2013 8:19 am

hey now.

being someone who shaves with a straight razor i know that sharpening is super important. there is something to be said for marc’s use of shapton stones. i personally own their waterstones in the grits of 500 and 2000. i also own naniwa stones in 220, 1k, 5k, 8k and 13k, as well as dmt dia sharpe in 600 and 1200. a lot of people say the naniwa is “too soft” for tool use but i have no issue at all.

the shapton is the real deal. its worth it totally.

Reply
Maurice September 19, 2013 4:03 am

Marc, Is that flattening plate the DMT Dia-Sharp Lapping plate? (The one that sells for over $200?) Please say I’m looking at the wrong item on the DMT web site!

Reply
- Marc Spagnuolo September 19, 2013 6:25 am
  
  This is the one Maurice: http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ.....dwhispe-20
  
  The links for everything recommended in the video are in the writeup above.
  
  Reply
  - Maurice September 19, 2013 8:29 am
    
    Thanks Marc! Ordered mine today along with 1000 and 5000 Shaptons!
    
    Reply
Jeremy Crawford October 5, 2013 7:16 pm

How about picking up that honing guide for $50. I had a super awesome deal at Wood Craft

Reply
Denny Rice October 20, 2013 12:39 am

Marc,
Love the video. I wish I would of found it sooner. I just have a couple of questions about the Shapton stones and the water you use in the spray bottle. I own 3 Shapton stones and know they come specific with directions on how to use them correctly from the manufacturer. My question is I have just stumbled onto a product called “HoneRite Gold” that is used for lapping water stones. I guess it somehow makes the water you have in the spray bottle non-corrosive so with just a wipe of a paper towel you never have to worry about rust on your chisels or plane blades. I have seen this product at Woodcraft and other places but I cannot get a straight answer: Will the HoneRite hurt the ceramic Shapton stones in any way? Have you ever had any experience with the HoneRite Gold and if so do you like it?
Thanks Marc,
Denny

Reply
- Marc Spagnuolo October 24, 2013 10:17 am
  
  No experience at all unfortunately. Most folks simply treat the tools with oil after honing and that does a decent job of alleviating rust. You’re right to be concerned about the effect of this stuff on your ceramic stones. The only way I’d use it is if the manufacturer gives the OK or if you have sufficient user evidence.
  
  Reply
Kevin December 27, 2013 1:08 am

Marc, Have you had problems with the guide skewing the mico-bevel at all? My guide works great until I try to put a micro-bevel on, then it creates a micro-bevel that is out of parallel with the tip. Not just a little, but quite a bit. Been googling this topic, and it seems I’m not the only one. I’m wondering if my guide is defective.

Thanks,
Kevin

Reply
- Marc Spagnuolo December 31, 2013 6:34 am
  
  Hey Kevin. I haven’t had problems with the micro-bevel skewing, but I have had issues with the jig holding the tool off-90 degrees. That’s my one major gripes with the unit. Do a few Google searches and you’ll see that many folks report issues like you and I experience.
  
  Reply
  - Fred June 4, 2015 7:11 pm
    
    Lee Valley just made an addition to the Mk II: a narrow blade head. This should solve issues with the system.
    
    Reply
bill February 23, 2014 1:33 pm

you mentioned that a friend had made a shapening area or organizor. Can you share more? i would like to have an organized area too.

Reply
Rev Jimmy Mac April 11, 2014 4:39 pm

Disregard that last comment – I see where you “re-labeled” the cases. Great demonstration and some amazing tips.

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Ron June 20, 2014 10:37 am

I got my technique from James Krenov dialogue from the Inside passage school of fine woodworking.. T7 Tormek for a hollow grind, then a micro bevel..and touch up with a flat stone..eventually the hollow goes away and you start over. It doesn’t matter what chisels i’m using, except mortise chisels. Gets em razor sharp quick and its clean. I still want to get a set of Shaptons though.

Reply
Todd B November 25, 2014 7:10 am

I called Lee Valley and they acknowledged that crappy knurled nut problem, as well as the non-uniform micro bevel problem.

Maybe the MK III ???

Reply
Fred St Clair March 28, 2015 6:46 pm

Thanks for the great tutorial Marc. I thought you might like to know that you can save a great deal of money on the Shapton stones if you don’t mind the Japanese packaging and waiting for them to be shipped from Japan. I saved over $75: $174.52 vs. $249.90 for all three stones.
I watched your video on YouTube, so I did not have the links. Those I used follow:

for the 1000 grit http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ.....#038;psc=1

for the 5000 grit http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ.....#038;psc=1

for the 8000 grit http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ.....#038;psc=1

Reply
Mad Hungarian February 6, 2017 2:06 pm

Related to this, in addition to the narrow-blade adapter, Lee Valley also has a new mortise-chisel adapter for their new mortise chisels:
http://www.leevalley.com/us/wo.....38;p=74894

Btw, i’ve also had Kevin’s micro-bevel skewing problem myself. I have two Mk2 jigs (one purchased in 2013 and the other in 2014), and the micro-bevel skewing is real bad on the first, and not so bad (but still a problem) on the second. I finally ended up not using the micro-bevel setting at all, but just custom-picking the closest match from the various combinations of “Up Arrow” angles given in the Mk2 manual.

I was also having the separate off-90 issues, but part of that was due to my having eased the very sharp side bevels of Veritas bench chisels (after slicing myself several times on those cursed corners). That threw off the registration jig a little bit, i think. Switching to the new narrow-blade adapter seemed to help here.

Well, i finally broke down and ordered the Shapton stones myself. Via Amazon Fulfillment – i’ve had issues in the past with annoying government tariff bills showing up in my mail a couple months later when ordering stuff straight from Far East sellers. It depends on how the seller ships the stuff.

Anyway, i finally got tired of my current stones, where one of them has to soak all the time and the other two can’t be left soaking (but they evidently do want to soak for several minutes first), etc, etc, stone ponds, etc, etc. I like the idea of the simple Shaptons in their little colored plastic boxes.

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Paul McIntire January 26, 2018 9:38 am

Very informative. It also affirmed the recent sharpening method I was shown. This session brought up a question for me and that is how do you sharpen a skewed blade for hand planes. The Veritas system is great for straight blades but how would you sharpen a blade that is angled from left to right or right to left?

Maine Yankee

Reply
- Marc Spagnuolo January 26, 2018 11:29 am
  
  I’m sure there are solutions out there but I’d just sharpen that by hand. Anything that doesn’t easily fit in a jig gets the old hand treatment. :)
  
  Reply
ben_r_ December 18, 2018 3:36 pm

Anyone bought theyre Shapton stones directly from Japan?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nagur.....2278395723

Reply

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181 – My Sharpening System

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