Reply To: Workbench Progress
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[quote quote=6643]That is a nice set up you got there Scott. Love the hand grinder,been looking for something like that also. Do you use the waterstones for honing instead of the strop? [/quote]
Hey Juryaan-
Using Paul’s method to sharpen, the grinding wheel does not get used much anymore… but would come in handy if my edge geometry is way off or if I have to take off a lot of material.
My grinder has a 3/8″ arbor, so I had to add a bushing to the arbor to get to a 1/2″ diameter that is compatible with the Norton wheel. No big deal, but it would be nice to have a 1/2″ arbor to begin with. Also, make sure to find a grinder that fits a 6″ or larger wheel, and check the arbor for any runout. There are a lot of grinders that only fit a 5″ wheel, which is not big enough for the Norton wheels if that is what you want. The “Railroad” hand crank grinders may be a better choice since they have bigger gears (faster), with a thicker arbor and heavier build.
I tried stropping with leather and paste, but had encountered some rounding over on the edges of my chisel. Not good. I resorted to using my 3000/8000 waterstones, using them like a strop by drawing the edge and back so as not to gouge the stones. I emailed Paul with my concern and he thought my leather may be too thick, or my stropping pressure may have been too firm. I have yet to revisit stropping since my waterstone “strops” seem to be doing the trick.