If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

Dave

On Sat, 11 Jun 2005 16:57:05 -0700, David wrote:

If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

Dave

Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/

"Scrub" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 11 Jun 2005 16:57:05 -0700, David wrote:

If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

Dave

Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/

These guides have the same limitation that the original Veritas had. None
of them will handle a #8 jointer blade (2 5/8" wide) with a 1" thick
waterstone. That's why I ended up making my own guide.

Bob

Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/


Personaly, I cannot afford that, and it seems beyond principle (of whatever sort,
economics?) to buy an Alisam at that cost. So, I'll try and make one myself out
of hardwood. Wheels to the sides of the stone. I simply cannot stand the idea
of rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and muddying
up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous. The new Mk II is perfect for
scary sharpening though. Someone argue back, please!

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

These guides have the same limitation that the original Veritas had. None
of them will handle a #8 jointer blade (2 5/8" wide) with a 1" thick
waterstone. That's why I ended up making my own guide.

Bob


Would you show us a shot of it?

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

Have a closer look. The wheels ride to the sides, not atop the stone
or sandpaper. Not being able to afford a tool isnt a valid reason to
label that tool or its price as 'rediculous'.

On Sun, 12 Jun 2005 05:38:33 -0700, "AAvK" wrote:


Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/


Personaly, I cannot afford that, and it seems beyond principle (of whatever sort,
economics?) to buy an Alisam at that cost. So, I'll try and make one myself out
of hardwood. Wheels to the sides of the stone. I simply cannot stand the idea
of rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and muddying
up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous. The new Mk II is perfect for
scary sharpening though. Someone argue back, please!

David wrote:

If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

I tried to buy one yesterday at the local LV retail store. Unfortunately,
they weren't in stock yet. I have my name on one, for when they come in
later this week. I also picked up a Norton 4000/8000 waterstone while I
was there.

--
Cheers,
Rob

BillyBob wrote:


Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/

These guides have the same limitation that the original Veritas had. None
of them will handle a #8 jointer blade (2 5/8" wide) with a 1" thick
waterstone. That's why I ended up making my own guide.

Bob

IT also shares a major defect of the LV design - the iron holding mechanism
being downward pressure applied by a disk. Doesn't prevent the iron form
rotating even while you are tightening it or while you are honding.

I really like the side clamps for holding.

The wide wheel et of this guide does solve one major defect of the LV guide.

--
Saville

Replicas of 15th-19th century nautical navigational instruments:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/backstaffhome.html

Restoration of my 82 year old Herreshoff S-Boat sailboat:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/SBOATrestore.htm

Steambending FAQ with photos:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/Steambend.htm

Have a closer look. The wheels ride to the sides, not atop the stone
or sandpaper. Not being able to afford a tool isnt a valid reason to
label that tool or its price as 'rediculous'.


I know that about the Alisam. I was talking about any guide that has a central
single wheel to ride on, which is rediculous for water stones. You and me are
the ones with the right idea.

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

AAvK says...

Personaly, I cannot afford that, and it seems beyond principle (of whatever sort,
economics?) to buy an Alisam at that cost. So, I'll try and make one myself out
of hardwood. Wheels to the sides of the stone. I simply cannot stand the idea
of rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and muddying
up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous. The new Mk II is perfect for
scary sharpening though. Someone argue back, please!

This article makes a strong case for sharpening by hand and not using a
guide at all: http://www.antiquetools.com/sharp/index.html.

"AAvK" wrote in message
news:%0Wqe.9817$tr.9654@fed1read03...

Personaly, I cannot afford that, and it seems beyond principle (of
whatever sort,
economics?) to buy an Alisam at that cost. So, I'll try and make one
myself out
of hardwood.

I made a couple of honing guides from hardwood designed to provide a wide
and stable footing for "scary sharp" honing. The main design criteria was
that the guide should be self-aligning. Here are some pics -- complete
description on the sharpening page on my website.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65/both_guides.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...ide_bottom.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...lane_guide.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...iron_guide.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65..._guide_top.jpg

Ken Vaughn
Visit My Workshop: http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65/

"Ken Vaughn" wrote in
nk.net:


I made a couple of honing guides from hardwood designed to provide a
wide and stable footing for "scary sharp" honing. The main design
criteria was that the guide should be self-aligning. Here are some
pics -- complete description on the sharpening page on my website.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65/both_guides.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...ide_bottom.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...lane_guide.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65...iron_guide.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65..._guide_top.jpg

Ken Vaughn
Visit My Workshop: http://home.earthlink.net/~kvaughn65/


This is another instance where, whenever I think I have begun to learn
something, someone comes along, and quietly, simply, reminds me that I am
but a grasshopper in this craft.

Patriarch

This is another instance where, whenever I think I have begun to learn
something, someone comes along, and quietly, simply, reminds me that I am
but a grasshopper in this craft.

Patriarch


I agree, and I am but barely arrived spermatazoa, probably compared to you even.

Ken, I have been alllllllll through your website and it is quite awesome. There
is none other such as yours and I hope you keep adding to it, maybe a rotating
finished projects gallery and more techniques. Thanks for the great site.

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

Patriarch says...

This is another instance where, whenever I think I have begun to learn
something, someone comes along, and quietly, simply, reminds me that I am
but a grasshopper in this craft.

Patriarch

What, you don't have six marking gauges and 26 chisels and two table
saws?

"AAvK" wrote

Being one of many who wasted their money on the original, poor design
I won't use LV for my next honing guide. Here's where I'll go:
http://www.alisam.com/


Personaly, I cannot afford that, and it seems beyond principle (of
whatever sort,
economics?) to buy an Alisam at that cost. So, I'll try and make one
myself out
of hardwood.

You might like to try my version that costs very little. Please go to
Sharpening Notes - A Honing Jig for Plane Irons.

Jeff G

--
Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK
email : Username is amgron
ISP is clara.co.uk
www.amgron.clara.net

On Sun, 12 Jun 2005 18:03:51 -0700, "AAvK" wrote:

I was talking about any guide that has a central
single wheel to ride on, which is rediculous for water stones.

I've found the Stanley guide (with a wide roller) to be acceptable on
water stones. The Eclipse guide though (with a narrow roller) puts a
tramline into the stone within one chisel's use.

You might like to try my version that costs very little. Please go to
Sharpening Notes - A Honing Jig for Plane Irons.

Jeff G


Yes Mr. Gorman, and I do have a spare lever cap. I also have the plastic General
brand honing guide which is th same idea, but I despise it. So thank you for the
reminder. And as usual, you don't have to reply.

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

The Alisam guide will handle a 2 5/8" blade on a 1" stone. The metal
alignment clip can be removed on the older version or the latest models
have a Delrin ring that act as an alignment "slide", (using the
circumference of the round barrel to index off to square the blade),
which can easily be slipped on and off to accommodate the #8 jointer
blade.
The other two models (SS2, SS3) will accept up to a 3 inch wide blade
with the slide in place. You can buy one of these and build a simple
hardwood frame around the stone to raise the SS3 for 1 inch stone use
OR build a platform to raise the stone for use with the SS2. Of course
another option is to buy either of these models and purchase the side
supports only of the SS1, (actually this will give the SS1 the bevel
honing range of the other two models, from 5 to 60 degrees but only the
15 to 45 degree marks are lasered in so you just keep track of the
clicks past 45 or before 15).
As far as the round toggle foot clamp allowing the blade to move while
tightening, we are providing a PSA strip of sandpaper that adheres to
the bottom of the blade slot. This prevents all movement of the blade.

" Rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and
muddying up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous." The wheels
of the Sharpening Sled are hardened, double rubber sealed, industrial
roller bearings and are press fit onto their "spindles". Therefore the
slurry does not enter into the bearing or ''spindle" to bearing contact
area.

The LV honing guide WAS the best guide out there. I believe we have
come up with improvements on it and all the other guides available. The
Sharpening Sled is the next generation of honing guides. Pricey? Well
it's made in the USA, supporting your neighbor next door, a quality
product, (mainly anodized aluminum, brass and steel, even the
labels/index marks are precision lasered in, not stick on labels) and
it does what it is supposed to do better than the competition. If you
feel the cost is an issue, by all means buy the next best guide from
Lee Valley. It is a proven, older design that has worked well for years
within it's limitations.
By the way I just came back from a presentation given by Mr. Robin Lee.
He was just terrific. His talk on the history of Lee Valley/Veritas,
their current products, on production methods and new products was
exceptional! What a great company with beautifully designed tools that
will be around for generations. Robin, thanks again.
Tim Queeno

The Alisam guide will handle a 2 5/8" blade on a 1" stone. The metal
alignment clip can be removed on the older version or the latest models
have a Delrin ring that act as an alignment "slide", (using the
circumference of the round barrel to index off to square the blade),
which can easily be slipped on and off to accommodate the #8 jointer
blade.
The other two models (SS2, SS3) will accept up to a 3 inch wide blade
with the slide in place. You can buy one of these and build a simple
hardwood frame around the stone to raise the SS3 for 1 inch stone use
OR build a platform to raise the stone for use with the SS2. Of course
another option is to buy either of these models and purchase the side
supports only of the SS1, (actually this will give the SS1 the bevel
honing range of the other two models, from 5 to 60 degrees but only the
15 to 45 degree marks are lasered in so you just keep track of the
clicks past 45 or before 15).
As far as the round toggle foot clamp allowing the blade to move while
tightening, we are providing a PSA strip of sandpaper that adheres to
the bottom of the blade slot. This prevents all movement of the blade.

" Rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and
muddying up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous." The wheels
of the Sharpening Sled are hardened, double rubber sealed, industrial
roller bearings and are press fit onto their "spindles". Therefore the
slurry does not enter into the bearing or ''spindle" to bearing contact
area.

The LV honing guide WAS the best guide out there. I believe we have
come up with improvements on it and all the other guides available. The
Sharpening Sled is the next generation of honing guides. Pricey? Well
it's made in the USA, supporting your neighbor next door, a quality
product, (mainly anodized aluminum, brass and steel, even the
labels/index marks are precision lasered in, not stick on labels) and
it does what it is supposed to do better than the competition. If you
feel the cost is an issue, by all means buy the next best guide from
Lee Valley. It is a proven, older design that has worked well for years
within it's limitations.
By the way I just came back from a presentation given by Mr. Robin Lee.
He was just terrific. His talk on the history of Lee Valley/Veritas,
their current products, on production methods and new products was
exceptional! What a great company with beautifully designed tools that
will be around for generations. Robin, thanks again.
Tim Queeno

"Tim" wrote
By the way I just came back from a presentation given by Mr. Robin Lee.
He was just terrific. His talk on the history of Lee Valley/Veritas,
their current products, on production methods and new products was
exceptional! What a great company with beautifully designed tools that
will be around for generations. Robin, thanks again.
Tim Queeno

Just a comment about Robin Lee and Veritas.

I used to teach basic marketing classes and do some consulting now and then.
I always used Lee Valley and Veritas as an example of what I referred to as
"excellence marketing". Basically the quality of the product and servie
became the primary mareting vehicle. A rare event in today's business
environment.

Years later I came across Robin Lee on this forum. So I asked a number of
questions about veritas. Robin wrote right back and told me he was traveling
for a few days. But he would get back to me when he got back into town.
Which is exactly what he did.

He proceeded to tell me more about their design philosophy. And it exceeded
all my expectations and confirmed everything I used to teach in my classes.
And he took the time to explain it to me. An anomymous poster on this forum.
I felt honored,

Yes, Robin Lee is a class act. I will endorse that both professionally and
personally. He has built a company based on some very high ideals. And we
all benefit from it.

I understand that some big money folks have offered to buy him out too. And
he did not take the bait. So the quality tools and service will continue.

Thanks Robin, for everything.

Lee Michaels

Hax Planx wrote in
.net:

Patriarch says...

This is another instance where, whenever I think I have begun to
learn something, someone comes along, and quietly, simply, reminds me
that I am but a grasshopper in this craft.

Patriarch

What, you don't have six marking gauges and 26 chisels and two table
saws?


Yes, in fact I do. And two lathes, and 5 routers, and maybe 25 handplanes,
and a bunch of other stuff.

I have golf clubs, too. Still can't break 90, after 25 years.

You truly cannot buy a game.

Patriarch

So what *on Earth* does all of that have to do with the discussion of the
qualities and functions of the tools in this thread? Can you answer that?

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

Do you work for Alisam?

Did I state that there is a serious problem with the Alisam rollers on a stone?

I did not.

It is a product of design that I...

*agree* with...

....much more than other products.

Is that a problem?

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

"AAvK" writes:

I know that about the Alisam. I was talking about any guide that has
a central single wheel to ride on, which is rediculous for water
stones.

I bought one about 15 years ago made in Japan for waterstones.

--
Sending unsolicited commercial e-mail to this account incurs a fee of
$500 per message, and acknowledges the legality of this contract.

Patriarch says...

You truly cannot buy a game.

Patriarch

Now you tell me...

Hax Planx wrote in
.net:

Patriarch says...

You truly cannot buy a game.

Patriarch

Now you tell me...


Some lessons have to be learned personally.

Hi Folks,

Mine arrived this morning. Imagine having a tool arrive in New Zealand
before it gets to most of the people on rec.ww!

I have used the honing guide to sharpen exactly one plane iron. Maybe
next weekend I'll have time to use it on a chisel or two.

It is head and shoulders above the old Veritas guide which I have had
for many years and always hated. The setup is easy and doesn't require
any fiddling. You set the stop, insert the blade, remove the stop and
get to work.

The blade stays square to the roller and centered (left/right).
So far, so good.

Cheers,

Larry
In article , David wrote:
If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

Dave
--
DocRec Ltd http://www.docrec.com/
phone: +64-3-545-2105 fax: +64-3-545-2106
34 Strathaven Place, Atawhai, Nelson 7001, New Zealand

Tim,

Maybe you can answer a question I've hade about the Alisam guide;
I've been intrigued by it, but one thing bothers me about it.

Currently I am using the Richard Kell honing guide that rides
atop the stone.

OK, the Alsam does not ride on the stone itself but on the
frame you build around the stone. This is good for 3 reasons
that I can see: 1. the wheels don't ride in the slurry; 2. the wheels
(or wheel) does not possibly score the stone; 3. you can use the
entire stone surface for sharpening, assuming the surrounding
frame is wide enough.

The big problem I have is how do you accurately reference
the surface of several different stones to the level of the frame.
For example:

I use 4 stones of different grits for the full sharpening routine.
Each one has a measurably different thickness. When I am
done with the 1000 grit stone, I move on to the 4000 grit stone.
I do not remove the blade from the honing guide till I am done
with all 4 stones. Since my honing guide is referenced to the
stone surface itself the bevel as set by the honing guide does
not change from stone to stone.

With the Alisam I would have to shim each stone individually
so that each stone is the same exact height relative to the
surrounding frame. For this shimming procedure to be accurate
it seems like it would be awfully tedious.

That, or build a separate frame for each stone.

But then what do you do as the stones lose thickness due to
wear and frequent flattening ?

Thanks,
Ken


Tim wrote:
The Alisam guide will handle a 2 5/8" blade on a 1" stone. The metal
alignment clip can be removed on the older version or the latest models
have a Delrin ring that act as an alignment "slide", (using the
circumference of the round barrel to index off to square the blade),
which can easily be slipped on and off to accommodate the #8 jointer
blade.
The other two models (SS2, SS3) will accept up to a 3 inch wide blade
with the slide in place. You can buy one of these and build a simple
hardwood frame around the stone to raise the SS3 for 1 inch stone use
OR build a platform to raise the stone for use with the SS2. Of course
another option is to buy either of these models and purchase the side
supports only of the SS1, (actually this will give the SS1 the bevel
honing range of the other two models, from 5 to 60 degrees but only the
15 to 45 degree marks are lasered in so you just keep track of the
clicks past 45 or before 15).
As far as the round toggle foot clamp allowing the blade to move while
tightening, we are providing a PSA strip of sandpaper that adheres to
the bottom of the blade slot. This prevents all movement of the blade.

" Rolling a wheel through the slurry and mashing it into the grit and
muddying up the inside of the wheel's spindle. Rediculous." The wheels
of the Sharpening Sled are hardened, double rubber sealed, industrial
roller bearings and are press fit onto their "spindles". Therefore the
slurry does not enter into the bearing or ''spindle" to bearing contact
area.

The LV honing guide WAS the best guide out there. I believe we have
come up with improvements on it and all the other guides available. The
Sharpening Sled is the next generation of honing guides. Pricey? Well
it's made in the USA, supporting your neighbor next door, a quality
product, (mainly anodized aluminum, brass and steel, even the
labels/index marks are precision lasered in, not stick on labels) and
it does what it is supposed to do better than the competition. If you
feel the cost is an issue, by all means buy the next best guide from
Lee Valley. It is a proven, older design that has worked well for years
within it's limitations.
By the way I just came back from a presentation given by Mr. Robin Lee.
He was just terrific. His talk on the history of Lee Valley/Veritas,
their current products, on production methods and new products was
exceptional! What a great company with beautifully designed tools that
will be around for generations. Robin, thanks again.
Tim Queeno

Right okay, I thought as much. Sounds very good. But on what and
how do you sharpen? Waterstones with slurry? Sheets on glass... ?

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

w/o a guide I always get a rounded bevel, no matter how hard I try to
avoid it. Isn't that one of the main reasons to use a guide? Your a
better man than I if you can freehand a perfect bevel and micro bevel.

Dave

Hax Planx wrote:


This article makes a strong case for sharpening by hand and not using a
guide at all: http://www.antiquetools.com/sharp/index.html.

Ken,
First off, you don't need to build a frame for the Sharpening Sled to
ride on. I only suggested that if you have say a 3/8 in. diamond plate
and 2 in. stones and want to use one model over all stones without the
expense of buying the optional side supports. If your stones are 2 in.
thick varieties but some worn to 1.5 in. for example the SS2 will be
fine for all your stones. With that said, one of the benefits of the
Alsiam guide, more precisely, the positive stop detents with precision
laser engraving to set your bevel angle, allow you to easily raise or
lower the iron to contact the different heights of stones you may be
using at one setting. This is not tedious. You simply set the guide
over the new stone and slightly loosen the toggle foot clamp just
enough to move the blade to contact the new stone, check for squareness
with alignment slide and retighten. Should take seconds! The accuracy
is built in.You did not change the bevel angle at all. If the stone is
a thicker one, just loosen the iron in the jig before placing over the
stone.
Hope this answeres your question.
Tim Queeno

Alex,
I'm sorry, I thought you were refering to the Alisam Sharpening Sled
when you mentioned riding in slurry. My apologies.
Yes I am the inventor of the Sharpening sled.
Regarding using the Mk II for the "Scary Sharp" technique I would say
our model SS3 was made specifically for this technique. Plus the
ability to sharpen scraper plane blades as well! It rides very low on
the table or plate glass surface and with all the attributes of the
taller Sharpening Sled models like, bevel accuracy, 4 points of
stability, wide range of bevel angle detents including "back bevels",
easily set a micro-bevel and an alignment guide.
As far as cost, we are not the most expensive guide out there (a master
honing guide for $98.60, with less capabilities as the Alisam), but I
believe the best performance and value at this time.
Thanks, I appreciate your support of my design.
Tim Queeno

On Sat, 11 Jun 2005 16:57:05 -0700, David wrote:

If you've gotten one already, please share your "first on your block"
experiences with us.

Arrived today. Current guide is eclipse style, never had or used the Mk I
Veritas guide.

Setup is quick and easy. Chisel slid all over the place. Aligned a plane
blade with the jig. Checked it a couple of times during sharpening. (Had
to take off a bunch of metal to go from eclipse's "25 degrees" to Mk II's
"25 degrees".) Blade is so far off square that it has to be mounted
cockeyed in the plane. Hmm.

Went back and re-read the instructions. Clamping force has to
be equal for the bar to grip properly. Wording of the instructions is
telling: no firm, unmoving grip is promised. The lower jaw really needs a
pad of no-slip.

Instructions say to put drop of oil in indicated
spots. I worry about contaminating my waterstones.

Shape is very well designed. Curves and cutouts fit the hand. I did feel
some chafing while working with a 2" plane blade. Can't manage a
Kirby-style grip.

I'll be putting a bit of electrical tape on the jig's projection stop to
avoid nicks.

It's a huge improvement over the eclipse. I'd like to hear what Mk I
owners think of it.

--
"Keep your ass behind you"
vladimir a t mad {dot} scientist {dot} com

People have told me that I have a rather unusual technique. I sharpen by
hand and hold the stone in one hand and the blade in the other. The blade is
stationary and I move the stone. Been doing it this way for over thirty
years.

"David" wrote in message
...
w/o a guide I always get a rounded bevel, no matter how hard I try to
avoid it. Isn't that one of the main reasons to use a guide? Your a
better man than I if you can freehand a perfect bevel and micro bevel.

Dave

Hax Planx wrote:


This article makes a strong case for sharpening by hand and not using a
guide at all: http://www.antiquetools.com/sharp/index.html.

On Thu, 16 Jun 2005 06:13:16 GMT, "CW" wrote:

People have told me that I have a rather unusual technique. I sharpen by
hand and hold the stone in one hand and the blade in the other. The blade is
stationary and I move the stone.

How big a stone ? I know lots of people (especially carvers) who do
this, but they use small slip stones (or else broken stones), not bench
stones.

This is the way I work on swords too, except I'm holding the blade down
with my foot and a clamp.

I made it pretty much exactly like Jeff Gorman's plans at
http://www.amgron.clara.net/sharpeni...ig/hgindex.htm.

I'm sorry I am in a location where I don't have access to my digital
camera.

Bob

I made it pretty much exactly like Jeff Gorman's plans at
http://www.amgron.clara.net/sharpeni...ig/hgindex.htm.

I'm sorry I am in a location where I don't have access to my digital
camera.

Bob


Ah yes. Me too, currently in the making but something of a variation from that
exact design. I laminated two slats of hard maple, rounded the front underside,
brace drilled a 1/4" hole to center the lever cap which is now mounted with
slotted round head machine screw, brass washer and wing nut underneath, the
edge of the lever cap is 1/16" up from the front cutting end of the jigs main
body. Still need to come up with a wheel design and it's mounting legs.

Do you have any suggestion as to an axle hardware that will work well through
a section of dowel as the wheel, yet connect to flat maple slats (as the legs) and
still be able to spin without binding?

--
Alex - newbie_neander in woodworking
cravdraa_at-yahoo_dot-com
not my site: http://www.e-sword.net/

On Thu, 16 Jun 2005 10:56:45 +0100, Andy Dingley wrote:

People have told me that I have a rather unusual technique. I sharpen by
hand and hold the stone in one hand and the blade in the other. The blade is
stationary and I move the stone.

How big a stone ? I know lots of people (especially carvers) who do
this, but they use small slip stones (or else broken stones), not bench
stones.

It's also a useful technique for knives, I've found. It's easier to keep
the correct angle by moving the bench stone over the stationary knife.
That is, for blades such as hunting knives and such. Axes come to mind,
also.

Recall the Forstner sharpening jig in Leonard Lee's book.

For the record, I have now tried the Mk II on spokeshave blades--Stanley
style, not classic wooden shave blades. The 151 size will barely, but
successfully, work with the mid-range 25 degree setting. Smaller 63/64
blades won't work in the midrange. They'll clamp in the #3 "back bevel"
range, but the jig doesn't label a 25 degree stop there. There _are_ other
stops machined into the jig (for the other two ranges) and I found one
that is pretty close to 25 degrees. Trouble is, "there's no there
there" to register against the side rail. I have it "squared" to the rail,
but I'm seeing a canted bevel as I work the blade on a 325 diamond
stone. The LV short-blade holder for the Mk I would probably be just the
ticket for the Mk II. I also have put some wear on the bottom jaw while
fussing with the little blades.

--
"Keep your ass behind you"
vladimir a t mad {dot} scientist {dot} com