Thread: Sharpening chisels using soap

'Slidysharp' ... the soap would break the surface tension and the paper would slip off the lapping plate.

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

Will that work on traffic cops?

will it work on AFL umpires

I do use dishwashing liquid on my diamond stone. When finished you can rinse it and all the steel washes off, the stone is new clean for your next job, no rustys. Seems to keep the cutting particles from getting clogged.......But this is for pocket and kitchen knives, flat blades are all scary sharp, water and wet/dry on glass....

Couple of questions from a newbie to 'bench' sharpening ... would appreciate hearing from you:

1. Using the Veritas 2 guide I'm finding that when I tighten it up with the register place in place it skews the tool slightly to the left. It's hard to get a finger in to stop it. Happens with a thick plane iron as well as chisels. What am I doing wrong here?

2. Using a King combo stone 1000/6000 a slurry gets worked up on the coarse grit but not the fine and there's some clogging happening on the fine. Do I have to get a Nagara stone to build a slurry first, or could I do it with say 240 grit paper and a bit of float glass?

I've been taking a knick out of a Gordon blade, and restoring some old Berg chisels (cleaning those up with the dry grinder and wet and dry first).

Advice appreciated. TIA.

[quote=rsser;528630]Couple of questions from a newbie to 'bench' sharpening ... would appreciate hearing from you:

1. Using the Veritas 2 guide I'm finding that when I tighten it up with the register place in place it skews the tool slightly to the left. It's hard to get a finger in to stop it. Happens with a thick plane iron as well as chisels. What am I doing wrong here?

I don't qualify as an expert in any field of endeavour, particularly sharpening, but this might help. When securing the iron/chisel/whatever in the guide, I turn the whole lot on its side so that the lipped edge of the guide is uppermost in my hand and holding more the iron etc than the guide, while putting downwards pressure on the guide, pull upwards on the iron as I do up the holding bar.Hard to describe the movements of the hand, it just sort of happens now without thinking about it.
I think it is important to try and snug the holding bar up fairly evenly, it should be pretty much parallel with the body of the guide. No need to get out the feeler gauges and micrometre, just by eye. I have never experienced a blade skewing on me this way.

2. Using a King combo stone 1000/6000 a slurry gets worked up on the coarse grit but not the fine and there's some clogging happening on the fine. Do I have to get a Nagara stone to build a slurry first, or could I do it with say 240 grit paper and a bit of float glass?

I have a synthetic nagura which I use to give a head start on the slurry, I have found it dries out or won't absorb any more gunk for want of a technical term fairly rapidly so have to replenish it fairly often with water otherwise the stone glazes over and gets all clogged up.

Thanks Ray. Think I get you on 1. and will print your tip and take it out to the Tabernacle.

Ern, Derek has mentioned using a diamond stone to raise a slurry on a fine waterstone.

I have tried it & it works well


Cheers................Sean

Hi Sean,

Thanks for the tip.

The $$ a bit of a problem for the moment.

I flattened a bit of wood, wrapped 240 W&D around it and raised enough slurry that way.

And I found that taking more care to even up the clamp bar and body reduced the skewing (added: as Ray suggested).

Sure is a slow and messy business if you have a set of chisels and a few plane irons to touch up. I can see why you need a Zen attitude.

Originally Posted by Jedo_03

me old mother - rester soul - used to use washing soap - came in blocks - hard as rocks it was (for washing - remember the old scrubbing boards)
anyways - she used to rub the sharp knife on the block of soap before sharpening it on the cement render on the outside of the house...
dunno why she done it...
might just be an old knives tale - eh...
Jedo

Hi,( first post nerves), I'm using cheap bars of hand soap to lube my planes and chisels during use. It works fine at the moment but rubs off quickly, and I don't have any wax or other dry lube to stop the sole gripping on the timber. Will this cause them to rust or will it protect them as well as lubricate? If not, what should I get?

Also does anyone know if the soap will affect my finishes?

G'day DF, don't know if soap will affect the finish, but I expect you're not putting great globs on it anyway. I like paraffin wax for rust protection and lubrication. Squiggle on and rub in with an old green kitchen scourer. renew as needed during a planing session. You can get it from hardware stores where it might be sold as preservers wax, also paraffin candles.
I think soap might cause rust on steel.
Cheers
Michael

Here is a blast from the past.

I use Ubeaut's Traditional Wax on my gear now, wipes on & then it sets.

Easy to apply & re-apply.

Soap most certainly will promote corrosion, this is why you shouldn't use soap on nails or screws.....if you expect to get them out at some stage in the future.

Soap is made from a chemical reaction of caustic soda and animal fat.

everything about soap promotes corrosion.

it has a far from neutral PH
it is hydroscopic
it redices surface tension and thus moisture penetration
and
It may have all sorts of other stuff in it that may not like metal like fragrences, flavouring additives, coulours and unreacted byproducts.

wax is far better for the soles of yoyr planes or even better silverglide.

cheers

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

Here is a blast from the past.

I use Ubeaut's Traditional Wax on my gear now, wipes on & then it sets.

Easy to apply & re-apply.

Same here. I find it works a treat.

Any kind of paste wax should be fine as long as it doesn't have silicone in it. That queers the pitch for many finishes.