Thread: Sharpening....A Dark Side Voyage for Beginners

I have had many of the same hassles with windows explorer and therefore with this forum I use netscape Browser and that has solved most of my problems . Not that I know anything about computers but it has worked for me .
Rick

I've got a question.

Who finds waterstones ok for sharpening card scrapers ? Because I have trouble sharpening them with waterstones. No problems at all with a diamond stone. Had much practise with card scrapers with a fine diamond stone. Can re-sharpen them, burnish, and re-burnish quite well I think. But fail misably when I try and polish on the 800 and 6000 grit waterstones. Always have.

What I've put this down to, a feeling really, is that when I'm polishing the cards edge, cause its so thin, and the stones seem softer than diamond stones, that the edge is just sinking in a little, causing a slight rounding in the edge. And that edge should be as crisp as possible. Probably sounds a little stupid, but, is there any truth in that ? Anybody know ?

Netscape ? Whats that ......thats like explorer is it ? ......are you joking from the start or just from the end of your post ? you cheeky bugger
.....cause your 'problem' is missing an 'm'.

derrrrr Apricotripper.

You weren't joking at all !!!. .....everything you wrote after 'proble' wasn't there a moment ago. It all up there now. Thought you were pulling my leg.

No I'm serious , for once , I had lots of troubles with this site like posting pictures and all sorts of stuff . I am no computer guru but look up netscape browser on your search engine and download that then use it instead of windows explorer . It worked for me and yes I am serious .
Love your input on tool sharpening . It has even helped me "teach the teacher " at school .


Great forum

Who finds waterstones ok for sharpening card scrapers ?

Never tried to sharpen a card scraper with a waterstone but I have used the stone to straighten the edge and remove the old burr after jointing it with a file. Works fine for me...

Never tried to sharpen a card scraper with a waterstone but I have used the stone to straighten the edge and remove the old burr after jointing it with a file. Works fine for me

Bit confused by what you mean. Do you or don't you use a waterstone in the process ?

I understand jointing with a file. I do that first too. Usually with scraper in vise with file held fixed above two small pieces of wood that sandwich the scraper...you know, to ensure the files square.......buy you want to polish the edge and the 2 adjacent sides, don't you ? Is that when you use a waterstone. Because , when I use a waterstone at this stage the results are disappointing no matter how hard I try to ensure all polishing is done square.....

...So, instead I gave up on the waterstones and just polish the edge and sides with a diamond stone. When polishing edge I run it alongside a square piece of wood, thats sitting on the stone, to ensure its polished square. Afterwards, I just burnish each of the 4 edges you get from a single card scraper and away I go. ........ Can produce a good hook that lasts well with the diamond stone. .....Be nice if I could get the scraper a little more polished though, with a few rubs on the 6000 waterstone. But, when I do the burr definetly doesn't seem as sharp. ......and yes, the waterstones are dead flat........I don't know what I'm doing wrong. So, I've started blaming the waterstones you see....

I was being a touch facetious there, apricot. Yes, I do use a waterstone in the process. I joint the scraper using a file (except I put the file flat on the bench and run the scraper along it) then I use a waterstone to flatten the edge (remove the file marks) by holding the scraper on edge and slightly bowed so that it can't tip and run it backwards and forwards a few times on the stone. Then I use put the scraper flat on the stone and polish both sides to remove the burr. Then I use my trusty burnishing rod to turn the burr.

No I'm serious , for once , I had lots of troubles with this site like posting pictures and all sorts of stuff . I am no computer guru but look up netscape browser on your search engine and download that then use it instead of windows explorer . It worked for me and yes I am serious .
Love your input on tool sharpening . It has even helped me "teach the teacher " at school .

Great forum

Ta Rick,,,,,nice to feel useful.

I'll try and get netscape. Anythings better than whats going on know with my computer.

Yeh, I like this forum too. Learn't a lot as well. Even with the occational cat fight. ...... Lou, do you really wear tennis shoes ?!? ....God, get with the times mate....... ...Should be wearing bloodstones. Men, wear bloodstones. True blue Australian footwear. Made in afganistan.

.............Just for the record I wear thongs

M8 if your interested in sharpening a card scraper I can send you a video. Just need MSN Messenger or ICQ for the file transfer PM me if interested.

I've used the method on the video since watching it and have got a great edge from my card scraper each time............is a simple quick technique. All you need is a good burnisher to turn a Bur and a simple jig to hold the scraper.

You might have to experiment but I can't see why your couldn't use a lower grit waterstone using this technique

REGards Lou

....by holding the scraper on edge and slightly bowed.

Thanks Silent. I think everything else is the same EXCEPT this. I'm not bowing the blade. I'm focusing on keeping the card square alright by running it against a piece of wood, but just going back and forth all the time over the same spot. So, what happening I think is, cause waterstones wear so much faster than diamond stones, I am burrowing a little grove in the stone thats rounding its edges. I had that feeling that was what was happening. Obvious now, and a little embarrised I brought it up.

I take it, you don't have any problem keeping it square without a block of wood. Spose there's more inherent stablitiy anyway, been bowed and all.

Thanks Lou for the offer on the video. Think the problems solved now though. Besides, I don't think my computer would handle a movie. I've tried often enough downloading movies. Best I've got from one was about half a second of skin and groans,,, then the computer crapped itself... ... :eek: ...... :mad: ....yeh, right ! ...as if YOU've never tried downloading something like that , when the familys out, and you've got the house to yourself.....

I take it, you don't have any problem keeping it square without a block of wood. Spose there's more inherent stablitiy anyway, been bowed and all.

That's the point. If you bow it a bit, assuming that the edge is straight, it can't tip. You're also spreading the wear over a larger area of the stone. If you rub back and forth in a straight line, you just put a groove in the stone. I hold the scraper so that it is perpendicular to the length of the stone. Makes a lovely sound. Remember when the teacher was writing frantically and the chalk broke in her hand?

A couple of points about honing card scrapers:

I first clamp them in a vise and then use a smooth file (with a guide fence) to flatten the top edge. It must be square to the sides. I then do the same with a 1200 grit diamond stone (I do not use waterstones for this as the edges are too sharp and will mark the stones).

Note: Above I take the sharpening media to the cards, not the cards to the sharpening media.

I then flatten the faces of the cards on waterstones, going as high as 8000. Only here do I take the cards to the sharpening media.

With the card on the edge of the bench, I then use the burnisher to first raise the edge. Back to the vise, I now create a hook. This is done on all four sides.

Regards from Perth

Derek

If you flex the scraper it cannot help but be at 90 degrees. The edge of the scraper when presented perpendicular to the direction of travel does not mark the stone. I picked this tip up from somewhere - an article in FWW I think. Seemed to make sense to me.

I clamp the scraper in a vice to turn the burr but only when I'm being fussy. You can get a good enough result holding the scraper in one hand and drawing the burnisher across it with the other.