tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post7080886943925905494..comments2023-05-20T10:47:25.792-04:00Comments on Close Grain: The Grimsdale Method, part 3Steve Branamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-48259796874400996602015-02-03T05:56:20.826-05:002015-02-03T05:56:20.826-05:00Hi John,
For the most part, the convex bevel just...Hi John,<br /><br />For the most part, the convex bevel just happens as a natural consequence of moving back and forth on the stone. It's not so much trying to achieve a desired convex bevel, as it is just allowing it to happen.<br /><br />Typically people try very hard to maintain a desired flat angle through the whole stroke, resisting any change in the angle of the tool, but in this method you don't worry about that. As you push to the far end of the stroke, the tool has a natural tendency to dip just a bit. As you pull back to the near end, it has a tendency to rise just a bit.<br /><br />You can go with just that small amount of natural dip through the convexity, or you can make it more pronounced by deliberately dipping your hand toward the back of the stroke.<br /><br />As opposed to be very rigidly trying to hold to a specific angle throughout the stroke, this is much more organic. The actual cutting edge is the only spot where you work for a desired angle. The rest of it is just whatever convex shape you end up with.<br /><br />I'm glad to hear about your wall-of-tools, you'll enjoy that!Steve Branamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-72633596420191652822015-02-02T12:19:21.713-05:002015-02-02T12:19:21.713-05:00hmmm? Thanks for the article. I just read all 3 pa...hmmm? Thanks for the article. I just read all 3 pages. I understand about using the grits and strops. I'm a little confused about how to make the desired convex bevel.<br />By the way, thanks to you I have my pine wall up for for the Wall-of-tools in the basement. Now on to organize them, then build my 1st workbench. (I'm thinking Morovian)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18297578318302741195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-54195900731930739502015-02-02T12:17:54.738-05:002015-02-02T12:17:54.738-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18297578318302741195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-77612399881779467412010-05-04T08:29:53.996-04:002010-05-04T08:29:53.996-04:00What about a brown paper bag? I've heard that ...What about a brown paper bag? I've heard that works, and it's certainly cheaper too.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10871381205610233202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-15583882349103744862010-05-03T18:38:18.924-04:002010-05-03T18:38:18.924-04:00This is something I wondered about, too. Looking a...This is something I wondered about, too. Looking around, you see people mention using both smooth and suede (flesh) sides of leather.<br /><br />I have a small strop that I got from either Rockler or Woodcraft, that has suede on both sides. Tools For Working Wood sells a Horse Butt (really!) strop and mentions using it either side; Derek Cohen's article uses it on the suede side. SharpeningSupplies.com sells strop paddles with one side smooth and one side suede. And Paul Chapman's photo appears to use the suede side. So the evidence is...confusing! But at least using the suede side doesn't appear to be wrong.<br /><br />I may try a second strop done the other way. The leather I used is already smoother on it's suede side than the small strop I have. I'm also not even sure I have an objective way of telling the difference, the edge is so fine. Maybe one will require fewere strokes or allow heavier pressure.Steve Branamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-77997690801831436532010-05-03T15:27:35.089-04:002010-05-03T15:27:35.089-04:00Why did you make your strop with the coarse side u...Why did you make your strop with the coarse side up instead of the smooth side? It seems to me that the tatty coarse side would increase and multiply jagged serrations, for lack of a better descriptor, whereas the smooth side would continue the progression from coarse to fine sharpening media. I'm not saying you're doing it wrong, I'm just wondering if the smooth side would be better? I seem to remember razor strops with the smooth side out and the coarse side to the blade, but that was thirty years ago . . . .Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10871381205610233202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-58764672626370628812010-05-02T20:19:00.074-04:002010-05-02T20:19:00.074-04:00And so the corollary to "pick starting stone ...And so the corollary to "pick starting stone based on condition of tool" would be "stop when a sufficient edge has been reached." It's easy to get carried away seeking the ultimate sharp edge! Then it's worth thinking about the durability and life of that edge. But it's good to know how to reach it when necessary.<br /><br />That's the next exercise, which can only come from experience, learning to balance the desire for sharpness with the practical limits of attaining and maintaining it. I can see where it could reach a point of diminishing returns, spending all your time keeping the edge as sharp as possible, when the work doesn't require it. I don't stop to sharpen my pencil after every sentence, yet the paragraph still gets written.Steve Branamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-34342768562353096312010-05-02T20:14:33.737-04:002010-05-02T20:14:33.737-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Steve Branamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-64279393575935483022010-05-02T15:39:35.790-04:002010-05-02T15:39:35.790-04:00I tend not to strop at all. Instead just a few qui...I tend not to strop at all. Instead just a few quick but light hones and face flattenings across the stone - just little jabs 1/2 inch or so to finish off. As you would if the stone were all you had and you were in a hurry.<br />Rouge etc looks like too much kit to me.<br />Tempted to refer to Occam's Razor; "avoid unnecessary multiplication of entities".jacobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14506925058194641799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-81419894238661525842010-05-02T14:12:29.750-04:002010-05-02T14:12:29.750-04:00Re: platinum clad sharpening stones: I'm waiti...Re: platinum clad sharpening stones: I'm waiting for the foamed steel matrix with microcrystallized carbon nanotubes formed by solar concentration furnace in a zero-G environment, since that ensures uniform distribution throughout the substrate, but the shipping costs from the Lagrange points will be astronomical :)<br /><br />I stocked up on several large pieces of leather several years ago from http://www.crazycrow.com/store/, along with a couple of throwing tomahawks (fun!). I think the piece I used was "blacksmith side".Steve Branamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10526202082032043903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3554186870925500720.post-84574015030987696542010-05-02T13:26:33.517-04:002010-05-02T13:26:33.517-04:00No arguments at all with your, or most any other s...No arguments at all with your, or most any other sharpening method. All of these methods work. I think most of the difference is how much time and money you want to put into them. I'm sure there's someone out there happy to provide us with the next great level of platinum clad sharpening stones. :)<br /><br />My reason for jumping in is stropping. Just last night I made my first strop. Like you, I'm not too far from Joel (actually about 1.5 hours), but that means being a long way from anyone who sells leather. I bought a shoulder split online from Tandy, who shipped it from the nearest store, Allentown, PA. Shoulder splits are thin, often used for glove making. The first two parts cut out of it went to the leg vise jaws. Incredible grip now. The next went to a strop, which I made from a 3/8 inch bit of ash. It ends up as a good hard surface, faced with a very thin leather, charged with Veritas green rouge. The leather is thin enough to hold the rouge well, and to avoid giving a blade enough softness to dub. I used normal sharpening pressure, no need to be light handed. <br /><br />What an edge! People talk about testing by shaving forearm hair. Yeah, that works, and most previous tests yielded a level of shaving that one feels, a bit of scraping along with the cutting. This level of sharpness causes the hair to fall off without the blade ever touching it!<br /><br />All in all, THANKS for the interesting adventure in sharpening.Bob Eastonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13373918779580450890noreply@blogger.com