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PEP BB tool.straw.chisel - sharpen a chisel

BB tool care - straw badge
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This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in tool care.

Chisels are useful for mortising and doing some more precise wood working. The key to sharpening a chisel properly is to first understand the proper blade geometry. A chisel has a bevel and a flat. There are different kinds of bevels(hollow, flat, convex, and multi-beveled), but most will find the maintaining a proper flat bevel will serve them very well.

Here is one of the best examples. "Carpentry sharp" is good.


Here is a very good article, but an overly expensive set-up for many.
https://www.instructables.com/id/Tool-Tip-How-to-Sharpen-a-Chisel/

Requirements to complete:
- must be an wood chisel(not a cold chisel etc.)
- must use a whet stone or similar sharpening method without petroleum products
- use an appropriate method to remove the bur


To get certified for this BB, post the following:

 - pic of dull chisel edge or chisel with raggedly cut material(paper, light wood)
 - action pic which includes all sharpening equipment used
 - pic of the sharpened edge
COMMENTS:
 
pollinator
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I used a two sided whetstone and a scrap of very dense oak to remove the bur.
DSCN1768.JPG
[Thumbnail for DSCN1768.JPG]
sharpening-a-chisel.jpg
sharpening a chisel
sharpening a chisel
Sharpened-Chisel.jpg
Sharpened Chisel
Sharpened Chisel
 
steward
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This is the dull chisel before sharpening. I coated it with sharpie, so that I can see which sections of the chisel I am shaving off during the sharpening.



This is an action picture of me sharpening the chisel.



This is the finished sharpened chisel.

 
gardener
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I will join Dave on his Chisel quest!

I found the chisel way harder than the knife with a wet stone. The chisel I had was already rounded and someone had tried to file the flat side. Needless to say... SO MUCH FUN!

The end product wasn't perfect. But I felt I was going to grind the whole chisel away before I had it perfectly flat. Much better than before! ... I think!

Dull-Chisel-with-flat-side-filling.jpg
Dull Chisel with flat side filling
Dull Chisel with flat side filling
Blue-sharpie-to-help-the-process.jpg
Blue sharpie to help the process
Blue sharpie to help the process
Sharpening-the-chisel.jpg
Sharpening the chisel
Sharpening the chisel
Part-way-through-the-sharpening.jpg
Part way through the sharpening
Part way through the sharpening
Sharpening-with-something-finer.jpg
Sharpening with something finer
Sharpening with something finer
More-sharpie-to-aid-sharpening.jpg
More sharpie to aid sharpening
More sharpie to aid sharpening
The-final-grit.jpg
The final grit
The final grit
All-sharp.jpg
All sharp
All sharp
 
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Approved submission
We don't do much woodworking around here, and I'm actually not even sure why we own chisels. But we do, so I decided to sharpen one for this BB.

I started out on a Smith's whetstone, and finished on a fine grit diamond stone. To remove the burr I just kept running it over the tabletop and the garage and feeling the tip until I felt no more burr. It does its job quite a bit better now!
IMG_20201227_145429_099.jpg
Poor thing barely removes any wood
Poor thing barely removes any wood
IMG_20201227_145455_119.jpg
Looking sad
Looking sad
IMG_20201227_150833_481.jpg
Finishing on diamond stone - forgot pic of using whetstone
Finishing on diamond stone - forgot pic of using whetstone
IMG_20201227_150903_789.jpg
Ahh, that's better
Ahh, that's better
IMG_20201227_151004_582.jpg
Like a hot knife through butter
Like a hot knife through butter
Staff note (gir bot) :

Mike Barkley approved this submission.
Note: I certify this BB is complete.

 
pollinator
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Requirements to complete:
- must be an wood chisel(not a cold chisel etc.)
- must use a whet stone or similar sharpening method without petroleum products
- use an appropriate method to remove the bur


To get certified for this BB, post the following:

- pic of dull chisel edge or chisel with raggedly cut material(paper, light wood)
- action pic which includes all sharpening equipment used
- pic of the sharpened edge



My son bought me some chisels. They were blunt on arrival. No worries . . . I can sharpen them!

I tried cutting paper with the chisel and it just buckled. I couldn’t push it through one sheet.

I sharpened with 240 grit followed by 1000.

Much better - pushed straight through a sheet of paper.
957169F9-9798-41F3-9111-4D88E6BE17E3.jpeg
Too blunt to be pushed through a sheet of paper
Too blunt to be pushed through a sheet of paper
357916A5-93B9-4229-A82A-FE7F1D5ECB26.jpeg
Much better
240 grit
9808C3F1-34F5-4015-A8AA-24ACC010054D.jpeg
1000 grit
1000 grit
56B8ACA5-C244-4477-B717-F80A7C356D35.jpeg
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FB0A81AB-532E-416B-9F51-4F2C744FDA8F.jpeg
[Thumbnail for FB0A81AB-532E-416B-9F51-4F2C744FDA8F.jpeg]
Staff note (gir bot) :

Someone flagged this submission as not complete.
BBV price: 1
Note: Apparently it's sharp now but we need to see a pic of the sharpened edge.

 
Edward Norton
pollinator
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Approved submission
I am my own worst enemy . . . Here’s the edge
44EA0ACA-4A69-4380-A07B-0B3D40C9C9A3.jpeg
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Staff note (gir bot) :

Someone approved this submission.
Note: I certify this badge bit complete.  See above post too

 
steward
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Approved submission


 - pic of dull chisel edge or chisel with raggedly cut material(paper, light wood)
 - action pic which includes all sharpening equipment used
 - pic of the sharpened edge



Found a well used chisel in the WL shop and sharpened it during the BB20 event.
Nicked-up-good.jpg
Nicked up good
Nicked up good
Using-the-diamond-thingie.jpg
Using the diamond thingie
Using the diamond thingie
That-thing-really-works-.jpg
That thing really works!
That thing really works!
Showing-it-can-cut-a-tiny-curl-of-wood.jpg
Showing it can cut a tiny curl of wood
Showing it can cut a tiny curl of wood
Staff note (gir bot) :

Carla Burke approved this submission.

 
gardener
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Approved submission
I sharpened a couple chisels recently. I took photos of the second.

Honestly it was more of a restoration than a simple sharpening because it had been pretty pitted and etched with rust (which I removed in a prior BB)

Requirements to complete:
- must be an wood chisel(not a cold chisel etc.) - Mine is a wood paring chisel.
- must use a whet stone or similar sharpening method without petroleum products - I used 2 diamond stones, 1 water stone, and a leather strop.
- use an appropriate method to remove the bur - Stropped

To get certified for this BB, post the following:

- pic of dull chisel edge or chisel with raggedly cut material(paper, light wood)
- action pic which includes all sharpening equipment used
- pic of the sharpened edge

You can see the first chisel I sharpened on the left beside the one I'm submitting here on the right. It is visibly etched and dull.



I used a Veritas honing guide because it makes the initial grinding very accurate and much faster than doing it by hand alone. A friend of mine had an extra and gave it to me for free. I like to use what I've got. Since I had it in the guide, I ran it through all the stones without removing it until I got to the strop.

I spent about 15 minutes on a 150 grit diamond stone grinding down the flat and the bevel and removing the pitting and etching. I removed a microbevel and returned it to a single bevel (which is a little more labor intensive to sharpen, but much easier to do accurately without a honing guide). After that I did 50 strokes each on the flat and bevel on 400#, 600#, 1000#, an ultra fine grit water stone. I sharpened each grit until the burr was even along the entire edge, and then turned the burr on the next grit up.

First equipment/action shot is the 150/600 diamond stone.


Next is the 400/1000 diamond stone.


Then the ultra fine grit water stone


Finally I stropped 50 strokes on each side, then 25, 12, 6, 3, 2, and 1 on each side to finish. One point of care I learned to take is to tilt the edge up and away from the strop just slightly, so I don't inadvertently round the edge. The give of the leather still polishes it perfectly.



Somewhere along the way I put some scratches in the right side of the bevel (perspective when using it), maybe on a flake of metal that had been removed. But I don't think they're going to be particulary problematic.

(edit) Didn't realize you couldn't see the edge in the last shot, so I added another one. Here's the chisel slicing through a single sheet of newspaper like it's butter. I also shaved a bit with it to impress my wife.



(edit 2) We're trying to set a better standard for documentation, so I'm adding three more photos of the sharpened edge.









Staff note (gir bot) :

Carla Burke approved this submission.

 
Posts: 5
Location: Knoxville, TN, USA
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Approved submission
For BB consideration.
0c6382e5-2a9a-4778-8020-6ece1b0a9915.jpg
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Staff note (gir bot) :

Paul Fookes approved this submission.
Note: I certify this BB complete. Well done Susan.

 
Posts: 123
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Approved submission
Mabey it's just how old and rusted up this chisel was, but it was was easyer to sharpen than a knife.
20230102_123142.jpg
Old and crusty
Old and crusty
20230102_123252.jpg
Sharpening
Sharpening
20230102_123828.jpg
Sharp
Sharp
Staff note (gir bot) :

Cam Haslehurst approved this submission.

 
master gardener
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Approved submission
Requirements to complete:
- must be an wood chisel(not a cold chisel etc.)
- must use a whet stone or similar sharpening method without petroleum products
- use an appropriate method to remove the bur


To get certified for this BB, post the following:

- pic of dull chisel edge or chisel with raggedly cut material(paper, light wood)
- action pic which includes all sharpening equipment used
- pic of the sharpened edge

This is a chisel straight from the vendor and it didn't cut smoothly at all. It in fact was some burrs that caused the chisel to have a tendency to dig instead of glide off shavings. A whetstone treatment with two separate grits brought it into a workable condition. I find working back the chisel on the whetstone is effective to remove any burrs developed from sharpening.
Chisel1.jpg
Chisel
Chisel
Chisel2.jpg
Burrs
Burrs
Chisel3.jpg
Barely start a curl. Not gliding off shavings.
Barely start a curl. Not gliding off shavings.
Chisel4.jpg
Even pressure on a wetted whetstone.
Even pressure on a wetted whetstone.
Chisel5.jpg
Sharpened
Sharpened
Chisel6.jpg
Quick clean work.
Quick clean work.
Staff note (gir bot) :

Paul Fookes approved this submission.
Note: I certify this BB complete.  Well done

 
Posts: 38
Location: Pacific Northwest
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Approved submission
Carissa Quisenberry, sharpening a chisel... Did it with a file and a whetstone... Took about 3-4 hours... Phew
IMG_20240709_140325822.jpg
Chisel needeth sharpness
Chisel needeth sharpness
IMG_20240709_143245348.jpg
Sharpness in progress
Sharpness in progress
IMG_20240709_165417746.jpg
Sharpeneth thy Chisel
Sharpeneth thy Chisel
Staff note (gir bot) :

Jeremy VanGelder approved this submission.
Note: In addition to a badge bit, you win the "Most improved chisel" award. Wow!

 
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