During the last 25 years, all my sharpening processes have become simpler. And use much less gear. This has made me faster, and my edges are just as excellent.
This evolution is most evident in the way I sharpen scrapers. I was taught the first step was to file the edge at a perfect 90°. Then stone away the scratches. This is completely unnecessary (unless you tried to scrape concrete with your tool). Instead, you can simply use a burnisher to turn the hook vertical and stone it away.
The second huge change also involves the burnisher. I was taught to polish both faces of the scraper to create a durable tool. This is also totally unnecessary. You can use your burnish to polish the face – right up where it needs to be polished.
Both of these tips are shown in this quick video.
My new video “Sharpen This (the Video)” is filled with small tips and tricks such as these that (I hope) will get you back to work a little faster.
Because of the positive reaction to our “Build a Stick Chair” video, we decided to produce a new video on sharpening woodworking tools that delves even further into the topic than our new book “Sharpen This.”
“Sharpen This (the Video)” is a 2-1/2-hour long video companion to our “Sharpen This” book. But because the video medium is so good at showing body motion, we decided to keep expanding the video through 2023. What does that mean?
The video we are releasing today covers all you need to know to sharpen bench tools. Grinding, honing, polishing – the works. But during the next year we will release 20 additional videos that cover the more unusual tools, from scorps to fishtail chisels.
Anyone who purchases the video (from now into the future) will also receive these 20 new videos as they are released (you will be notified of new videos via email).
“Sharpen This (the Video)” has an introductory price of $50 until Oct. 31, 2022. That’s the entire 2-1/2-hour video, plus access to the 20 upcoming sharpening videos. After Oct. 31, the video will be $75.
— Christopher Schwarz
About the Video
Sharpening your tools is simple. And easy. So why do so many woodworkers struggle with it?
One huge reason is the enormous amount of misinformation, needless consumerism and piles of unnecessary (and expensive!) equipment.
The new video “Sharpen This” takes you back to what is important: Getting a good edge that will leave shimmering wooden surfaces with a minimum amount of fuss, sharpening grits or gear.
Most sharpening information these days comes from people who make sharpening equipment. Or from passionate amateurs who have tried to turn it into a science. Host Christopher Schwarz is a furniture maker who sells his work for money. His approach is to create durable edges (in usually 3 minutes or less) that will create perfect surfaces on your work.
The 2-1/2-hour long video explains the entire world of sharpening so you can pick a sharpening system (they all work), sharpen your edges quickly and get back to the good part: woodworking.
In addition to the video, buyers will receive an additional 20 videos throughout 2023 that show you how to sharpen tricky tools (such as marking knives, scorps and fishtail chisels). Plus tips on how to sharpen faster and better while ignoring the immense amount of sharpening BS that clogs the internet.
Contents of Sharpen This (The Video) Introduction 1:26 What is Sharp? 12:59 What Sharpens Tools? 8:59 My Personal Kit 8:48 Set Up a New Tool 22:58 Grinding 24:20 Hone & Polish 27:21 Flattening Stones 4:24 Hand Sharpening 12:07 Sharpen Scrapers 7:33 Moulding Planes 5:05 Reverse the Operations 13:15
Future Videos that Will be Included in this Series Marking Knives and Marking Gauges Scorps Spade & Auger Bits Shop Knives & Pocket Knives Spokeshaves Gunstock Scrapers & Chair Devils Dividers, Awls & Planing Stops The Terrible Flattening Brick The Edge on Up Sharpness Tester And more….
Today is the last day to get a free PDF with your print order of “Sharpen This” by Christopher Schwarz and/or “Euclid’s Door” by George Walker and Jim Tolpin. After midnight tonight (Sept. 30, 2022), the combo of the hardcover books and pdf will cost more.
“Euclid’s Door” is Jim and George’s latest exploration of artisan geometry. In this new book they show you how to build a set of highly accurate and beautiful wooden layout tools using simple geometry and common bench tools. This practical application of geometry will train your hands and mind to use this ancient wisdom. And you’ll end up with a fantastic set of useful tools.
“Sharpen This,” Chris’s latest book, is one he wished he’d had when learning woodworking. It would have saved him money (no buying unnecessary sharpening equipment) and time in learning how to grind, hone and polish. It’s a short and blunt treatise about sharpening common bench tools: chisels and planes mostly. Chris explains how sharpening really works and what you need to do the job well – and no more.
If you were planning to order either (or both) and have not yet gotten around to it, today would be a good day.
We are filming a full-length video to complement my “Sharpen This” book. Megan is filming it, and I am editing it. The video will be available next month.
One of the film’s many segments is about my personal sharpening kit. You might find the information interesting. Plus, this short video will give you a feel for the level of immaturity in the video as a whole. Serious information. But with a bit of levity.
As mentioned in the video, all of this equipment is mine. I bought it. Paid full price. And so I have stuff to say about it – good and bad.
Here are links to the products mentioned in the video. I do not get any kickbacks from these links. I chose these suppliers because I use these suppliers. Yes, the last two links are to our store.
I suspect that this blog entry will kick off a lot of questions along the lines of: Could you compare this brand of fart sharpener to a second brand? And the answer is: no, not reliably. I have used a lot of systems. But comparing them in a meaningful manner is beyond the scope of most humans.
Here’s what I can say: All the systems work. You get what you pay for. Buy from a reliable manufacturer that stands behind its products. And complexity is not your friend.
Every time we get questions about our setting jigs, I joke that I’m going to start making them to sell. Had I done it years ago, I could probably now afford that paint job my house needs…or at least afford some fancy cat treats!
The questions have ticked up recently, due to the publication Christopher Schwarz’s book “Sharpen This.” But I still can’t bring myself to make these jigs, ’cause it’s so easy to make your own. But also because different honing guides require different placement of the blocks (it has to do with how far the blade projects)… and I don’t have time to make these for every guide out there. So here’s how to make the one we use, for our Lie-Nielsen honing guides:
Screw two pieces of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMW) to a block of plywood. Done. No magnets. No magic.
OK, OK…here are a few more particulars:
The 1/2″-thick plywood block is 4-1/4″ long x 2-1/8″ wide. (Other sizes would work.) We like plywood because it is unlikely to warp as much as solid wood.
The 1/4″-thick UHWM plastic is left over from another project – but it’s the perfect thing for this. It doesn’t get munged up as easily as a block of wood when you register a blade against it, so it lasts a lot longer. The two little blocks of UHWM are 1″ wide x 1-1/8″ long.
The plastic is screwed in place with brass screws, because they won’t rust.
The 35° block is 7/8″ from the front edge; the 30° block is 1-5/32″ from the front edge.
Those are the only two angles at which we hone/polish 99 percent of our edge tools (and really, we mostly use only the 35°). But if you want a lot of angle choices on your jig, Lie-Nielsen Toolworks has a free download for a fancy one. But we don’t do fancy when it comes to tool sharpening – ’cause making them dull is a lot more fun.
To use it, register the blade against the block, then tighten the jig. Easy, fast, repeatable.
But what if you don’t have a Lie-Nielsen honing guide, or you want different angles? Well, you’ll just have to figure out the proper projection to get the setting block in the right place. Here are two ways to do that.
Put a blade in your guide, then put a Tilt Box on the blade and register the bevel against a flat surface. Adjust the guide until the readout matches your goal angle. Tighten the guide, then measure the distance from the body of the guide to the end of the blade. That’s the distance from the guide’s body the setting block should be secured to the setting jig’s base.
The Tilt Box II in use.
Or put a blade in your guide and register the existing bevel against a flat surface. Put a protractor upright on that same flat surface. Align the business end of the blade with the center of a protractor (make sure the 0° on said protractor is on the edge – they aren’t all). Adjust the guide until the angle matches the one you want.
