sharpening a corner chisel

Like this...

Rich Glisson (Durham, NC)

>1. Polish the outside flats with wet-or-dry sandpaper (available at any car parts store) to remove any striations, especially within an inch or two of the cutting edge. I would use a sandpaper grit sequence of 220-400-600 or something similar. Lay the sandpaper on a flat surface to do this.

2. Clamp the blade in a vise so that one of the bevels is facing up and is horizontal. If not using a bench vise, clamp the vise down so it is rock solid.

3. File the bevel until it is flat and shiny and at whatever angle you desire. If your bench is hardwood I would suggest 30 degrees, otherwise go with 25. Try to avoid making the bevel convex, and work the file right into the corner. Make sure cutting edge ends up square to the chisel's axis.

4. Flip blade and file other bevel the same way. Try to get a perfect "V" where the bevels meet. May have to alternate between the 2 bevels to get it nearly perfect

5. Grab a 1/2" x 1" x 12" long strip of hardwood with nice sharp corners. Wrap 220 grit wet-or-dry sandpaper around the stick and, using it the same way you used the file, polish the bevel. Repeat with 400, 600, and maybe 800 or 1000 grit paper.

6. Go to town chopping out your mortises,

Wouldn't it be simpler

Tony Sade (Charleston, WV)

>just to use "regular" bench chisels than to fuss with that sharpening regimen? Sure sounds like a lot of work. My $.02. (As I recall, Bob Smalser, our resident chisel expert, derides these tools as unnecessary, IIRC.) Tony

He said he already bought one.

Rich Glisson (Durham, NC)

>

Re: He said he already bought one.

les winter

>Yes he did.

I just wanted to use a corner chisel. It really is an improvement over a bench chisel You get a really nice corner. Sharpening part is not too cool, though. What type of file do you recommend? I took a 6" single cut file and ground off the edge teeth. Seems like maybe I should have ground the edge off at an angle to allow the file to really get into that corner.

Another learning experience.

thanks for the input.

Les

Re: He said he already bought one.

les winter

>PS:

Why is this not a job for a dremel?

Bastard!

Rich Glisson (Durham, NC)

>File, that is. Sounds like you used the right type of file, but I would use a bigger one and NOT grind any material off of it. This is really a one-time deal, as you can re-sharpen numerous times with just the sandpaper wrapped around the stick.

Dremel...

Rich Glisson (Durham, NC)

>Well, let's put it this way...what do you like best about the Dremel, the noise or the steel filings flying into your eyes? :)

Re: sharpening a corner chisel

Tim of Livermore

>Lee Valley sells some thin steel pieces. They're kinda like tongue depressors and they work great for sharpening odd things.....spray some adhesive to sandpaper and stick to the steel. The thin steel makes for a good backing, especially compared to the same thickness piece of wood.

Tim