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Dorno
26th July 2010, 09:46 PM
I am interested to hear what everyone has to say with regard to sharpening my lathe tools. I currently cheat by taking them to a friends to get him to sharpen but he looks like moving so I better get this worked out myself and soon. I have been looking to buy a white stone from local suppliers but both places were out of stock at the momment.
Any advice appreciated.

Cheers ian

Ozartisan
27th July 2010, 12:12 PM
Happy to help with advice/instruction & gear if you don't mind the short drive up to Taree.

rsser
27th July 2010, 12:43 PM
Some vids here:

Woodturning Videos (http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tJ2EgJDxq06q4MT1BNytG5w&gid=0)

These are peer-reviewed through AAW.

Thanks to Gil for the link.

artme
27th July 2010, 03:00 PM
Just a suggestion Dorno: Get some mild steel bar and practise on that. That way you can get your angles and profiles and hand movements right. Cheaper than buggering a good tool.

cultana
27th July 2010, 04:00 PM
Cheaper than buggering a good tool.

You learn faster that way!:D

Dorno
27th July 2010, 09:58 PM
thanks to everyone for there help and adice i shall follow up on all the tips.

cheers ian

I_wanna_Shed
27th July 2010, 10:32 PM
Hey Ian,

Even though my father can sharpen drill bits to perfection on a bench grinder with his eyes closed - unfortunately (and to his disgust!) I just can't get me head around sharpening anythign freehand. Its probably more of a patience thing - not enough of it to practice!

When I took up wood turning, I discovered the Tru-Grind by Woodcut. Woodcut Tools Ltd > The Versatile, affordable Tru-Grind Sharpening System (http://www.shop.woodcut-tools.com/product.php?xProd=27&xSec=13)

This is beautiful. There should be a few reviews of it on here. Basically, yes - it does take a little longer than doing it freehand on the grinder, but I get an awesome edge on it every time I use it. And a consistent edge too. I find that I get a number of 'touch ups' using a small diamond files in between grinding the chisels.

They are worth a look for sure.

Nathan.

Rifleman1776
28th July 2010, 12:27 AM
A slow grinder with 120 grit wheel and freehand will work OK with practice.
I acquired a Wolverine system in a trade and love it. Getting a sharp edge takes only seconds and saves metal on the tool.
With practice almost any technique will work however. A belt sander works and some use them exclusively.
The key is practice.

John Lucas
28th July 2010, 06:22 AM
Although I learned to sharpen by hand I'm a big fan of the various sharpening jigs. They are so repeatable so I remove very little metal each time I sharpen. There is still a mild learning curve but not anywhere near what hand sharpening is. I have the Wolverine jig for my bowl gouges that I use on the Oneway sharpening system.
You can easily find plans to build one of these if you have any woodworking skills.

markharrison
28th July 2010, 11:48 AM
I never could get the hang of grinding tools on a grinder. When it finally gave up the ghost I finally an excuse to buy a linisher. I find it a lot easier to grind lathe tools on it. I can even do a perfect fingernail grind freehand. I don't know why that is.

Moreover, the belt pulls so much air with it that the tool seems to stay so much cooler. That's my theory anyway.

Barry_White
28th July 2010, 05:54 PM
My sharpening system for my turning tools is fairly basic. I made a jig for my gouge that I copied from the first one that Stu in Tokyo made. I also welded up some guides and fixed them to the bench along side the grinder.

Here are some pics of the set up.

munruben
28th July 2010, 07:29 PM
I made a jig similar to the one in your second pic Barry but mine is made out of wood. Does a goo job too. I have marks along the track for the different lengths of the tools I want to grind, so if I want to sharpen my bowl gouge, I just slide the rail out until the index mark on the rail lines up with the "bowl gouge" mark on the track.and grind away. simple but effective.

NeilS
28th July 2010, 10:38 PM
Moreover, the belt pulls so much air with it that the tool seems to stay so much cooler. That's my theory anyway.

Belts are also slower.

.....

munruben
29th July 2010, 12:25 PM
Ian, here are some pics of the jig I made. No plans just made it as I went along but the pics give you the idea how I did it. . I have put the pics in the wrong order, You should look at the last picture first and work backwards. sorry about that.
The great thing about working with this jig is if you are using a spindle gouge for instance, you can leave the jig set to the spindle gouge index marks and touch up the chisel easily when it needs to be sharpened during use. Hope this helps.

Paulphot
29th July 2010, 02:20 PM
That is brilliant John, I may borrow your ideas and try one myself before commiting to a commercially available jig.

munruben
29th July 2010, 03:41 PM
That is brilliant John, I may borrow your ideas and try one myself before commiting to a commercially available jig.Go for it. Just a point of interest, You may find it easier to sharpen the skew chisel using the jig but holding the blade against the side of the wheel instead of the top of the wheel. You don't get a hollow grind that way but it seems easier to achieve a sharp edge that way for some reason. Some of the experts don't advocate using the side of the wheel to sharpen chisels but I think its just a personal opinion.

To initially find your index marks for the various tools, just place the chisel handle in the end location on the sliding carriage and slide the carriage to a point where the bevel of the chisel sits perfectly on the wheel of the grinder and you can see no light between the bevel and the wheel where it makes contact. Make a mark on the carriage to line up with the line on the base and there you have it. It will align up every time with that mark for that particular chisel. do this with all the chisels and you dont have to fiddle around each time you want to sharpen a particular tool, just line the index marks up and sharpen away.

RETIRED
29th July 2010, 03:55 PM
Go for it. Just a point of interest, You may find it easier to sharpen the skew chisel using the jig but holding the blade against the side of the wheel instead of the top of the wheel. You don't get a hollow grind that way but it seems easier to achieve a sharp edge that way for some reason. Some of the experts don't advocate using the side of the wheel to sharpen chisels but I think its just a personal opinion.

To initially find your index marks for the various tools, just place the chisel handle in the end location on the sliding carriage and slide the carriage to a point where the bevel of the chisel sits perfectly on the wheel of the grinder and you can see no light between the bevel and the wheel where it makes contact. Make a mark on the carriage to line up with the line on the base and there you have it. It will align up every time with that mark for that particular chisel. do this with all the chisels and you dont have to fiddle around each time you want to sharpen a particular tool, just line the index marks up and sharpen away.It is not just the "experts" but the manufacturers as well.

The structure of the wheel is not meant to take side loads.

munruben
29th July 2010, 10:57 PM
It is not just the "experts" but the manufacturers as well.

The structure of the wheel is not meant to take side loads.Duly noted, thanks :2tsup:

DJ’s Timber
30th July 2010, 07:42 AM
To initially find your index marks for the various tools, just place the chisel handle in the end location on the sliding carriage and slide the carriage to a point where the bevel of the chisel sits perfectly on the wheel of the grinder and you can see no light between the bevel and the wheel where it makes contact. Make a mark on the carriage to line up with the line on the base and there you have it. It will align up every time with that mark for that particular chisel. do this with all the chisels and you dont have to fiddle around each time you want to sharpen a particular tool, just line the index marks up and sharpen away.

If you follow this process, the angle of your bevel will change progressively over time as you wear the wheel and grind some of the steel each time you sharpen, as the tool is getting shorter and the wheel dia is getting smaller.

You should really be setting it of the tool

munruben
30th July 2010, 08:17 AM
If you follow this process, the angle of your bevel will change progressively over time as you wear the wheel and grind some of the steel each time you sharpen, as the tool is getting shorter and the wheel dia is getting smaller.

You should really be setting it of the toolAgreed, over time this will happen but it easily remedied by a slight adjustment of the sliding carriage. I guess what I should have said was to use the index mark as a guide and get an approximate alignment and should always eyeball the final adjustment between wheel and bevel on the blade. This works for me and cost of making it is zilch. I get a sharp edge every time with hardly any effort.

So, anyone using this idea for a jig to sharpen,, Don't sharpen on the side of the wheel as I suggested in my earlier post but do it as shown in the picture. Also, make final adjustments after you line up with the index marks by eyeballing the blade and make sure the bevel sits perfectly on the wheel, this will do the job of keeping your edge sharp and not change the angle of the bevel over time.

Thanks for pointing that out DJ.:2tsup:

Tiger
30th July 2010, 10:27 AM
John, I notice in post 14 you have one of those tilting platforms that is sitting in the middle of the grinder. Like you I have one as well which has become redundant as I use a similar jig to yours, would be nice if we could find a way of still using the platform but difficult to do once you have a jig in front of the grinding wheel.

Manuka Jock
30th July 2010, 10:31 AM
John, I notice in post 14 you have one of those tilting platforms that is sitting in the middle of the grinder. Like you I have one as well which has become redundant as I use a similar jig to yours, would be nice if we could find a way of still using the platform but difficult to do once you have a jig in front of the grinding wheel.
Tiger , how many wheels do you have on your grinder ?

Tiger
30th July 2010, 10:38 AM
Tiger , how many wheels do you have on your grinder ?

2 but I have a jig in front of the other wheel as well.

Manuka Jock
30th July 2010, 10:43 AM
Can you find a way to drop the tilting platform onto a couple of pins when it is needed ?

Tiger
30th July 2010, 02:15 PM
Good idea Jock, I'll investigate, only concern is whether the pins will hold the thing steady enough. Thanks.

Manuka Jock
30th July 2010, 04:37 PM
Make the pins longish ones with heads on them , and threaded sections on the other end , and wee dooffas that have threads in holes in the center of them and a couple of wings spreading out off opposite sides of each one .
They might hold things steady :D

Paulphot
30th July 2010, 05:06 PM
My skew is pretty well set up and I usually just tidy the edge up on an oil stone so that won't be an issue. I'm a bit weary about using the side of the stone anyway and I will check the angle each time I set the tool but it's better than the shakey hand method I'm currently using.

munruben
31st July 2010, 09:38 AM
John, I notice in post 14 you have one of those tilting platforms that is sitting in the middle of the grinder. Like you I have one as well which has become redundant as I use a similar jig to yours, would be nice if we could find a way of still using the platform but difficult to do once you have a jig in front of the grinding wheel.If you look carefully at the pic, you will see that my grinder is sandwiched between 2 wooden rails to stop it moving backwards or forwards when in use however, I have no obstruction in the sideway movement of the grinder so if I want to line up one of the wheels with the redundant platform jig, I just slide the whole grinder across one way or the other depending on which wheel I want to use. I must add though I dont use the platform very often, it is not stable enough for my liking. Hope this helps. Of course, I have to slide/remove the carriage of the jig I made completely out of the way to be able to slide the grinder across.

Tiger
31st July 2010, 12:20 PM
I know what you mean the stability of the platform, I still find it useful for plane blades but now that I have a jig similar to the Tru-grind, I've taken the platform away. I was contemplating attaching the platform to some 3/4 inch metal tubing, then I can use it on my jig set-up, not sure whether it's worth it and anyway as Jock has said, I could just pin it down if there's enough room.

NeilS
1st August 2010, 11:33 AM
I have no obstruction in the sideway movement of the grinder so if I want to line up one of the wheels with the redundant platform jig, I just slide the whole grinder across one way or the other depending on which wheel I want to use.

Good idea .....:2tsup:

.....

wheelinround
10th August 2010, 03:29 PM
:rolleyes: How'd I miss this all good ideas

Well done Barry & John

I wont enter the debate on use of side grinding on wheels as I know experts also advocate it and make jigs and tools for the use of.

I do recall a boot print on my behind as an apprentice from a tradie for sharping drill bits on the side. When I explained we had been taught at TAFE he rushed off to ring them. He got told update your information.

I also know wheels are used in the horizontal mode with same support same type of wheels and no one stops the use of them that way.:roll:

glen r
17th August 2010, 03:54 AM
I hate sharpening as so am not good at it. I solved the problem by getting carbide tipped chisels - one round end and one square end. When the insert gets dull all you do is turn it and you have a new sharp edge. The chisels cost me about $60.00 CDN each on ebay and the inserts are $15.00 each. I've turned quite a few pens and have yet to turn either of the inserts. The chisels have round shanks so the cutter can be used as a scraper or turned a little and used as a skew. Best money I ever spent as I've not used my regular HSS chisels since I bought the carbides.