Reply To: Trouble getting 1” chisel sharp

A low quality photo of a 7/8″ chisel, showing that it is quite thick, with a corresponding long bevel. So, it will require more work to sharpen it compared to a ½” one, which also will have a shorter bevel.
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A few “for-whatever-they-are-worth” thoughts on aids on grinding and coarse sharpening.

3M offers sandpapers with adhesive on the back. They stick very nicely to a granite slab (rightmost on photo below) or float glass. In addition to the need of all sandpapers to frequently be cleaned from ground off iron, they are also not inexpensive. Re-mountable photo glue on the back of ordinary sandpaper is a less costly alternative. Clamps can of course also be used. The paper will wear down, but my DMT 120 grit diamond stone did that as well.

Centre of the photo shows a belt sander designed for tool sharpening. Thanks to that the belt speed can be varied, sparks can be avoided, though even so intermittent water cooling is required. It’s quick compared to manual work on sandpaper and thanks to a honing guide the results are no less accurate. It’s a useful machine for shop-made irons. As long as one is prepared to change belts from coarse to very fine, it can replace the Tormek next to it for final sharpening.
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