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I can also recommend "Crafted", a short film that is also free on Amazon Prime.

Wonderful! And I can see that a janjig is a double kenjig! 

This is easy-peasy for me to make - thank you for the details!

I've been away for a while and popped back in, and I see that everyone is using the "kenjig", which is apparently a "simple wooden jig". Interesting. The closest I could get was in this thread http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=2639.0 for "a new angle setting tool".

So I did a search - not one thread with "kenjig" in the subject line! So now that there is such a thread, can someone reply with the design / photos / link to making and using this mythical jig? 

In that spirit, I highly recommend the DVD "Lego Brickumentary". It is a fellow traveler in creativity.

Great movie! It's free with Amazon Prime and we're watching it right now with my 3yo grandson.

I think that unless you put the Tormek any higher than the height of your fingertips it is going to be too high.

I can see that - and I think that setting the Tormek on a short platform - perhaps straight on the ground - while you sit on a stool would be about right. Ideally you could rest your elbows on your legs.

Now that's going to be an inconvenient height for activities from the other side. Rather than getting down on the floor, perhaps then raise the grinder to a low bench height.

I guess what I'm saying is that - rather than build a step to change YOUR height, perhaps move the Tormek between two (or more) platforms.

None of this really matters if you're just doing one blade. But in my limited use of the Tormek, I'm finding that it's handiest to batch things together - doing several chisels, several kitchen knives, and I even squared the ends of a few screwdrivers that had gotten rounded over throughout the years. Changing over the jigs isn't a big effort, but regrading the stone isn't something you want to do 20 times a day (for example).

[elevating one foot over the other]

Search for "seated" and you'll find a few more threads.

Hah - I had used the Search in the upper left, not the one in the menu - different results!

OK, I can see the difficulty of getting the pressure for serious metal removal when not standing on the switch side pushing down.

Unfortunately, many of the techniques for relieving back pressure when standing (lots of good ideas at this link: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=531598) aren't going to work here - e.g. standing with shoulders back. Soft pad to stand on, swaying between left and right feet, the various ab tensioning techniques, and elevating one foot over the other - those might work. I might also investigate a lower back support belt.

But my new thought is, why not put the Tormek on a low stool - perhaps with a swivel - and work it like a potter's wheel?

If...too low, I quickly experience back pain.

Yep - after sharpening just one chisel on my new (to me) Tormek, that's exactly what I experienced. I tried moving it close to the edge so that I could keep my back straight, but it didn't help much. What did help - for a while - was sitting on the table and turning sideways. Which got me thinking - does anyone sharpening while seated? I searched on "seated" and got no results, but I think this might be a solution.

Comments?

First off, I don't believe your machine is a 2004, I believe its a 2000 because I have one just like it.

I'm pretty sure it's a 2004:

I grease the bushings periodically with Lithium grease. Lithium grease keeps water and dirt out.
To catch the iron filings I taped 3 rare earth magnets on the outside of the water trough.

Great tips - thanks for those!

If you do decide to order another bar, I would suggest also ordering an extra micro adjust nut

Makes sense - as would using a second nut (ideally a thin, or "jam" nut - http://www.boltscience.com/pages/twonuts.htm) with Herman's approach

Correct.  Bondo and JB are basically the same thing, a two-part epoxy filler.  They just use different fillers.  Either will work.  I used bondo because that's what I had.  It's also easier to sand and machine.

Well how about that - I learned something more new!

Thanks Herman

I used bondo to cement the nut into the center of a plastic bottle cap, filled in the voids outside the nut being careful to keep the inside of the nut clean.  Then I drilled a hole through the center of the plastic cap.

Your point being to increase the diameter of the nut, presumably to provide greater control? How about pre-drilling the cap and using something like JB Steel Stick?

Instead of upgrading to the new universal support with micro adjust I just threaded the shaft with a die.

Was that difficult? Just the common die in a handheld tool or something heavier duty?

Sorry, that was HTK-170 (the "Hand Tool Kit") - the collection I bought came with all of those pieces plus the SVS-50 (and the LA-120, which I forgot to mention).

One thing that helped me compare new and used Tormeks (there were a couple of local ones on Craigslist as well) was to create a spreadsheet with all of the Tormek parts and their prices. It was a bit of a surprise to see that the majority of the value of the new T-7 at $639 (omitting tax and shipping) was in the accessories - the two wheels alone cost $245 together. It made sense that Jeff said that a used 2000 series would be worth $100, since the naked T-7 (which they don't sell!) would be about $200.

So in my spreadsheet, I compared whatever was on offer to a new T-7, deducting for wear on the grinder wheel. It quickly became clear to me that the value was in the accessories - and I think I've even seen a couple of eBay sets of listings where someone got an older batch and sold off all the boxed pieces.

But without a spreadsheet where you can tot up all the bits and their prices (and, more importantly, see what is missing!) it's very difficult to value secondhand grinders.

...And if you're really going to use it...

I actually have no idea how much I'm going to use it. I have lots of tools that could be sharpened that I've never gotten around to, but last week my wife handed me a pair of nail clippers and asked if I could sharpen them. Now I'm not going to say that I spent $400+ to sharpen a pair of $10 nail clippers (which apparently don't do well on a Tormek anyway) but that's my story. <smile>

I can certainly see the shaft upgrade - but the turntable? Really? It actually seems easier to just lift the handle and rotate it - it doesn't weigh very much.