Popular Woodworking 2008-06 № 169, страница 8

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Scratch Patterns Reveal When It's Time to Switch Sharpening Grits

I'm a novice woodworker. And although I wore a green beret in the Army and 1 watched my fellow Special Forces guys shave with their fighting knives, 1 was never able to get an edge that sharp on mine.

In many sharpening articles, the author writes to begin this process with a #1,000-grit waterstone, then do the same operation with a #4,000 grit and then an #8,000-grit stone. The backside should look like a mirror when you are finished.

I have waterstones in #220, #1,000, #4,000 and #8,000 grits but I'm not sure how long I should be using the #l,000-grit stone before moving up to the next one. Roughly how long, in minutes or strokes, do 1 spend on each stone? I'm sure I'll get to "know" this process as soon as I've done it a time or two, but for the first time, with my new chisels, how long should I use the individual stones?

— David Dalrymple, St. David, Arizona

I'm afraid this is one of those questions like: When do 1 switch grits when sanding? The answers are, "when you are done with the first grit"and "it depends."

Here's the best explanation I can give. Each stone leaves a particular scratch pattern. Because of the size of the abrasives, each grit can make the steel only so shiny. So you begin with your coarse grit and work until all the scratches are the same and are right up by the cutting edge (you might have some low spots away from the cutting edge that you can ignore).

The vast majority of your work on a new tool is at this coarse (usually #1,000) grit. Anew ^J/2" chisel in fairly good shape might require 15 minutes of lapping time for me.

When all the scratches look the same, I move up. The finer grits take less time, but the goal is the same: Make the scratches consistent all the

way across the cutting edge. Some of this requires learning to "see" the individual scratches, which comes with practice and observation.

At the #4,000 grit, I might polish the V2" chisel for five minutes. At #8,000,1give it a minute or two.

After that, 1 never have to work through all these grits again. 1 only touch that flat side with the #8,000grit. So it's a one-time issue.

And here's the important thing to remember: Your edges will improve over time. So what is "sharp" today will not be "sharp" a year from now. So get the edge so it cuts and you can get to work. The rest will come with practice.

— Christopher Schwarz, editor

Sugar Chest Glaze Specifics

The sugar chest article (June 2007, issue #162) states that you use Mohawk glaze - can you tell me which color?

— Kelly Taylor, Chattanooga, Tennessee

When I'm finishing in a darker color, such as the cherry sugar chest, 1 use Van Dyke Brown glaze. With otherfinishes (tiger maple, etc.) I use Burnt Umber. Those are the only two glazes I use.

— Glen D. Huey, senior editor

Some 'Tricks' Seem Unsafe

Popular Woodworking is one of my favorite peri-odicals on the subject of woodworking and I look forward to reading each issue. 1 really appreciate that you've started the series on working safely; none of us need to go through life without all our body parts intact.

That said, I am puzzled why you publish "Tricks of the Trade" that contain unsafe suggestions. The "Simple Safety Switch" and "Help with Horizontal Drilling" tips in the December 2007 issue (#166) offer opportunity for serious injury. An unguarded device using a motor from any source and then used to drive buffing or grinding wheels, or other home devices, is not a wise practice. And to follow the suggested method of making horizontal holes has the possibility of spinning the washer either by moving toward the bit or the chuck. PW —Dan Southworth, South Bend, Indiana

'Arts & Mysteries:' Why I Subscribe

In the February 2008 issue (#167), Editor Christopher Schwarz comments (in" 10 Years

and 10,000 Hours") that many people like the Arts & Mysteries articles the best.

1 would like to second that sentiment. I subscribe to Popular Woodworking for that column alone. As a professional woodworker, I accumulated a lot of magazine subscriptions over time. I finally got tired of all the "Build a Workbench in an Hour" articles, so I discontinued most magazines. I'm down to just three now. I keep Popular Woodworking because the Arts &r Mysteries column is so unique in a world of slam-it-together-in-a-day mentality.

—Mike Dembroge, Alameda, California

Question? Comment?

We want to hear from you.

Popular Woodworking welcomes comments from readers about the magazine or woodworking in general, as well as questions on all areas of woodworking. We are more than happy to share our woodworking experience with you by answering your questions or adding some clarity to whatever aspect of the craft you are unsure about, and if you have a complaint, we want to address it whenever possible. Though we receive a good deal of mail, we try to respond to all correspondence in a prompt manner. Published correspondence may be edited for length or style. All correspondence becomes the property of Popular Woodworking. Send your questions and comments via e-mail to popwood@fwpubs.com, via fax to 513-891-7196, or by mail to:

Popular Woodworking 4700 E. Galbraith Road Cincinnati, OH 45236

Correction

For the April 2008 issue of Popular Woodworking (#168), we tested lithium-ion, battery-operated drills. In the article, we write that the Ryobi kit (P8I3) has only a single battery included, which we didn't like.

In fact, the kit has two batteries. I had set the second battery aside to make sure we had an unused battery when it came time for testing. And then I forgot about it.

Several readers told us the kits do, in fact come with two batteries. Ryobi confirmed it. And we apologize.

— Clen D. Huey, senior editor

12 ■ Popular Woodworking June 2008