Sharpening...yeah, everyone has to do it.

So here is a quick little note about what I do with sharpening. I figured since I got to experience it first hand (pun kind of intended), I would spend a few minutes on it. It seems like everyone does, so why not. In general, the method that I currently use is sandpaper. It works, and to start out, it's nice and inexpensive. In the long run...not so much. My more permanent method will likely include diamond stones, but I still have about 6 months of good paper left to use, so until that time, no life-altering decision required.

I keep all my sharpening supplies in a little cabinet I made when I first started a little over a year ago. It is actually the only thing I've made out of plywood. It keeps all my sharpening tools clean, organized, and near-to-hand. It's not perfect in form, but its function is spot on.

There are three removable trays sitting on guide rails that contain all of my grits glued to sheets of glass and mounted on 3/8" plywood. At the top is a removable drawer that holds my sharpening jig, polishing compound, a small screwdriver for removing cap irons and tightening iron in the jig.

I also set up a jig to maintain consistent angles when sharpening. This makes sharpening sessions repeatable which is incredibly important. I have one station set up for establishing a primary bevel on planes. Another station sets the secondary bevel, and the final station is for chisels. I do the secondary bevel on chisels by hand. This is on the right in the picture, held in place by the holdfast.

Someone may want to know how often I sharpen...well, that depends on the tool, the type of wood you're working with, how much you used the tool, and how hard you are on the tools and the tasks being performed. My chisels I sharpen constantly. No, I do not start at 220 up to 2500 and then polishing on the strop every time. Instead, I keep the strop handy, and when I start to feel a difference in the chisel, I polish it. A couple quick swipes is generally all I need. When more than that is needed, I'll usually start around 1000 and work my way up 2 grits to the 2500 and then polish. You'll find that sharpening can be super fast if you stay on top of it. The more dull the tool is, the more time it takes to get it sharp again because you have to start at lower grits to reestablish the bevel edge.

All together, my 4 Stanley plane irons and 5 chisels take about 45 minutes for me to sharpen. If I've got some heavy sharpening to do, that could easily double my time (nicks or establishing a new bevel). This is why I generally sharpen before any project begins or when I can notice a difference in the working of the tool--I don't like to spend a lot of time sharpening. A good time for me is at the end of a project. Since I pull my irons and clean all the shavings and dust out of my planes, 1/3 of the job s already started. Keeping everything pretty sharp and never letting my tools get dull means I am not forced to spend a lot of time mid-project on re-sharpening. Cleaning an edge up a little? Sure. Not full-on sharpening, though.

So, I guess that's about all I can think of right now on this subject, unless someone asks me something that I missed. Oh, what is sharp? It changes the more you do it. The better I get at sharpening, my mark for sharp tools keeps moving up. I have a feeling it will keep doing that.

Until the next one,
Josh

Several "to do's" done

Well, it's been a very productive weekend in the shop. Not knowing what the next project was going to be when I first walked out, a new shelf for the shop became the next batter up.

I had built a shelf a few weeks ago to store some of the finishes and glues that I generally keep around, but for some reason I needed a new horizontal service on my wall. Besides, I can practice trying to make it prettier than most of my other shop "furniture". Practice is good, and the shelf would be useful, so therefore I can call the time in the shop "productive".

And then I got distracted...

My rabbet plane was still sitting on the bench after I'd cleaned up and when I went to put it back in the cabinet, I realized that I was sick of only my bench planes having a home. So I spent a few minutes and made use of some of the empty space in the upper part of the cabinet.

Ah, much better...and now back to the initial project...








So I decided this would be a smaller shelf in order to give me a little extra flexibility on where to put it on my wall of cleats. 16" sounds good.

Sawed, chiseled, and routed the dadoes for the supports. Not sure if I needed it, but it was fun. Like I said--practice.

Then sketched out the pattern for the support. Only on one though. I'll use this one as a template once I get it where I like it.

Sawed out the support with the coping saw...

Then used my cheap rasps and my spokeshave to even it all out.

Yup, looks just fine. Much fancier than I'm used to...

And now on to the other one. I'll use this as the template.

Somehow they match...cool.

Eased some of the edges a little with the block plane and then it was time for glue up. (Always keep offcuts from angled or contoured cuts to use as cauls later)

And here is the "finished" product. Not too bad. Much better than my usual shop fare...

More Shop Storage - Nail/Screw Holder

I don't like walking around my shop just to grab stuff I use almost every time I'm out there. That has led me to my mission to get more organized. I was using peg boards, but it just wasn't enough, and if you didn't want to pull the pieces out of the board every time you pulled off a tool--or just wanted to reorganize everything--it was a pain in the rear.

So I've been on my mission. This time it was screws and nails. I hate digging them out of my toolbox. I really wanted something that was within easy reach of my bench, plus give me a place to keep things off of my bench while I'm working and this is the result. It's a single board about 5 inches wide with dados cut into it to allow for the small shelves.

I don't own a table saw--and really don't want one--so the dados would have to be cut by hand. This is the first time I've really done this on something other than practice, so I won't say I was nervous, but I was extra careful on the first one.

I started the dado by knifing my lines at 3/4". I set my first line, then used the actual shelf board to mark the other side. Marked the lines with the chisel and then made a second cut with the chisel to make a "V" for the saw to ride in.

Then sawed to the marked depth in each of the lines. Going back with the 3/4" chisel and chopping a little all the way down really made removing the waste simple.

Then the router plane quickly takes care of the rest...

This first one took about 20 minutes, but the others were about 5-10 minutes apiece. Easy...

And then it's just cutting the shelves to length and gluing them in. Doesn't get much simpler! Oh, and adding the cleat on the back to hang it from. I just used an off-cut piece from one of the other cleats. Up on the wall it goes!

An easy project completed, but I really enjoyed the practice. Besides, it's useful and only took about an hour. I'm sure someone can figure out another use for it too.

--Josh

Video of the Clamp Rack Build

For anyone interested in yesterday's blog, I actually took a few extra minutes during the clamp rack build to video the process. Not every project is very entertaining or exciting, and this one is probably no exception, but if you're looking for a quick how-to on this one, then here it is!

Only thing I suggest is if anyone wants to build this on their own...plan your clamp spacing better than I did. Luckily this is about $5 in lumber, so I can easily make a new one if this one gets annoying. My big clamp rack will be much better planned.

So go ahead and click on the video below to check out this very basic build.

More Shop Storage-Quick Clamp Rack

Everywhere you read about woodworking, there's one (of many) common threads: you can never have too many clamps. I have to agree. Almost every other project I work on, I think to myself--at least once--that it would have been a lot easier if I had another clamp. This has led to my being the proud owner of about 20 F-style and Quick Grip clamps. In building my table for my belt/disc sander, I incorporated some through rods that allow some clamps to just hook over it, and then the other clamps just rest over the edge.

It's not the prettiest, but it definitely works. It's a table I don't use every day in the shop, so the clamps remain out of the way. What I don't like, however, is that when I do use the clamps, I sometimes accidentally pull others off with the one I wanted. I also have to bend down to get the quick grips. Not so cool. I don't like bending down and reaching blindly for my tools.

Since I've been building shop storage stuff, this is next on the list. I had several ideas, so now all that's left is to try out an idea I've got for a 2x6 and some 3/4" dowels. I happen to have those handy.

Basically I just took the 2x6 and drilled some 3/4" holes. I didn't go all the way through so that the glue wouldn't spill out the back and create a mess I'd have to clean up later.

Then I planed it. I should have done that first because it was a little warped. This will make it look better, but really this is just a personal preference. I mainly just like using my planes. It's amazing how you can make construction lumber look completely different with a sharp plane and a couple minutes of elbow grease. My shop storage stuff is more functional than anything else. This one is really just that....practical.

Next is the big rip. 45 DEG for the french cleat to match what is already on my wall...I wish I had a better rip saw, but my inexpensive Japanese pull saw will work just fine for this...

Then I clean up the angle from the saw cut. This will true up the edge and make a smoother surface to rest against the piece on the wall.

Done with the block plane and jointer plane...

Then glue up the cleat to the main piece...

Glue the dowels in the holes...

And then put it up on the wall and start loading it up...

My placement was wrong on the dowels....oops. but it works. If I think I need another one, it's about 2 hrs of work (and that was mainly waiting for the glue to dry.

Now on to the next one...for my parallel and pipe clamps...the wall doesn't like them leaning...

Shop Storage: Cordless Drills

So I was able to finish up the cordless drill holder that I had started prior to my trip to Tucson. I used joints that weren't needed (dovetails) and added some curves and bevels where they weren't required (this is going to sit in my shop) and enjoyed the build and learning process quite a bit. I would definitely recommend the addition of "unnecessary" joinery and fancier features if for nothing more than excellent practice.

This tool holder sits on my wall using the french cleats that I had mounted a couple weeks ago. It holds 3 drills, plus their batteries and chargers. They sit right at the front of my workbench so they are within easy reach. Why are there 3? Well, it's what I had, of course. Plus, having more than one cordless drill let's me keep from having to do multiple bit/drill changes. It also keeps all the gear in one place.

In making the cabinet, I dovetailed the sides onto the bottom. It's strong more than what's needed, but hey, it's practice.

I also decided I'd try beveling the mounting piece that the drill motors rest in. Why? Well, because I haven't tried it before, and I'm sure I'll need to do it for a nicer project in the future. I did them all with a block plane. I started with a different one, but the block plane felt really good for this process. Next time, I know to start with bevels on the ends first, so that way if there is any tearout, it will be removed when I bevel along the grain.

To protect against tearout, I also clamped a backing board in line with the piece between a dog and my end vise.

And now the finished bevel looks pretty good for the first try.

And then I squared up the mating surfaces where this beveled board will rest with my shoulder plane.

Finally I glued it together and mounted it on the wall.

Next step is to mount the outlet underneath so all the cords are out of the way....there's always something else! 

Until next time....

Josh