Card Scraper question?

Welcome to the quiet side

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>And in my ignorance I also use a file to sharpen my scrapers and I use a lot of them. If you have the time to waste you can hone them to your hearts content, but it is not necessary.

Once the scraper is joined and the sides flattened the burnisher is going to change the edge anyway, all that is important is that the card scraper is relatively square on the edges with all surfaces bright with the file.

Then turn your burr. The steel that forms the burr is work hardened by the burnishing making them last longer.

Stephen

Re: Card Scraper question?

MikeW

>Hi Barry,

90% of the time, I also only use a fine file. The edge on a well prepared scraper (i.e., stoned following filing--jointing) will last longer. The only time I stone them is if the wood I am scraping is of sufficient hardness the longer edge is a benefit. Otherwise, I've got a pile o' scrapers. It's no big thing to switch to another if needed.

Main issue is how well/smooth the edge is following a file. Serrations will weaken the rolled edge and limit the amount of time it will scrape properly. In other words, smooth is good.

fwiw, if you have or run across older handsaws that are in poor shape, you can make great scrapers from them.

Take care, Mike

Re: Card Scraper question?

Michael Brady

>The most exhaustive article I have seen on this subject is Chris Schwarz's in a recent issue of PopWood. He actually took the results of 14 different treatises on scraper sharpening and distilled them into a concensus. His conclusion is that you do have to stone the edge after filing and also recommends using the ruler trick on the sides before running the burnisher to turn the burr. By doing this you have a smooth, even burr that will lift shavings rather than just dust. This article is in Jan or Feb issue of 2007, I think. I also saw him demonstrate it (on my scraper!) at Marc Adams School in May.

Re: Card Scraper question?

MikeW

>Chris' article is a good one. I cannot remember if he suggested using the side or not...if one chooses to stone the scrapers, think about using the side of said sharpening stone. That way little grooves won't affect the main surfaces and if it needs trued (to get rid of the groves), the side trues a lot faster.

I look at scrapers as I do jack/try planes and smoothers. I don't typically sharpen the former to the same level as I do my smoothers. For the bulk of the scraping, a file (as long as one can leave a smooth surface) is a quick way to renew the edge and get back to work.

Take care, Mike

Re: Card Scraper question?

ThomD

>Scapers can be used for a number of different degrees of finish. Personally I never use them for a final finish as I occasionally do with planes. I use the to work surfaces where they are the most efficient means of dealing with the grain or shape. For that you never need to stone them, and personally I think it is a waste of time given the softness of the steel. Soft steel takes somewhat the same amount of time to stone as harder steel, not the same, but you are still reducing the surface by means of a fine abrassive, there is only so fast you can go. And when you subsequently roll the edge and use the tool you are not going to get a payback in my experience.

I either draw file the edge and burnish, or hold it on a belt sander and then burnish. I get nothing but curls, and with good burnishing technique you can go back to the well over and over before you have to sharpen it.

I certainly feel that you should learn to use a fast cutting tool and a burnisher before refining the edge, because it would be easy to completely waste your fine polishing if your basic skills aren't up to it.