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I was able to get a FVB unit built during the gloomy weather over the weekend out of spare chunks of metal lying around; got the measurements into TormekCalc and ran through some knives and chisels with the procedure of SG250 against the blade, Sun Tiger 4000 then honing wheel (both from the front, with the blade).  Ran it right off the software values using T USB value and it appears my measurements were reasonably precise and accurate based on the successive scratch patterns. Got 'good' results but it did highlight an issue and maybe the reason for my previous dissatisfaction with honing wheel. It appears the leather on the wheel I have has dried out over the years - particularly along the edges creating a 'U' shape to the surface.  Can the leather on this wheel be reconditioned or replaced?

I feel completely worthless now.

"Always look on the bright side of life" - Eric Idle

I have started to use the Tormek to sharpen my timber framing chisels including a 1 1/2" Union and a 2" Barr.  Apparently my inherited Supergrind came with the 'SVH-60'.  Didn't know the official number of this jig until I started poking around this forum (the jig is not labelled anywhere).  This system works great with a couple of finicky set up issues. I need to be careful the chisel is mounted as close to 90 degrees as possible in the jig, particularly if I run rotation against the edge on the SG250 then with the edge on a finer stone. The chisel needs to be reversed in the jig when I change stones and the 90 degree angle needs to be reset.  Also, I do not believe it is included in in the base selections of some of the angle setting software - info on the forum says the jig was discontinued in 2002 so that's certainly understandable.

T-USB is clear to me now...this explains the instructions that jvh sends out: "T USB is independent of these constants and can be used to check the settings."  I hadn't quite grasped the meaning of that till now.  The quick responses are appreciated.

Great info here - thanks for the all the suggestions.  I didn't know the MB-102 existed - thanks for that suggestion, it looks like it will cover all the front support configurations.  Got the TormekCalc software downloaded and figured out, the Supergrind2000 measurements are a little different then the preprogrammed T8 on the regular support mount but a lot different on the front mount. Couple of follow up questions:

Rick - I see the simplicity of the rubberband and support to stone distance but I don't see the 'ease of use' for this distance preprogrammed into TormekCalc, am I missing this somewhere or are you using different software?

Ken - I'm curious about the expert demonstration by Stig Reitan you witnessed, did he hone freehand or use a front support?

So for now I'll only add front support, no new wheels. Current 'good plan' is: SG250 to Sun Tiger 4000 from front then side hone with support, all with angle setting from TormekCalc; plus practice.  I still have reservations about sharpening some edge tools on this system, particularly my Japanese plane blades and mortise chisels. It seems 'disrespectful' to radius the cutting faces and not use traditional methods on these tools - do some of you feel the same way or am I strange/crazy?

Note: my basement is at standard temperature and pressure about two hours a year; an hour in the spring and an hour in the fall...

Thanks again for all the help.

First post here - I'd like to start by saying thanks for all the great information already accumulated in these forums.  I inherited a Supergrind 2000 from my father about 18 years ago and he had owned and operated it for probably a decade before that.  It came to me on a nice stand that he had built with drawers and sliding door cabinet. It also came with several jigs and fixtures mainly for sharpening lathe tools but also the knife jig and the planer blade jig.  It also has the extra side honing wheel for shaped tools.  I have used it since I got it as 'utility' sharpener - mainly for kitchen knives, scissors and outdoor blades (chipper knives, pruners, etc) by going from the main stone with jigs to honing side wheel freehand.  I preferred to use waterstones for all my chisels and planer blades just because I was used to this system and good at it, even though it is time consuming. 

I thought it only had the standard main stone which does not have a name on it (but I assume is equivalent to the current SG250) until the other day when I finally looked in the back of the bottom self on the cabinet side - there was a box just the right size to be a stone - it turned out to be a NIB old stock Matsunaga Sun Tiger 4000 grit stone.  Doing some research online about this stone led me to the Knife Grinders AUS site and this site which, after much reading, has convinced me that the Supergrind might be a bit more than a utility sharpener.  I think my issue has always been getting the hang of the freehand honing - after reading it turns out that there are many solutions to this right on the Tormek.

So here is my plan of action to up my Tormek game:
- Download some blade angle setting software, most likely the TormekCalc Excel version available here and figure out how to set angles precisely (thanks in advance jvh)
- Make or upgrade to the front vertical block and possibly the larger US-430 support with micro adjust to get consistent angles on the current honing wheel
- For now, I think I'm ok with the rest of the small upgrades that are typically recommended

The main question:
- I am considering a new wheel for finer grit or honing - I am considering adding a rock hard felt wheel or possible a paper wheel that would accept a diamond solution.  The routine would then be - SG250 for main grind and angle set then to Sun Tiger 4000 to refine and finally to the paper or felt wheel with a 1 micron solution.  I did try the Sun Tiger and was actually quite pleased with it despite reading some of the reviews on here first - mine ran true and certainly refined the SG250 surface.
- Another choice is to spend a bit more and add a diamond wheel - possibly the DF or DE; the routine would then be SG250 to DF to hone

Hope you can all help me spend some $ - which route do you think will be the most satisfying?

Thanks in advance,
Keith