News:

Welcome to the Tormek Community. If you previously registered for the discussion board but had not made any posts, your membership may have been purged. Secure your membership in this community by joining in the conversations.
www.tormek.com

Main Menu
Menu

Show posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.

Show posts Menu

Messages - Ken S

#1
Pete,

It may surprise you to learn that I actually agree with you on several points. Those of us who have followed my posts over the years will know that I have been an advocate of the T4 since it was first introduced. That stated, I have been an honest critic. I have never liked the way it has been marketed. I have never thought of it as a stripped down, less expensive version of the T8.

When it was introduced, the T4 was Tormek's most advanced model. It was a major redesign of the T3. The machined zinc top, later incorporated in the T8, allowed much greater accuracy than the Then flagship model, the T7. My comments over the years have run counter to the prevailing "more ecenomical, hobbiest" sales pitch. In my opinion, the T4 is a professional quality machine when properly equipped. I have equipped my T4 with a TT-50 truing Tool, and both the steel EZYlock and quick change nut listed as spare parts for the T7/8. The "thirty minute duty" myth should have been eliminated from the start. It never was a problem with the T4..

I believe the T4 should have only been sold with the truing tool. Initial truing is always good grinding practice, just as frequent flattening is for bench stones. The need for truing is not a criticism of Tormek quality; it is just part of grinding, just like oil changes are with vehicle engines.

Sadly, we live in a do it yourself world where customer training is regarded as an expense rather than a compensated part of customer service. A training session with a Tormek instructor would have solved your problems. The bump in your leather wheel is a one time, less than a minute fix with a scrap of sandpaper. Truing the grinding wheel requires a Truing tool, but is a skill quickly and easily mastered.
Getting a square grind is also not a difficult skill to learn.Tormek has made learning so much easier with the handbook and the online classes. I have lost track of how many times I have read the handbook and watched the classes. I learn more with each repetition.

Purchasing a Tormek is a lifetime investment. I hope you will not short circuit your Tormek experience by premature giving up. The learning curve is worth the effort.

Keep posting your questions; we have all been there.

Ken

#2
General Tormek Questions / Re: Should I Persist?
July 02, 2025, 07:46:42 PM
Welcome to the forum, Pete. With a little courage and patience, your troubles will soon be in the past. Tormek has provided us with two valuable resources, the handbook and the online training classes on youtube. Your time studying these will be well rewarded.

The bump on the leather honing wheel joint is an easy fix. The leather used in the leather honing wheel is absolutely top quality. I remember an exhibit describing it when I visited Tormek in Sweden. Unfortunately, occasionally some of the glue needs a little sanding to be smooth. Thirty seconds sanding the joint lightly with medium grit sandpaper will end your problem.

The SE-77 is a versatile jig. It can grind plane irons with controlled camber. This versatility requires a little more skill. Use a black marker on your bevel. Run your Tormek for a couple seconds. Examine the bevel with a small square to check for squareness. Adjust the chisel if needed. Do not grind the entire bevel before verifying squareness.

Be sure to watch the online class with Stig. He demonstrates an effective procedure to check squareness. as I recall, it was about 24 minutes into the class.

At this point, what you need is education and experience. Tormek provides the education. After study, I suggest you work slowly and make one chisel ((3/4" is a good first width)sharp and square. Then, just build on that experience. You will succeed.

Keep us posted.

Ken

PS You are not alone. Forty years ago, I purchased my dream camera, a wooden 4x5 view camera. The outfit cost $1200. I was quite discouraged when I could not see to view or focus with it. With much persistence, I finally mastered it. It became my favorite camera.

Patience and persistence. . . .
#3
General Tormek Questions / Re: Water disposal
July 02, 2025, 06:46:53 PM
Several years ago, one of our members posted a very practical solution to your problem.

Purchase a plastic turkey baster. These are inexpensive and can be found in grocery and cooking stores. Lower the water trough of your T8. Using your turkey baster, remove most of the water from your water trough. Dump this in a plastic container. Remove the sludge with a paper towel. Using another container with clean water, rinse your water trough. This will prevent the sludge from clogging your drain.

Ken
#4
Welcome to the forum, Windslashman. Unfortunately, as the forum moderator, I must inform you that Tormek, who owns this forum, does not sell CBN wheels. We do not allow competitors' products to be sold on this forum. As a courtesy to you, I will allow this topic to remain posted through the end of this week, as long as any replies are sent as off forum PMs.

Knifegrinders closed when the owner passed away. An online search of vendors of CBN wheels for tormek should give you several sources. .

Ken
#5
Welcome to the forum, Kodar.

My first thought is to recommend that you email support. (support@tormek.se)

Reading that you have very hard water, I would try usinf distilled water from the grocery store. It is not expensive. My water is not hard, so I have never had that problem.

Please post the reply from support. I am curious to learn what they recommend.

Ken
#6
Welcome to the forum, Gregory.

I think the ChatGpt has misinformed you. Here is a link to thewater trough spare part sold by Tormek.

https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/products/tormek-advanced-water-trough-for-t7

Please note that for older machines, the correct part is designated T7. You could email support for verification. (support@tormek.se)

Ken
#7
Knife Sharpening / Re: grinding wheel SB
June 26, 2025, 06:04:45 PM
Welcome to the forum, Miloslav.

Good question. during one of the live online classes, someone asked about not having an SB-200 wheel. The answer was a rather non commital we have no plans for that at this time. As a long time T4 user, I wish Tormek would introduce an SB-200.
It would be a useful alternative to the diamond wheels. I (we) keep hoping.

Ken
#8
Many years ago, with my photo business, I had a local glass shop make up apiece of heavy plate glass for contact printing. I had them grind the corners round. I don't know what tools they used for this.

I recall seeing a file for rough edges on crystal in a DMT catalog.

I would definitely recommend using ACC with the diamond wheels to keep them clean.

Ken
#9
Drill Bit Sharpening / Re: Tormek dbs-22
June 26, 2025, 12:16:54 AM
Here is a link to the Alan Holtham video on the DBS-22:

https://youtu.be/fSUa1iFUzkM?si=2OWPcmW05GsMh18y

I consider it head and shoulders to be the best video on the DBS-22. I use mine infrequently; I watch this video every time before using the DBS-22. Concentrate your study preparation on the best instead on many videos.

The DBS-22 is Tormek's most sophisticated jig. In skilled hands, it is capable of producing very advanced drill points. Those who take the time to master it will be well rewarded for their time.

Drill bits are often misused and abused. I believe learning this jig will be much assisted by starting with bits which are either new or just not quite sharp. Become proficient with these before gradually moving onto more damaged bits. I would suggest learning with 3/8" to 1/2" bits. Bits in this midrange are easier to sharpen than bits at either end.

Be sure to have afew freshlysharpened bits to show customers.

Ken
#10
Welcome to the forum, Leo. Do you mean that you are looking for the music soundtrack of this video? If so, I suggest that you email (info@tormek.se).
Tormek produces its videos in house.

If that is not what you mean, please let us know.

Ken
#11
I remember a long forgotten forum dialog I had with now long inactive member Ionut. Ionut and I were discussing alternative ways to hold very thick "pig sticker" mortising chisels. Ionut had been using the Tormek much longer than me.He finally tried using the predecessor of the SVM-45. The older clamping design could accommodate thicker chisels. As a woodworker, I wanted to acquire one for possible use. Ionut steered me toward Big Bear Tools, the agent for western Canada. They had one as "new old stock" which I purchased.

I suggest you look at the resellers list for your country on the Tormek website. Contact them to see if anyone has any SVM-45 jigs as "new old stock". Also, do check ebay.


Stay focused on your technique. More controlled, slower passes may save the day.
Good luck.

Ken
#12
General Tormek Questions / The Tormek Story
June 13, 2025, 07:33:20 AM
I was excited when The Tormek Story was rekeased. Having recently visited Tormek in Sweden, I had the pleasure of having met some of the people in the video. I had also become acquainted with several more through email correspondence. It was a delightful trip and one which raised my already high regard for Tormek and its employees. Here is a link:

https://youtu.be/wYaVdHSJGN8?si=Tkow2czto50WjwPV

My appreciation for this video increased when I learned how to translate the first part from Swedish to English using closed captions. That is easy to do. In the upper right corner of the screen, there is a "CC" button to enable closed captions.

The video traces the history of the Tormek concept and philosophy as well as the products. Most of us will not be fortunate enough to visit Tormek in person. This video provides a fine introduction to the proud heritage of Tormek. It also rekindles warm memories every time I watch it.

Enjoy!

Ken

#13
We often read about or have to sharpen knives with chipped edges. This situation is far from new. It predates the use of iron and steel. This video talks about bronze age weapons and tools.

https://youtu.be/Wj6KwtGx6DE?si=tc_fqRxnD-BZJtFF

Ken
#14
Good thought, John.
Ken
#15
Do not be discouraged. While discovering something new is valuable, discovering a new useful application is also useful, as when the Corning engineer's wife discovered that the glass designed for locomotive headlights also worked well for kitchen ware. Today we know this as Pyrex.

Ken