Popular Woodworking 2003-06 № 134, страница 32

Tool Test

Shapton Stones a Great Leap

Shapton sharpening stones are so good at rapidly producing a mirror finish on your edge tools that it feels like you are using alien technology. In fact, Shaptons have almost everything you could wish for in a sharpening system: They cut as fast or faster than Japanese waterstones, but they wear slowly like an oilstone. You don't even need to soak them in water before use - just a splash and you can go to work immediately.

Shaptons, which have been sold in Japan for 20 years, were developed by Nobuaki Ishida initially for sharpening cutlery. The latest generation of stones, the "Professional Series," has been available in this country for only about a year. Shaptons are made by pressing ceramic material into a binder that's sort of like a glue. Because Shaptons are pressed into shape instead of being baked like other man-made stones, they are not porous and don't absorb much water. That's why you don't have to soak them before use.

For the last three months we've been using the Shapton "Professional Series" stones

Let's all hope that the two new drill presses from Delta Machinery are a sneak peak at the way all drill presses will someday be made.

Both of these benchtop machines (the DP250, a 10" model, and the DP350, a 12" model) have a variable-speed knob on the front rather than the traditional belts and pulleys on most drill presses. To change the speed of these two drill presses anywhere between 500 to 3,100 rpm, here's what you do: Turn on the machine and turn the knob to the correct speed. Yes, that's all.

There are no belts or greasy pulleys to mess with. Until this year, this was a feature found only on professional floor models.

We've been using the DP350, the 12" model, for about six months now, and we're impressed. While the speed-changing mechanism is a little stiff at times, we suspect that it's a quirk of the machine we tested. We've tried out some other DP350s and found them to be smoother. Even with the stiffness, it's a world easier to change speeds than with a traditional drill press.

Another feature we like - but were sus

Forward in Sharpening

to tune up every edge in our shop. The orange #1,000 stone is great for getting out small nicks in blades and minor edge shaping. (For major edge problems, a grinder or the #120 stone is the better choice.)

Then you can go right to the purple #5,000 stone and get a mirror finish with just a dozen strokes. For most chisels, you can stop there. But for plane irons and tools that need to be dangerously sharp, you must try the green #8,000 stone. Unlike other Japanese 8,000-grit stones, this one doesn't require you to build up a slurry with a Nagura stone. A little water and then you go to it.

You can flatten the Shaptons with a lapping plate and lapping powder (also made by Shapton), which works quite well. We also had good luck flattening them on DMT's extra-coarse diamond stones.

These stones cost more than other sharpening systems. But as far as I can see, these stones cut better and wear longer than any other system we've tried. - CS

For more information, circle #167 on Free Information Card.

picious of at first - is the depth stop. The DP350 uses a threaded rod that's similar to the rod on drill presses that use two nuts to limit the depth of travel. Instead of two nuts, the DP350 has a single nut that has a button. Press the button and the nut slides. Release the button and the nut sticks in place. We were concerned that it would be too coarse of an adjustment, but it wasn't.

The ^-horsepower induction motor has enough power for most woodworking tasks. We bored lots of 1"-wide mortises with this rig and could not stall the machine or bog it down significantly.

And lastly, I have to mention the light. The machine's light is on a gooseneck attached to the side of the head; it's a real nice feature because you can move it easily and it's always there.

In a world where most consumer-grade drill presses are mere clones of each other, it's encouraging to find someone is finally fixing a nuisance that has been annoying woodworkers for decades. PW - CS

For more information, circle #168 on Free Information Card.

SPECIFICATIONS

Shapton "Professional Series" Prices: #1,000: $49 #5,000: $76 #8,000: $95 Lapping plate: $120 Lapping powder: $15 to $20 Chisel sharpening DVD: $30 Performance: ••••• Price range: $$$$$ JapaneseTools.com: 877-692-3624 or shaptonstones.com

SPECIFICATIONS

Delta DP350 Drill Press

Street price: $200-$250 Chuck: V2"

Table size: 9V2" x 9V2"

Motor: V3 horsepower, 1,720 rpm

Weight: 78 lbs.

Performance: ••••O

Price range: $$$$$

Delta: 800-438-2486 or deltamachinery.com

Delta Variable-speed Drill Press: The Way Things Ought to Be

30 Popular Woodworking June 2003