Advise on a sharpener..

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gokartergo

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So I am finally going to break down and buy a sharpener. I have been sharpening by hand for years.. Thou I do a pretty good job.. My tools show that I do it by hand.. Not completely round and such.. I did a search and it seems the best way to go is to buy the jet wet sharpener and then the tormeck jigs??? Am I correct in my thinking??? It is a lot of money all at one shot for a sharpener.. I want to do this right the first time.. Any advise is appreciated... Thanks Dan
 
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Dan - There has been considerable discussion on this very subject lately, but I did go with the Jet/Tormek combination. Just don't but the Tormek diamond truing tool since the tool rest on the Jet is farther away from the stone than the Tormek is and the truing tool relies on that distance to hold itself in place. Buy the Jet truing tool and the advancer made by TallowTree.com.
 
The basic kit for the jet as (Basic unit includes: stone grader, straight edge jig, magnified bevel checking gauge, grinding angle set-up jig, support arm, honing compound and training DVD) Isn't the stone grader that??? Thanks Dan
 
Nope - the stone grader is meant to "clean out" and re-roughen the grindstone. The truing tool makes it perfectly flat again. See the video at the bottom of:

http://www.newwoodworker.com/reviews/trutooladvrvu.html

I bought my grinder at eagleamerica.com since they were/are still featuring the 2 drawer base at no additional charge.
 
Dan, somebody brought this up for review awhile back! A Harbor Freight knock-off? Anyway, it looks much the same as the other systems for a much more attractive price. I don't know whether that person bought it or not. I don't remember the comments about it anyway. I would like to hear more about it myself!

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95236
 
Originally posted by mewell
<br />Nope - the stone grader is meant to "clean out" and re-roughen the grindstone. The truing tool makes it perfectly flat again. See the video at the bottom of:

http://www.newwoodworker.com/reviews/trutooladvrvu.html

I bought my grinder at eagleamerica.com since they were/are still featuring the 2 drawer base at no additional charge.
Click to expand...

Thanks That helps.. Did you buy the tormeck jigs?? Or did you get the Jet jigs?? Is there that much of a diffrence??? Dan
 
Dan - At the advice of another IAP member (Guy Wallace, AKA "Pipes") I went with the Tormek jigs. I know for sure that the Tormek gouge sharpener is much better than the Jet but I suspect the knife jigs (if you want them) would be the same. Take a look at his message here to read the whole review. Also, even though you can download the book from the Tormek site, I second Guy's opinion about buying the $10 printed, bound book on sharpening. The book makes it really easy to refer to the methods that you'll use.

Also, take a look at the link at the bottom of the message referred to above that has the reviews of the Jet vs. Tormek.

Mark
 
I used to use the Wolverine from Oneway for five years, but have bought a Tormek last month, and must say I like it. If I ever had to make a recommendation, thats the way to go or the knock-off from Jet.
 
I have a Tormek. Got it at a fantastic price on Amazon but it is very slow on my Sorby lathe chisels. I think because they are so hard. Other chisels and knives are fine.
 
Hello, gokarter I was just reading Richard Raffans book on turning bowls and he sharpens by hand and thinks its the best way to do it. He goes on to say that the look of the grind does not matter what matters is how the tool cuts, a valid point. He is one of the top notch turner names and if you have had good results for years maybe you treat yourself to another pricey tool you have always wanted and can justify for all the monet you have saved sharpening tools on your own, LOL. I just getting into sharpening myself and so far haver been real happy with my first grinds after a little while I'll get good at it. Good Luck, LandfillLumber
 
Originally posted by LandfillLumber
<br />Hello, gokarter I was just reading Richard Raffans book on turning bowls and he sharpens by hand and thinks its the best way to do it. He goes on to say that the look of the grind does not matter what matters is how the tool cuts, a valid point. He is one of the top notch turner names and if you have had good results for years maybe you treat yourself to another pricey tool you have always wanted and can justify for all the monet you have saved sharpening tools on your own, LOL. I just getting into sharpening myself and so far haver been real happy with my first grinds after a little while I'll get good at it. Good Luck, LandfillLumber
Click to expand...

That is true.. But I now that I am not getting them as sharp as I should be able to..
 
Originally posted by Thumbs
<br />Dan, somebody brought this up for review awhile back! A Harbor Freight knock-off? Anyway, it looks much the same as the other systems for a much more attractive price. I don't know whether that person bought it or not. I don't remember the comments about it anyway. I would like to hear more about it myself!

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95236
Click to expand...


I believe that was me (I've posted a review of the HF slow-speed wet grinder here)- It's really pretty good and once I got the tormik jigs for it I've had nothing but good luck- though I still use my grinder to reshape bevels, as that takes forever on the wet stone.
 
I hope that I am not breaking forum rules with this post. I have a Jet wet sharpener, with the turners package for sale. It is very lightly used - as in a couple of hours.
Anyone interested can contact me at grant3@wilki.ca.
 
Originally posted by gwilki
<br />I hope that I am not breaking forum rules with this post. I have a Jet wet sharpener, with the turners package for sale. It is very lightly used - as in a couple of hours.
Anyone interested can contact me at grant3@wilki.ca.
Click to expand...

Perhaps you should also post this in the individual classifieds section. You'll get more exposure there.
 
I just called the woodcraft store.. This saturday is there 10% off all items.. I wanted to make sure they had them in stock.. He is telling me the best way to go is to get the jet slow speed grinder.. Then the wolforine system.. He says it is a much better way to go.. What do you guys think??? He as a class on sharping that way on aug 2nd.. I might take..
 
For what it's worth - about 99% of woodturners outside of penmakers use a slow speed grinder, many with some sort of jig system like the wolverine or woodgrind systems. I joined my local AAW group, I'm a noob turner, but there are some OUTSTANDING woodturners in my club. None use the Tormek or Jet, all use an 8" slow speed grinder and some sort of jig system - except for one who hand sharpens (very well!). One guy in the group has the Tormek, and never uses it, he uses the wolverine system. I think the general consensus among most of the woodturning commmunity is that you reach a point where things are definitely sharp enough - after all, you are presenting a tool to a rapidly spinning piece of wood. That super keen edge that you get off the Tormek lasts about 0.02 seconds, and then it's as sharp as you get off the wolverine, which is still pretty darn sharp. I'm FAR from an expert, but that's what I've heard/picked up/read, etc. I have the wolverine/slow speed grinder and really like it - I do plan on picking up some honing tools for my skews between grinds - probably an india stone with a radius on it to hone my gouges as well. I don't think you can go wrong with either one, but the wolverine/grinder will be quite a bit cheaper than a the jet/etc. The other nice thing about the slow grinder is you can rough shape the profile on your new tools, or reshape an existing one, very quickly. To do that on the Jet or Tormek will take you substantially longer. But if you get a chance to take a sharpening class - DO IT!! If you get a chance to try both systems, I'll bet one will jump at you as the preferred method for you.
 
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