Cabinet scrapers

[Arron]

I purchased my first cabinet scaper today. Took it out of the packet, and began scraping it along a piece of oregan at various angles, speeds and pressures. The result was tired arms and a pathetically small pile of sawdust. A bit of reading on the internet, and now I understand that the scraper should have a 'hook' put on by a burnisher. Having never seen one of these, can someone tell me:
Does a new scraper usually come with one of these hooks ?
What does the hook look like? I assume it is created by a small quantity of the steel on the business edge being curled over at right angles to the flat of the scraper. Is that true? If so, how big should the hook be. Should you be able to feel the hook when running fingers along the scraper?

I assume that the is hook directed down onto the timber so that it acts as a tiny blade. Is that correct ?

I have read quite a bit on scrapers now, but they remain totally mysterious as no-one really explains what the result of the burnishing process is.

thanks
Arron

[derekcohen]

Arron

Essentially, the card scraper (as yours is termed) is a hand held plane of sorts. The metal edge needs to be thought of as a blade and, as with any plane, the blade needs to be sharpened correctly. In a nutshell, this is what the Burnishing process is all about.

Step one is to make sure you have a straight and square edge. This can be done with a file. Just make sure it is straight, square, and clean.

Step two is to create a hook on the edge. This hook is equivalent to the edge of a blade. To make it you need to run a very hard steel rod along the edge, holding the rod at an angle (say 45 degrees). The burnishing rod, or burnisher, must be harder than the steel you are creating an edge on, or nil will happen. Carbon rods are preferred. You can buy one from Carba-tec, etc.

The above is the "hard way". The easy way is to go and purchase a Veritas Variable Burnisher from Carba-tec. This nifty device will create the correct edge on your card scraper in seconds. It is a no-brainer tool. I use one and really recommend it.

Scrapers are wonderful tools. Tuned correctly they will produce fine shavings. A badly tuned scraper produces dust (which is what you have found. The surface left from a good scraping exceeds the finest sanded surface.

After card scrapers you may discover scraper planes. Such as the Stanley #80, the #12, and the #112.

Oh, one last point. Scrapers really only work on hard woods. Don't use them on anything else. Oregan is much too soft.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[arose62]

"Should you be able to feel the hook when running fingers along the scraper? "

Yikes !

You shouldn't run fingers ALONG the scraper! Run them ACROSS the edge, gently, if you want to try to feel the hook. If you've got it right, running fingers along the edge will give you a nasty slicing-open!

Cheers,
Andrew

[MOM]

As a keen amateur, can I offer a word of advice? Keep trying. Keep practising. Even after years of using scrapers (occasionally - I am only a weekend warrior) I still find that I rarely end up with all four cutting edges on my scraper working properly after I have sharpened it. But the fact that two or three of the edges actually work as they should is great encouragement. I do not use any fancy jigs. My burnisher ("ticketer" I think the old-timers used to call it) was made from a small triangular file. I ground off the teeth and rounded over one of the corners and then polished the whole thing smooth. It seems to work quite well.

[colh]

I am using a couple of scrapers cut from an old hand saw blade, which I have filed as square as I can, but I haven't got anything to burnish them with. Is a knife steel (the round things for sharpening carving knives) likely to work? I'd imagine they would be fairly hard.

have a woody weekend

Colin

[derekcohen]

Colin

No, you cannot use a knife sharpener - all you'll do is file the blade. THe aim is to deform the metal so that it is squashed and creates an edge.

You could probably use the shaft of a router bit. Also try a good quality (hopefully hard steel) screwdriver. Best still, buy a burnisher. You only have to do it once if you do it right (where have I heard that before?).

Regards

Derek

[Paul O'H. Ingersoll Canad]

AAron
This link may help
Scrapers (http://www.brendlers.net/oldtools/scraping/scraper.htm)
They are a great tool.
Paul

[PlaneCrazy]

Arron,
The methods described are just fine.
This months issue of American Woodworker Magazine (Sept. 2003 #102) has an article in it devoted to sharpering cabinet scrapers. I just made the simple jig they described in the article and it works great. Its just an 8" long piece of hardwood 3/4" square with a 5 degree bevel on one of the long faces. The jig is basically used as a guide for both your file and burnisher. I recommend getting the issue. There is also a plan for a really good looking Limbert style table. I am making it now. (as soon as the lumber sits and acclimates itself to my workshop for awile.)
Good luck!

[PlaneCrazy]

In case the magazine is unavailble in Australia, I would be willing to send it via mail. It runs $5.99 US./$6.99 Can. I don't know what postage would be. Anyone interested can email me.

[barnsey]

Crickey Guys

I've been using scrapers for so long I don't remember. A sharp mill fill and dress the edge of the scraper - square and smooth.

When you feel the edge - as you would a knife - across not along - it should feel clean - no bumps or gaps. You can see it if you look.

I've been using a round shafted screwdriver of quality - Stanley I think - and the idea is to round over the edge so that it looks like one of those beautiful pipe tube waves just down the road at Kirra - just before it breaks.

One firm swipe to burnish is all you need once you get the feel. Too much and the wave forms a tube or worse breaks all together and no cut. Start again.

Get it right and when you put your thumbs into it you will get the finest gosamer shavings you can imagine - magic.

Mind you since I bought the Stanley No 80 the old blade scraper is going rusty in the bottom of the box.

Sharpening that blade is different but the screwdriver still does the burnishing.;)

[AlexS]

ColH mentioned using a knife sharpener. If you can get an old one and turn/polish it smooth, it will make the best burnisher you will ever use.

[barnsey]

Thought I'd just add the following.

Australian Woodworker, Jan/Feb 1995 has a good article on the whole thing. If you can get it it will show you what I/we were trying to put into words.

If you can't get it email me & I will arrange for you to borrow a copy so we don't infringe copyright!!!:D

Jamie

[Robert WA]

I have quite a good guide to buying, preparing and using scrapers. It is in MSWord format and quite long, too long to just copy and paste into a message on here.

Is there some way to distribute .doc files generally, or to place them on the forum site for all to access?

Maybe one of the admin boffins could let me know how that might be done. If that poses a general virus risk, could I, everyone, be given an email address to which such material can be sent for virus checking and for assessment as to suitability.

It occurs to me that each of us probably has material that would be useful to others. Creating a library of such material might be a good plan.

Arron. If you want this document, just send a message or an email with your email address and I will forward it to you.

[Sir Stinkalot]

Simply use the browse button when you reply ...... its the attach file option. From what I know it will not accept a word doc but you can convert it into a txt file.

Stinky.

[Robert WA]

Thanks Stinky.

I think the document I was referring to may be available on
http://www.brendlers.net/oldtools/scraping/scraper.htm

That is where it came from.

Not much point in posting it as a .txt document as that will lose the little diagrams.