Wet Stone sharpeners

[HexusOdy]

I'm relatively new to woodworking and one of the biggest PITA I find is sharpening, as I'm sure many do. And like everyone else who first looks into the options there are a hundred opinions on the best way to do it.

Personally I lean towards Paul Sellers way of thinking in that for hundreds of years nobody sharpened beyond 250 grit and that there is little benefit going beyond the low 1000's in grit. So I have 400, 1000 and 4000 wet stones but it's still a PITA setting up a new chisel or plane.

I've been looking at wet stone sharpening systems and generally their stones seem to be between 220 and 400 grit with a strop wheel for polishing. What I wanted to ask is do those that have them find that is enough or do you just use them to make the primary bevel and then go back to higher grits free hand?

There is little point me paying out for the sake of just speeding up one stage, if I'm going to buy one I want it to do the complete job!

 

[mouppe]

I don't think Paul Sellers ever said that. I believe he said that many times there was no need to sharpen above 250 grit, or rather, that you should sharpen to task.

However, the polishing of a chisel on a leather strop which has been done for hundreds of years will improve it much beyond 250 grit.

You are right that there are thousands of opinions so I am only telling you how I sharpen- not that it is the best way or the only way- but that it is merely my way.

There is a lot of benefit in going beyond 1000 grit. I sharpen to 8000 grit and then give the blade a few strokes on a leather strop, which gives me an extremely sharp edge. I use no honing guide. Polishing to a high grit level makes my work easier as the blade slices more easily through the wood, and quicker because I only have to return to the 8000 grit stone or strop for a few seconds to maintain the edge, in between much less frequent sharpening sessions.

However you develop a sharpening process, it should not be a PITA. It should be a breeze and get you back to work quickly and smoothly. And it is much more enjoyable working with sharp tools and the resulting wood surface is better which means less sanding etc.

 

[HexusOdy]

I wasn't trying to quote Paul Sellers verbatim but the general gist of his thinking on the matter is that very high numbers are not required and that for many hundreds of years it was a very simple process without all these plethora of options. I believe that in his earlier career he never sharpened beyond a 250 grit India stone that he found more than adequate.

I'm with you in that once you have a chisel sharp it's a small process to keep it that way. My biggest gripe is getting it sharp out of the box. I bought a set of 6 chisels and 3 planes at Christmas and the time it took me to flatten the backs and and sharpen must have been at least 90 minutes if not 2 hours.

But what you mention about the strop brings me back to the wet stone grinders which generally have a 220 to 400 grit stone and a leather strop for polishing. Do those that have one just go from the stone to the strop and find that produces a good result? Or do you find you have to work the blade on some finer grits first?