sharpening idea?

1/14/06, 4:17 PM #1

Gary B
Guest

sharpening idea?

Gary B

>I have this concept in my head, and I'm looking for some realistic people to shoot holes in it's feasibility....so here goes....taking a pc of 5/8 drill rod and somehow mounting it in my wood lathe, with 6" or so MDF discs mounted on it turned to the opposite shape of my most used turning and carving tools, (gouges,etc.) and a couple wide (1-1/2") square flat discs, to power hone my tools...I can easily come up with some sort of support attachment to hold the tools, and I can have different discs for different grades of rouge. I think I'd have to spin my lathe backwards, (no big deal for me, I think) or mount it on the other side) but I'm thinking it would work. I can easily find stop collars to hold the discs in place. I've honed chisels and plane irons with rouge on MDF with good results (I also found a Eagle Brand car polish green Rouge that works faster, IMHO then my LV rouge, it's AMAZING. but what do you guys think?

Re: sharpening idea?

1/14/06, 6:55 PM #2

ThomD
Member
Offline
2,627 posts

Registered: 4/19/04

Re: sharpening idea?

ThomD

>The rod might be a good idea, however you could just use wood almost like a baluster, and just have a whole width of different pieces spinning at once. Up to you really.

This idea appeals to you obviously, so why not try it. My philosophical response is that if one is qualified to use gouges to produce turned work, why does one need such closely fitted buffs? It seems to me like using a 1/2" gouge to make only the surface it can directly translate to a turning, a 1/2" like groove. We don't do that, we assume one can make any number of surfaces from a 1/2" gouge. Sharpening is just the reverse of turning, one should be able to use a single buff to buff almost all one's tools. What is more is the setup you are envisaging will have different pressure characteristics and speeds of rotation relative to the surfaces you are buffing. But if the idea strikes you as useful, why not try it.

Re: sharpening idea?

1/14/06, 7:18 PM #3

Dan Donaldson
Member
Offline
5,264 posts

Registered: 9/17/01

Re: sharpening idea?

Dan Donaldson

>If you have a chuck, you could just hold it in the chuck.You might want to design it so that it is supported by the tailstock also to keep it concentric under pressure. Probably work well and you could vary the speed. Would not work for me because my lathe is not reversible and I cannot get to the back side of it. I know that there are buffing wheels designed for an application like this.

- - -

I have been woodworking for about 25 years now, and would consider myself an enthusiastic amateur. My claim to fame (or infamy) has always been fixing stuff. I spent time in the Air Force in the 60's then went to work as an electronic technician for civil service. I finally got my EE, and being fed up with the civil service nonsense, took a job with Ford Motor Company until I went with the split to Visteon last year. I got interested in music and started playing in a bluegrass band. I wanted a new guitar, and that kind of led me into woodworking. I bought some books, a few tools, and built a guitar. Luckily, I didn't know any better than to try that as a first ever project. I still play it when I get a chance, so it must not be too bad if it can live for over 20 years. After a stint in Mexico for my job, I moved into a new house and built a small shop. Since then I have been collecting tools and skills, probably more of the former than the latter ;-). Finding this site has done more for my skills and enjoyment than anything else. I have learned a lot and really enjoy the friendships that I have made here. I have been married to LOML (Lori) for 32 years now and have 6 kids. When they are all gone, I want to get a 1 bedroom house (so there is not room for them to move back in) and at least a 6 car heated/air conditioned garage for a shop. (Dream on...)

Re: sharpening idea?

1/14/06, 10:21 PM #4

Bill Houghton, Sebastopuddle, CA - rain's back
Guest

Re: sharpening idea?

Bill Houghton, Sebastopuddle, CA - rain's back

>I've seen this notion before, the first time I think in an early Fine Workwooding, though that particular design didn't run in a lathe but as a stand-alone in pillow blocks.

Re: sharpening idea?

1/14/06, 11:59 PM #5

William Duffield, on the Cohansey
Guest

Re: sharpening idea?

William Duffield, on the Cohansey

>The problem is the 5/8" rod. Most chucks max out at 1/2". An alternative is to put a #2 Morse taper on one end of the rod. Just about any machinist should be able to do that for you. Machine the other end to match whatever you want to use in your tailstock. That's how one of the Beall Buffing System tools is mounted. While you are at it, you could start with 5/8" threaded rod (all-thread) instead of round bar stock. That makes it easier to mount a selection of wheels. For spacers between the wheels, just use fender washers and some black pipe (same size as you use for your 3/4" Jorge pipe clamps). Again, that's what Beall does.

Re: sharpening idea?

1/15/06, 4:38 AM #6

John in Kerrville TX
Guest

Re: sharpening idea?

John in Kerrville TX

>I've seen carvers use a similar sharpening system, but (as Bill stated) it was a stand alone using pillow blocks. It worked very well to keep the carvers' knives and gouges sharpened. He had various shapes and various sharpening media. He had no problems with shaping new forms to meet his needs.

john

Re: sharpening idea?

1/15/06, 3:07 PM #7

Gary B
Guest

Thanks everybody

Gary B

>It's just something that's been in my head a while (and on the bottom of my list of things to get done) so I had to verbalize a bit. I'm sure you all understand. I just noticed that LV makes a set up with pillow blocks like this for only 20 bucks or so. If I can find an old motor to dedicate, it may be the way to go......Thanks again

Re: sharpening idea?

1/16/06, 12:59 PM #8

Sandor in Bear, DE
Guest

Buy the mandrel

Sandor in Bear, DE

>You can buy the mandrel that you are talking about instead of making it from rod stock. $24

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00929849000&subcat=Lathes

I have one and it works great for buffing. Plus you get a drill chuck head to boot!

my 2�

Sandor

sharpening idea?

Posts