Academy Notes and Tips - Clean Cuts

Academy Notes and Tips

JAN/FEB 2004
Volume 47/Issue 1

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Project Articles
• A New Kitchen
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• Gallery Rail Paper Towel Holder

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Academy Notes
Clean Cuts - Pt. 4- Using Oriental Waterstones

Service Pointers
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Safety Tips
Router Safety

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From the Shopsmith Woodworking Academy
Clean Cuts -- Part 4--Using Oriental Waterstones
Printer friendly PDF copy of article (609K)

The sharpening begins
Don't make haste - make “paste”
Once your tones are properly flattened, you'll want to begin the process with a Coarse (250 to 800-grit) stone. When using a waterstone, it's important that you not wash off the paste that forms on the surface during use. Start with lots of water - just slosh it on with your hand or use a spray bottle - to begin the sharpening process. If you like, you can use a Nagura Stone to quickly create the initial paste to get you started. Otherwise, just start your sharpening process and, as the paste begins to gather into a thicker consistency, it will actually start to polish the edge, preparing it for the next step up to a finer grit stone.

Elbow grease replaces “the old grind”
Working with the Coarse stone - and a bit of elbow grease - can totally eliminate the need to power grind the nicks off the edge of a tool. Power grinding can be a very risky proposition for all but the most skilled sharpeners. Why? Because one little slip is all it takes to gouge an edge or remove its temper. The waterstone, on the other hand, does the job quite nicely and without fear of damage...although it takes a bit longer.

It helps to use a Honing Guide to maintain the exact bevel you want during the honing process (see Fig. 5). These Guides have a bearing roller on the underside, which rolls over the stone's surface during sharpening. The chisel or plane iron is then clamped between the adjustable side pieces, holding the edge at the proper angle to the stone's surface. Take long strokes, using as much of the full length of the stone as possible. If you're not using a Honing Guide, be sure to stop at the end of each stroke and “feel” for the exact same bevel angle before taking another stroke. Once you get the bevel to the angle you want...you can check this with a special Bevel Gauge...you may find that you no longer need the Honing Guide.

Fig. 5 A bevel-holding sharpening aid works well when removing large amounts of steel.

Oriental woodworkers squat or kneel on the floor when sharpening their tools. For many, this allows for greater leverage and better control. However, you can achieve excellent results with the stones at benchtop height, as well. The secret is to keep your body centered over the stone and your arms and elbows extended equally, applying equal pressure across the tool's edge.

Hold the tool's cutting edge perpendicular to the stone's long edge...

or with the edge at a slight skew...

or with its edge parallel to the stone's long edge...

This last method is tricky. If you're not careful, you'll roll the tool's edge over into a less desirable, half-moon shape.

...and continues.
Wipe off your tool before moving to the 1200-grit stone. Use it in the same manner as the coarser stones, producing the best edge possible before moving on to the final polishing stone. This will take fewer strokes...if you have used the first stone correctly.

The final step is honing on the 6000 or 8000-grit stone to remove the wire edge or burr that the first two stones turned-up on the tool's backside. Just turn your tool over to remove it, maintaining good control by using downward pressure on your index finger to keep the tool's back in firm contact with the stone's surface while the fingers on your other hand grasp and guide the tool (see Fig. 6).

Fig. 6 Remove the wire burr. Note position of fingers...keeping entire backside of tool firmly in contact with the stone at all times.

The final polishing stones will put a spectacular, mirror-like finish on the tool's bevel - the more brilliant the reflection, the sharper the tool. No final leather stropping is necessary after using these super-fine stones.

So, which should you own?
If you're just getting started and you need a set of benchstones, you can't go wrong with waterstones. If you already own a set of oilstones, the waterstones will increase your sharpening speed and capabilities.

In closing, waterstones wear a bit faster than oilstones...and you can't get waterstones in special shapes such as rounds, tapers, points and triangular shapes. However, many woodworkers believe that they're easier to use than oilstones...and once you learn to use them properly and to their fullest capability, a good set of waterstones will prove to be a fine investment, indeed!

Coming up in the March/April issue -- PART FIVE - Sharpening Jointer, Molder & Shaper Knives