Tool sharpening Novice

[Jacob]

On this page

http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/proedge.htm

It show long list of grits ets and jigs, not sure if they all come with it or you buy them separately?

I got the basic one without jigs. It comes with some belts. I think you are better off without jigs as once you have the knack it's much quicker to do it freehand and it saves a bit of cash. You can always add extras afterwards if you want them.

 

[James C]

On this page

http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/proedge.htm

It show long list of grits ets and jigs, not sure if they all come with it or you buy them separately?

I got the basic one without jigs. It comes with some belts. I think you are better off without jigs as once you have the knack it's much quicker to do it freehand and it saves a bit of cash. You can always add extras afterwards if you want them.

Do you still use the arm that you can set angles on?

 

[Aled Dafis]

On this page

http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/proedge.htm

It show long list of grits ets and jigs, not sure if they all come with it or you buy them separately?

I got the basic one without jigs. It comes with some belts. I think you are better off without jigs as once you have the knack it's much quicker to do it freehand and it saves a bit of cash. You can always add extras afterwards if you want them.

The Proedge does come with a small selection of belts (about 3 i think) but for sharpening HSS turning tools, the ceramic belts (which you have to buy seperately) last a lot longer. To give you some idea of longevity, I only manage a couple of hours turning a week, but have had the same 240grit belt on the machine for about three months, it could do with replacing pretty soon, but I'll probably get another month or so out of it.

I'm an advocate of sharpening plane and chisel irons freehand, but turning tools are a completely different matter, it's jigs for me every time! The flat platen is great for sharpening scrapers, I grind a negative rake at 20deg and then the face at 80deg.

Cheers
Aled

 

[Andy777]

So, I want a sharpener, I have BASIC tools.
Round nose scraper- Plain skew 15mm-Roughing out gouge 8mm-Parting tool.
Advised to get thinner parting tool and bowl gouge.

What machine would do it cheapest using jigs rather than freehand, how many jigs would I need?

 

[Andy777]

Also the cellulose sanding sealer that I was shown(can`t get an answer as to what make it was)
thinned 50/50 splodged on the wood and tissue dried instantly then wax and tissue polished in seconds.

Lots of makes say 5 mins or more drying time or longer, so does anyone know what make this could have been?

Andy

 

[Aled Dafis]

The cheapest (bought) jigged setup would be a standard 6" grinder (Record Power comes with a wide white wheel would be a good bet, but cheaper grinders are available) and the Storme jig from Axminster. I have a Storme setup at school and it's pretty good value, it just requires you to mount the whole setup on a solid base (ply, mdf etc.)

Cheers
Aled

 

[Andy777]

OK Sold my rotivator on ebay and bought a Pro-Edge from Stiles & Bates in kent.

Excellent very nice helpful couple.

 

[James C]

Have you received it yet? I'd be interested to hear what your views on the machine are.

 

[Andy777]

Drove 160m round trip to collect, Wanted it NOW!!!!!

I will have a go on it tomorrow. Need a bigger shed, Need a bigger garden! Need to win Lottery...

 

[Andy777]

Well I have had a play and sharpened everything that moves!

Excellent bit of kit for the novice that cant freehand sharpen very well!

Not cheap but I got the Plus version as cheaper in the long run.

 

[James C]

Cheers, thanks for the info. I'm considering it now.

 

[HRRLutherie]

I just ordered a WorkSharp WS3000 from Rutlands (they had a 13% Easter discount).

I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but it seems like it's quite popular across the pond, and about a third of the price of a Tormek T7 with all the trimmings. WorkSharp have just released a tool bar attachment, and actually encourage the use of Tormek jigs, so it should be just as capable as a Tormek. Do bear in mind, though, that I have absolutely no experience whatsoever in sharpening (or woodworking, for that matter!)

I'll do a review on it when I can.

 

[chippy1970]

I ordered one last weekend too. Got it Thursday tried it out last night and its great all the years I've messed about with oil stones and diamond stones . This thing saves all the messing about and gives a great sharp edge. I just need to get some 60 or 80 grit paper for heavy grinding save me using my bench grinder.

 

[James C]

I ordered one last weekend too. Got it Thursday tried it out last night and its great all the years I've messed about with oil stones and diamond stones . This thing saves all the messing about and gives a great sharp edge. I just need to get some 60 or 80 grit paper for heavy grinding save me using my bench grinder.

Worksharp or Proedge?

 

[chippy1970]

Worksharp 3000 from rutlands same deal as above.

 

[HRRLutherie]

I unboxed mine today and was very impressed by the build quality, much more cast metal than expected. I managed to grind a 1 inch chisel to 120grit, but haven't had time to finish.

A note of caution:

If you don't have a permanent workshop (like me), I would strongly recommend you use the WS3000 outside. I was using it and a got a lot of metal dust after just about a minute and a half of grinding. The danger of this is two fold: first of all, these particulates are not good for your lungs, but also, they present a fire hazard. I saw steel filings fly off the back, but after about a minute I got a real fright when I saw a big cluster of this dust smoulder red hot. Fortunately it didn't burst into flames, but the embers were enough to scare me!

However, I have a feeling that I was leaving the chisel in the port a little bit to long, which could have been the reason for the unexpected heat build up.

So all in all, be careful (and be less stupid than me!)


PS: Absolutely no problems with the machine itself, it has exceeded all my expectations (so far)

 

[chippy1970]

You should only hold the chisel in for 1 to 2 seconds that's why you got the fireworks lol.

I found a magnet in a plastic bag is good for clearing up all the mess then just pull the bag inside out and remove the magnet job done. I need to get some rougher paper p80 I see toolstation sell PSA discs.

 

[HRRLutherie]

Thanks for the tip, I'll try that.

Also, I found 150mm PSA abrasive discs on amazon for £0.20 a piece, up to about 400 grit. They also had packs of 25 from Silverline, but it was £13 and I don't need that many. I'm going to stick any extra abrasives on homemade MDF discs so that I can save on glass discs. I want to take my chisels up to 0.3 micron...