Messages

Don,

I'm also not a professional sharpener yet I use the SJ Japanese waterstone often. There are tools like my secateurs which don't need this level of smoothness on the edge, but it does make using them much nicer.

Rich

The T-8 (regular or black) has one advantage over the T-4 which you may find useful:  the SB grindstone is only available in a 250mm size, so it won't fit on the T-4. 

I don't sharpen for a business, but I often find that the traditional grindstones are my preference. I have all 6 of the Tormek grinding wheels, but find myself using the traditional grindstones quite often.

[What to Upgrade on an Old Tormek & What to Keep As Is]

Ben,

Welcome to the Tormek world. 

I have a SuperGrind T-2000 and a T-8.  Both machines use the HB-10 manual which you can download as a PDF from Tormek.com when you register your machine.  The HB-10 handbook has been around for many years, having been started by Torgny Jansson, Tormek's founder.  Over the years, new stuff (jigs, grinding wheels, etc.) gets added to the manual, and deprecated items are removed.  The current version is 10.5 and the essence of it is the same.  If you get that handbook and read it (as every good Tormek user should), you will learn a LOT.  If you want a physical book, Tormek sells them (https://tormek.com/en/products/accessories/hb-10-tormek-handbook).

You may also have some questions about your machine relative to the newer ones.  I compiled this page of information for people who have purchased the older T-2000, and most of it applies to the T-1200 as well.

What to Upgrade on an Old Tormek & What to Keep As Is

(https://sharpeninghandbook.info/PurchasedAnOldTormek.html)

You may have some older jigs which came with your machine.  Those are addressed at that web page, but if you have questions about specific jigs not outlined in the HB-10 handbook, please reach out to this community.  We will endeavour to help you.

You are on a good journey.

Kind regards,
Rich

I find the KS-123 incredibly easy to use and quite convenient.  I used it just this past week when sharpening which required switching between an SG-250 grindstone and an SJ-250 Japanese waterstone. 

JB,

Ken's linked forum post is good to read.  I will add a few more thoughts for you to consider.

Before you go and buy the parts to repair your SVD-180, you should seriously look into getting the SVD-186-R.  The newer gouge jig has spring detents used for the jig settings (JS), making the process of setting the jig to your desired configuration: 

• Much faster, and 
• Far more repeatable.

Upgrading to the SVD-186 is definitely worth it.  I upgraded from the SVD-185 and never looked back.

Keep the SVD-180 though, as it can be used for sharpening flat cutter blades (like those used in hollowing rigs).  You can see what I'm discussing on pg 5 of the SVD-186-R manual.  

As it regards this functionality, the sleeves for the SVD-180, SVD-185, SVD-186, and SVD-186-R are all interchangeable.  The parts needed to sharpen the cutters come with the SVD-186-R, and will work in the sleeve for the SVD-180.

In the past, you had to purchase the SVD-005 kit to add this capability to the SVD-180 jig.  When the SVD-180 was replaced with the SVD-185, the SVD-005 parts came with jig.  The SVD-186 and SVD-186-R also have those parts.

Using this approach, you will

• Have a better jig for sharpening your gouges, and
• Have a dedicated jig for sharpening your cutter blades.

Good luck, and please keep us posted.

Kind regards,
Rich

Greggy,

I wrote this summary which you may find helpful: What to Upgrade on an old Tormek, & What to Keep As Is.

Kind regards, 
Rich

Some use a coffee filter for such purposes 

Pete,

I am sad to hear that you are having such a bad experience with your Tormek.  I have had a Tormek for over 20 years, and I am thankful I made the investment back then.

I want to pass on a couple of thoughts to you before you put your machine up for sale.  I don't mean for these to be an insult to your abilities; I have never met you so I cannot judge your skills.  Rather, it is to offer up some ways of thinking about your sharpening journey.

Consider the work one must do to make a new Japanese chisel usable.  John Reed Fox wrote an article for Fine Woodworking in 2013, "How To Set Up Your New Japanese Chisel".  Just the activities to set the hoop seem a bit onerous to me (Jay Speetjens wrote an article about that in 2012, "Japanese Chisel Tuneup: Setting the Hoop").

And I cannot begin to think what it must feel like when one must tap out a Japanese chisel blade once the sharpening has progressed back far enough.  To say I would be nervous is an understatement.

I guess those activities are what comes with going the route of Japanese woodworking tools, and those like Andew Hunter who have chosen that path seem to find joy in the activities.

I would not view your experiences as user error; rather I urge you to consider it a learning curve.

When I got started using the Tormek, it was many years before I became comfortable grinding the tool with the grindstone rotating towards me.  I thought it would be too easy to make a mistake.  Now, I am very comfortable achieving quick results that way.

As a woodturner, I feel the same way about the skew and especially the bedan.  I've been woodturning for many years (30+), and it is only within the last few years where I have felt comfortable using the skew.  (The bedan is still on the list to be mastered.)

I love the Tormek approach to sharpening.  I always get consistent results which makes the use of the tools easier:  I don't have to readjust to them every time.

I like that the process does not remove lots of metal from the tools I sharpen, tools I spent a lot of money to buy. When I started turning, I sharpened my turning tools on the bench grinder.  I found I was quickly making them shorter and shorter (that was before CBN wheels became as prevalent).  Now, I don't have that problem.

And I like that the Tormek does not toss a lot of metal filings / dust into the air.

You probably experience the same with hand sharpening on stones; I cannot say as I have not done that for many years.  But I can say that using the Tormek does sharpen my tools quickly, far faster than when I did it by hand.

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As it regards the TT-50 Truing Tool, you were going to need that sooner than later.  That accessory should be viewed as comparable to the diamond stone you need to true a water stone. 

Best of luck to you,
Rich

I would not dump the residual water into the sink.  

Miloslav,

I encourage you to read this series of posts on this topic. https://forum.tormek.com/index.php/topic,5220.msg37870.html

My Two Cherries chisels hold edges quite well. 

Randy,

The late Dr. Vadim Kraichuk wrote an excellent book about deburring knives and made a shortened version of it free for distribution.  Whilst it is about knives, I believe many of the principles will apply to what you are finding.

To get to the book, this link will get you there: https://www.sharpeninghandbook.info/Documents/Knife_Deburring_book.pdf.

You can get the full-length version from Amazon.

Kind regards,
Rich

That looks like a masonry bit.  Not much guidance on these. 

What are you trying to achieve with a diamond wheel that you cannot achieve with the SG grindstone?

I use both.   I use the composite honing wheel for wood turning tools; otherwise I use the leather honing wheel.  The leather is messier, but I believe it gives a finer hone.