HONING GUIDES:

[^woody^]

These days I use an expensive dry belt grinder, which, like double ended bench grinders, can heat the tools you are sharpening up

A valuable tip I discovered just two weeks ago is .... don't sharpen your chisels on the same bench belt sander that you previously used to sand down some hardwood. This will prevent you having to quickly unplug, and unbuckle the sander and run up the garden with it when you see some flames and smoke coming out the side. Or don't be lazy and always use your dust extractor.

 

[^woody^]

I believe the water thing originally came from the use of Japanese waterstones (the first "wonder sharpening method" which preceded diamond stones), which of course require water, and which are easily hollowed if misused (and so require regular flattening if used much). They are very different beasts to conventional abrasive stones - for starters they need to either be permanently immersed in water between uses, or be immersed for 20 to 30 minutes before use depending on the stone type.

Modern Western-style sharpening has generally depended on the use of either an oil or another petrochemical such as paraffin. I think the purpose of this is two fold - to wash away any metal swarf and thereby prevent the abrasive from clogging, and to lubricate both the tool and the honing jig (if any). Oil has the additional advantage of preventing rust - both of the tool and the honing jig.

AFAIK diamond sharpening originated in the industrial engineering sphere where they very rarely seem to use water (because it promotes rust?) and instead often use a refined paraffin honing fluid. If you think about it, constantly soaking a steel plate, even a nickel plated one (which is used to hold the diamonds in position) can eventually result in rust formation beneath the nickel plating (because even nickel plating is porous to an extent)

So on balance I prefer to remain cautious and use an oil or paraffin honing fluid - that way if I do forget to clean and oil stuff before putting them away at the end of a traditional sharpening session, there's less likelihood of things going rusty. And I detest having to remove rust from anything

There are diamond stones and blades that can be used dry, so I've always believed that a liquid is just to prevent clogging of the the diamond grit, and not for wear prevention or lubrication. Also that oil of any sort is too thick and clingy for use on diamond grit, so water is preferable. A quick wipe with a cloth is all that's needed to dry off any water.

I do tend to spray mine with some WD 40 after afterwards for the water repellent properties if I don't think I'll be using them for a while. Then wipe them clean before using next time

 

[Deleted member 174758]

As I may have said elsewhere - I use diamond stones with a refined paraffin lapping fluid (£25 for 5 litres, but it lasts a long time). That idea came from a precision engineer. It just clears the metsl swarf and does help lubricate the honing guide a little if I am using one (e.g. when dealing with spokeshave blades and the like). O8lstones, however, do use oil on - just very thin oil

 

[opps]

During the first lock down I purchased a Record WD250 wet stone wheel (and honing wheel)

https://www.recordpower.co.uk/product/10-wet-stone-sharpening-system-package-deal

Previously, I had got in to bad habit of using my 75mm belt sander to sand my chisels. Regrinding my chisels back to the correct angle has been a very, very time consuming process but well worth it. They are now sharper than when I first purchased them.

I appreciate that the OP doesn't want to spend £270 to sharpen his chisels, and to be honest, if I could have justified it I would have spent £700+ on a Tormek instead. Over the year I have tried the oil stones and Stanley honing guide. I even spent £50 on the Trend Fast Track diamond sharpener- great product, but once you have lost the correct angle, using it for two hours will not help.

 

[^woody^]

but once you have lost the correct angle

And yet the "correct" angle can be anywhere between 25 and 35 degrees. And then there's the secondary bevel.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

And then there's the secondary bevel.

Assuming that you need one...

 

[lostinthelight]

Amongst other things, I picked up a new horizontal wet grinder at a garage sale but not had chance to try it yet.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Looks like a copy of the old Makita horizontal wetstone. You may need to make up a jig for it - the long jig is more suitable for pplane knives than chisels, I feel. I found the Makita stones rather soft (typical Japsnese wayerstones) so you need to be cautious when using them and keep the tool moving from side to side. Also, make sure that you soak the stone well before use - used dry they tend to clog rather quickly

 

[RONCHAM]

What a (poor) memory! - 2 years on and I'm having the same thoughts again. Why is it so difficult to make a cheap and effective honing guide? The 45 degree bevels each side sometimes allow the chisel to be held askew – why not vertical as even the cheapest chisels probably have near parallel sides? All that’s needed is a clamping arrangement to hold the chisel firmly to a base. And why a single narrow roller where the chisel can possibly rock from side to side? - surely a wider or two roller arrangement is preferable? Saker make something along these lines but it’s apparently unsuitable for shorter chisels.
I've subsequently read window cleaning fluid recommended to spray on wet and dry - I've tried it and it seems ok (but I'm no expert!). I've also viewed Paul Sellers videos where he sharpens chisels costing just a few pounds and makes them perfectly usable. Some of the old tools he uses are excellent but are now collectors' items and quite expensive.

 

[opps]

After eulogising about my wet wheel sander, I have noticed that, for example a 3" chisel in the guide grinds at 90 degrees, a 6mm on it however will be pizzed. No idea why. It is also extremely slow when removing substantial amounts.

I am toying with buying a linisher- way faster for dealing with chisels that get dinks in them.

Robert Sorby ProEdge System chisel sharpening machine UK - Yandles

Pro Edge Sharpener chisel sharpening machine UK gouge sharpening

www.yandles.co.uk

As an aside, Trend make a pretty good honing tool where the chisel is static and you slide the head over it.

Fast Track Sharpener Mk2 Trend Tool Technology

Trend are the leading brand of Routers, Cutters, Jigs & Accessories, Power Tool Accessories, Safety/PPE, Tool Storage, Abrasives & CNC Machines sold through a network of stockists in the United Kingdom, Ireland, USA & Canada. Our products are also available online form e-commerce partners in...

www.trend-uk.com

I have the mark 1 but my problem was that I had beggered up the angles on my chisels by using belt sanders to sharpen them when on site. The Trend would be great for slightly blunt chisels but useless for ones that have hit a screw.

 

[^woody^]

www.mpower-tools.co.uk/product/fasttrack-mk2-chisel-plane-blade-sharpener/

Same as the trend, but better value and more features.

These are brilliant for quick, good quality touch-ups before needing to revert to a traditional stone. But will also bring blunt chisels and blades back to life if you get the additional rougher diamond stones and go through the grades. The bundle with the extra stones is worth getting if you are going to get this system.

 

[^woody^]

I've subsequently read window cleaning fluid recommended to spray on wet and dry - I've tried it and it seems ok (but I'm no expert!). I've also viewed Paul Sellers

I see he recommends this, mainly for (IIRC) rust prevention as opposed to neat water as the lubricant. But I also recall that the main liquid in such products is .... water.

 

[opps]

www.mpower-tools.co.uk/product/fasttrack-mk2-chisel-plane-blade-sharpener/

Same as the trend, but better value and more features.

These are brilliant for quick, good quality touch-ups before needing to revert to a traditional stone. But will also bring blunt chisels and blades back to life if you get the additional rougher diamond stones and go through the grades. The bundle with the extra stones is worth getting if you are going to get this system.

Good spot.

It is identical. MPower list Trend as being a distributor, so I guess they licence it to Trend. It is definitely cheaper. What extra features does it have though, I can't see any difference.

 

[^woody^]

Good spot.

It is identical. MPower list Trend as being a distributor, so I guess they licence it to Trend. It is definitely cheaper. What extra features does it have though, I can't see any difference.

The diamond stone can be set to two different angles on the same side of the unit, so you can do a main and secondary bevel, or you can use this to be able to form a sharp edge at slightly different angles for several times before you need to actually re-grind the chisel/blade.

"allowing over 20 chisel re-sharpens between primary re-grinds"

There is also a leather strop on the bottom, which I did not think the trend unit had.

 

[opps]

The diamond stone can be set to two different angles on the same side of the unit, so you can do a main and secondary bevel, or you can use this to be able to form a sharp edge at slightly different angles for several times before you need to actually re-grind the chisel/blade.

"allowing over 20 chisel re-sharpens between primary re-grinds"

There is also a leather strop on the bottom, which I did not think the trend unit had.

The more expensive version of the two Trend packages has a strop as well. Again it is the same product.

Thanks for mentioning the MPower option, I may order one for on-site sharpening.