Sharpening session

[kenny474]

I have found Richard Kell to make what I feel are the absolute best honing jigs on the market. Machined with precision that is simply incredible and designs that work very, very well.

I use wet/dry paper, usually Norton, 3M, or Micro Mesh, and I also add diamond paste to the paper (I match grits closely). The diamond paste extends the life of the really fine papers and cuts super fast.

I do like your system, very similar to my own, except you use a different jig. Gives great results!

[kenny474]

Great videos!

I too sharpen on glass (and granite) even though I have a Tormek style 8" wet-grinder. The glass and paper route is just convenient, cheap and produces excellent results. I have a bench just for sharpening, dead flat and water-proof torsion-box top with an 18"x24" glass plate and plenty of room beside and behind it as well. There is also a lid with support hinges to keep it clean when not in use, and a light mounted under the lid for good lighting while working.

[kenny474]

I built the bench after trying many other methods, and tiring of the constant need to take out and put away sharpening supplies. Now I'm ready to sharpen in seconds, with all my supplies under the lid, in drawers under the top, or on a shelf behind the bench.

I also have a 12"x9" granite surface plate mounted for other lapping needs, and plan to replace the glass with a 24"x24" granite plate soon.

[OldSchoolSkill]

Once you understand the geometry of cutting edges, the forces involved (in sharpening and use) you will then see how this makes so much sense. This system does not negate other systems, but supersedes all other sharpening methods, hand or powered.

You will get better, longer lasting edges, save money and time with this system. Don't let manufacturer's hype or Luddite prejudice keep you from trying it.

Brent has nothing to sell.

He does not lie.

Try it. You'll see.

[Brentssharpening]

@OldSchoolSkill

Thanks for the testimonial!

Send me a picture of the jigs you made - I will add the picture to the set of user made jigs on the web site.

Today I started to rewrite the material in the web site adding some new material that actually will explain a lot of why the jig and the slips work so well. I evolved the method without first reading up on abrasion of steel and materials testing. Expect a book in a year or two - I will have something to sell then.

[OldSchoolSkill]

To really appreciate this method of sharpening, you need to visit Brent's website.

I have extensive experience ( over 50 years) with woodworking, making and sharpening tools. I have read all the books on sharpening and tried everything out there. This system is the best. It also happens to be relatively inexpensive. Since trying this method, I haven't had to use diamond, Arkansas or water-stones. It takes some effort to read the deep study at his web site, but it is worth the effort.

[OldSchoolSkill]

Mr. Beach,

Thank you for your exhaustive study into this intentionally obfuscated subject.

I learned to sharpen from my father (a pattern-maker / violin repairman) and am expert with all other methods, but your system has transformed my sharpening procedures. It took a while to understand all the information at your website, but after trying your system I can say it is by far the easiest, most-reliable, most accurate, sharpening system I have ever used.

THANK YOU for debunking this subject!

[greenmoss]

Thank you for your excellent contribution. What kind of oil do you use.

[Brentssharpening]

@greenmoss Hi - I use unscented baby oil - bought at big box store, generic equivalent. Evaporates very slowly, thin enough to work as a cutting oil. Check my web site for lots more on how this whole thing works.

[spasblad]

thats scary sharp (:

[OldSchoolSkill]

Brent Beach is a sharpening Guru. With simple cheap tools (glass, home-made jig and 3M lapping film) he has assembled a fast, efficient sharpening system that works better than any other I know, and believe me, I know them all. Save money and get better edges with his techniques, Check his site for more info! Highly recommended!!!

[Brentssharpening]

Thanks, Mom. Just kidding Mr Skill. Thanks for the positive feedback.

[deanofmusic]

I don't understand the use of the micon unit rather than grit. For example, is 0.5 micron the same as 8000 grit...2 micron the same as 2000-grit, and so on?

[Roger1379]

Because grit is different between countries, micron is an international measurement, .5microns = 12000grit in the US or 30000grit in Japan.

[Roger1379]

What kind of abrasive is that? I only ever hear of Chromium oxide and diamond paste going to .5 micron.

[juniorsinghbainsal]

thanks for this cool video! my names Stephanie, kinda feelin bored if any1 wants to join me on cam or wana chat i will be signed on at __ PLAY-CAM...dot...COM __ my user ID there is Stephanie_deretrmlusq chat soon xx its FR33 to j0in! mwah

[guiltybystander77]

why do you bother with a jig?

[Brentssharpening]

There is some ideal angle which gives the best combination of sharpness and durability. With a jig I can consistently get exactly the angle I want. I can also create quickly a sequence of three micro bevels using progressively finer grits. No freehand sharpening can do that. Anyone who thinks they can turn their body into a jig with this precision just does not understand the way the body works. Build the jig, get great edges every time. Train your body to do something important, like gaming.

[luvparamore85]

when it comes to making a jig from free hand this is best with small pocket stones put your finger under the blade to mak a jig simple eh

[Brentssharpening]

It would be simple if everyone had the same sized fingers. In my experience small stones do not produce reliable results. All freehand methods are harder to learn, are slower, and produce inferior results. And of course, will never produce the same results with two different people. However, don't let that detract from your enjoyment of your method.

[daw162]

These are fairly broad statements. a hollow ground edge that is off of a fresh grind is faster, and the edge is essentially the same from a stone that doesn't have stiction - generally speaking where the abrasive is similar. I have looked at the edges through a dissection microscope, and they are the same, and they are the same in use, so long as one avoids side sharpening.

[Brentssharpening]

Hi Daw

A hollow ground edge allows you to hone with the first abrasive ok, but you still need a jig to get the microbevels. The finer abrasives remove metal very slowly. If you hone the entire first honed bevel again with 5 micron, then with 0.5 micron you have to hone for much longer to get the same metal removal.

Because the slips tip the blade up onto the edge, each successive microbevel begins right at the edge. You cannot do this with a hollow grind.

[daw162]

The advantage to jigs is that there is no cost for a machine to do a precise primary grind, on wide thin blades, it's easier to stay perfectly square, and stiction of the abrasive isn't consequential.

Also, anyone with moderate understanding of geometry and the importance of getting the scratch pattern at the edge uniformly done - and appropriately - can get good results right away.

But hollow grind and hone will not dub an edge on a "non-stiction-ey" stone, and it is blindingly fast.

[Brentssharpening]

As mentioned above, hollow grind is only effective for the first honing.. With a final abrasive having grit size 1/30 of the first honing abrasive, there are 900 times as many grits per unit area. The force per grit is 1/900.

To get the same metal removal you would have to work 900 times as long on the 0.5 micron as I do. You would wear out the paper before you finished the first blade.

Somewhere in my web pages I discuss the speed of honing with and without micro bevels.

[daw162]

This is overanalysis run amok. Granted, when the hollow is nearly gone, poor technique, etc, you will not get good results, but the hollow grind is fine for far more than 1 honing. It may take a run through three grits if the edge has significant wear on both sides of the bevel, but you must go through more than one bevel if a microbevel is significantly worn, too.

One needs only look at the edge under a microscope to confirm that the scratch pattern gets all the way to the edge.

[Brentssharpening]

Hi Daw162

If you look at me web pages you will find I have done a lot of looking at edges under microscopes. The web site has 540 jpgs, many of which are photomicrographs. I have thousands of photomicrographs of edges.

My point was not that the first abrasive will not reach (leave scratches right up) the edge, it was that the finer abrasives will not remove enough metal (depth) to remove the scratches left by the first abrasive.

If you have a microscope, you will see that.

Amok?

[OldSchoolSkill]

@daw162

You REALLY need to read and understand all the information at his website before your discuss this any further.

Regarding the "over analysis" comment; Over analysis can be time consuming, but in this case we should be more averse to under-analysis. Over-simplification is no panacea, and often leeds to faulty concepts.

I am confident that if you read and understand the material, then try the system, this debate will cease. Don't believe. Don't debate. Just try. You'll see.

[Fidlist]

I don't understand why you flatten the back of the blade, with the reverse of the guage lifting the blade up. Surely this will form an edge like a metal-worker's cold-chisel? I was always taught that the blade needs to be as flat as possible on the back. Obviously your planes cut well, but this just doesn't make sense to me. Thanks.

Fid.

[Brentssharpening]

Any cutting edge should be the intersection of two planes. Using a plane blade wears the upper surface. You must remove this wear by honing each time you sharpen the blade. Paring chisels used with the back flat on the work are an exception. Check my web pages for lots more discussion of this (google brent beach)

[35057]

I like the wet sand idea with the oil.. I gotta make a jig for my pocket knives..

[spetznaz2588]

Good video!

[moomoomoo29]

the sound is way off