Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
Kelton Tool Sharpening
T. Minehan
>The instructions for sharpening Kelton hollowing tools says that use of a "few upward swipes with a diamond honing stick or common slip stone will maintain a fine edge". What grit is recommended? They also say to avoid grinding until resharpening becomes necessary. How does one know when to grind? I have a set of the mini hollowers that I'm trying to learn to use so any other tips you can pass along will be appreciated. Thanks!
Re: Kelton Tool Sharpening
Peter Teubel
>I have several Kelton hollower sets and I use a "fine" (red) diamond stick to sharpen them.
Re: Kelton Tool Sharpening
MP Wall
>If I remember Lyn M's article on Keltons, the factory grind is fairly agressive and you should swipe the top of the tool before you use it and then put the upward swipes on with the red diamond card/stick. This gives you a uniform burr on the tool, rather than some aggressive and some fine. This has worked for me on my small and large sets of Keltons.
MP Wall
Re: Kelton Tool Sharpening
Greg Jensen
>I have found that a slip stone or hard Arkansas works better than a diamond. I prefer the medium grit slip stone. I use it dry and then periodically clean it with soap and water. If using a diamond try the course one. Ride the stone on the tool bevel and swipe upward with the stone. If you round over the edge it can be refreshed by lightly touching it up on a grinder. Do not worry about the hollow ground bevel. We sharpen on linishers and they have a small radius which creates the hollow ground bevel. Just maintain the bevel angle. The top surface of the tip can be honed to remove the old burr but be careful there is a laminate hard face on the tip and you are removing some of it. Never grind or aggressively sharpen the top surface of the tip.
Greg Jensen
North American rep Kelton Tools and P&N tools