After several months of debate I finally took the plunge and got a T-7 last weekend. I'm only starting to get it grips with it, but it certainly feels like a quality piece of kit. However, there's a couple of points I think Tormek should look at.
1) Why not supply a second universal support to save having to swap back and forth ? e.g. I've been trying to re-shape a skew chisel a bit and have needed to dress the wheel a coupe of times. Doesn't take long to swap over, but it just seems to be a bit of a reduction in the overall quality/useability of the product. Yes, I'm sure I can buy another one, but that's bound to be more expensive than just having it from day one.
2) Oil for the honing wheel. I was about to use 3in1 oil until I read the forum last night and decided to wait and get some sewing machine oil - which cost £2 and came in a bottle that was just the right size (20 ml but I've got the woodturning kit with god extra wheels). But given it would presumably only cost Tormek a few pennies to add a bottle of oil alongside the honing paste, why not ditch the plasters and provide something you will need.
3) The plasters. Probably the most intimidating part of the package! Guess I won't be able to say I wasn't warned when the inevitable happens :'(
However those are just minor niggles, overall I'm impressed by the quality and thought that's gone into the T-7 and very happy I finally took the plunge :)
[and I was so impressed with the quality of the machine that I even ironed the cover before I put it on ;D]
A small disposable tube containing just the right amount of oil is a good idea.
The extra Universal Support would up the cost of the machine significantly. Personally, I wouldn't get much use out of it. I don't understand your comment about dressing the grindstone. How is that connected with the use of the US?
Plasters? I have no idea what that is? :-\ (Edit: Never mind, I had to google it, and here I thought I knew all the British terminology!)
Anyway, welcome to the forum and I'm glad you're enjoying your new T-7.
What do you call Plasters then Herman, is it band aid? If so, that's a brand. Bit like we call a vacuum cleaner a hoover over here :-)
Bandage, or band-aid.
That does it. From now on I'm calling them plasters. That is just brilliant.
Nooooo...a bandage is a big white length of cloth that you wrap big wounds in!! You Americans haven't got this language thing sorted at all have you?? The full name is "sticking plaster". We do get band-aids here too, they're a (very popular) form of plaster :-)
Bob's yer Uncle :-)
What's the adage: 2 nations separated by the same language :-)
Now......I just fancy a couple of faggots for dinner tonight.......
Maybe we can settle this kerfuffle and plaster it with a band-aid.
Here we have standardized calling a band-aid an adhesive bandage. :)
Reminds me of the piper who used to operate near Waverley station in Edinburgh. He had a sign that read "English spoken, American understood".
Mind you I heard at the weekend that at least one Scottish school no longer teaches "English" as a subject, it's now called "Language". That would make a bit of a mess of the piper's sign .....
Quote from: Rob on March 10, 2014, 10:18:50 PM
Nooooo...a bandage is a big white length of cloth that you wrap big wounds in!! You Americans haven't got this language thing sorted at all have you?? The full name is "sticking plaster". We do get band-aids here too, they're a (very popular) form of plaster :-)
Sticking plaster, huhh? As opposed to a non-sticking plaster?
On this side of the pond our plaster sticks to walls, not people. Well, it does stick to people, but we don't do that on purpose.
;D
I agree that it would be great if they included oil for the honing wheel. I bought my Tormek about a month ago and on Sunday was finally able to get it out of the box. I was excited to try it out, but didn't have any sewing machine oil on hand. I went to my local hardware store but the closest they had was 3-in-1. I didn't get it because I wasn't sure it was the right thing (and I guess it turns out that it isn't). Now I have to figure out who in my rural area sells sewing machine oil. In the meantime, I've yet to use my Tormek because of my trip to go look for oil. My first-use experience would have been greatly improved if the oil was in the box.
I used 3 in 1 oil. Probably not enough though, after reading here about being careful not to use too much. :)
(P.S. I read the messages on this forum every day, hoping to become more knowledgeable and proficient.)
Just for future ref 3in1 isn't ideal because its too viscous. Really what's wanted is a light machine oil like mineral oil or camelia oil or sewing machine oil etc. Oil for very delicate parts is the order of the day. I think regular household baby oil is ok but I wouldn't be comfortable recommending it without Jeff corroborating that.
But recall what Herman mentioned, the initial oil is only to get past the new dry wheel. After a few sessions the oil in the honing paste will have taken over anyway.
Baby oil is perfect. It's mineral oil with fragrance added. Makes the shop pleasant. ;D
There y'are....what he said :-)
Sure seems like it would be a good idea to have a separate sticky that sums up and fully answers the endless questions about oiling the honing wheel. We see questions about it all the time. Over and over!
Jeff, maybe you could write the thing up and sticky it at the top?
Stuff like:
Light weight petroleum based oil. (Baby oil makes the shop smell good too!)
Don't use too much. Just enough to get compound to stick. Don't want a sloppy, slippery, rubbery wheel.
How to apply: I put some on a rag and it evenly coated the wheel. (Is that a good way, or just dribble it on? Worked well for me.)
Compound needs to stick to the leather to do its job.
Maybe some comments on how much honing compound to apply and when to re-apply?
I remember when I first got the Tormek I had all the same questions. It seemed mysterious and not fully addressed anywhere. Eventually you get it figured out, but I think that a good, authoritative separate sticky would reduce a lot of duplication and really be appreciated by new owners.
Maybe something like that could be inserted in the "Beginners Start Here" stickie.
http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=1565.0
Quote from: Wybrook on March 06, 2014, 09:14:32 PM
After several months of debate I finally took the plunge and got a T-7 last weekend. I'm only starting to get it grips with it, but it certainly feels like a quality piece of kit.
I also recently bought the T-7 after months of deliberation. It was the Gransfors promotion that pushed me over the edge. I don't really need an axe I just thought it would provide me another blade to practice on...
Quote from: Wybrook on March 11, 2014, 11:58:25 PM
Reminds me of the piper who used to operate near Waverley station in Edinburgh. He had a sign that read "English spoken, American understood"
I was in Edinburgh for the first time last June. Beautiful city. But it only took about 20 minutes before I received my first insult from a shop keeper for being an American...
Quote from: SSteve on March 19, 2014, 01:20:38 AM
I agree that it would be great if they included oil for the honing wheel. I bought my Tormek about a month ago and on Sunday was finally able to get it out of the box. I was excited to try it out, but didn't have any sewing machine oil on hand. I went to my local hardware store but the closest they had was 3-in-1. I didn't get it because I wasn't sure it was the right thing (and I guess it turns out that it isn't). Now I have to figure out who in my rural area sells sewing machine oil. In the meantime, I've yet to use my Tormek because of my trip to go look for oil. My first-use experience would have been greatly improved if the oil was in the box.
I got mineral oil from my local pharmacy...hope it's the right stuff...
Quote from: grepper on March 19, 2014, 04:17:10 PM
Sure seems like it would be a good idea to have a separate sticky that sums up and fully answers the endless questions about oiling the honing wheel. We see questions about it all the time. Over and over!...<snip>I remember when I first got the Tormek I had all the same questions. It seemed mysterious and not fully addressed anywhere. Eventually you get it figured out, but I think that a good, authoritative separate sticky would reduce a lot of duplication and really be appreciated by new owners.
I guess my newbie question revolves around the honing paste...do you need to apply every time you use the honing wheel or does it build up after awhile...how much do you use?
We have a big flea market near my home where I found some old knives to practice on. When I feel confident I'll move onto our kitchen knives. f that goes will I'll try my hand on the pocket knives. Eventually I want to sharpen my turning tools...
BTW...I have not had a need for the plasters yet....I've tried to be careful so far...
I
Quote from: Gary on March 20, 2014, 02:57:57 AM
I got mineral oil from my local pharmacy...hope it's the right stuff...
That's the right stuff. In Edinburgh you'd get it from your local chemist. ;)
QuoteI guess my newbie question revolves around the honing paste...do you need to apply every time you use the honing wheel or does it build up after awhile...how much do you use?
It takes a while to build up a good feel for when you need to add honing paste to the wheel. Remember that it's a paste with small abrasive particles in suspension. Those tiny particles break away tiny chunks of steel, smoothing the edge of the tool. As they get used up you need to add more. Apply smaller amounts often rather than larger amounts less often. It lasts longer that way and works better.
Good luck with your knives. They can be a challenge. On most knives the steel forms a burr that you can see and feel, assuring you that you've ground all the way to the edge. Some of the more exotic knives, like a sushi chef's knife for example, are made of a more brittle steel, so it's harder to see or feel the burr. Those knives are harder to sharpen.