Messages

It is finer than the fine graded stone. I don't know why honing would not be recommended. It isn't as fine as the honing compound.

Have you got a curve cut into the smooth side of the grader yet, Herman? The deeper the curve, the more surface contact you have between the grader and the stone, and the faster it will grade.

The SJ-250 is a super fine abrasive all the way through. The SG-250 is a coarse abrasive underneath an artificially prepared surface. When the fine abrasive is worn away, coarser grains are exposed. This generally isn't a problem with relatively straight blades...they will rarely cut through the fine surface, but shaped tools will.

Well, some people heat their shop while working, but don't heat it when not there. In that case, in very cold temps, there is some danger. I would take the stone (or the whole machine) into a heated area for a day or two after use if the shop is going to get below freezing.

As I've noted before, I think there is a gap between the Tormek grindstone's finest grit and the leather honing wheel.  At a magnification of 40X I see scratches from the grindstone that are too deep to be polished out by the leather honing wheel.

I believe a bit of attention with a bench stone would solve this "problem".

Then you either did not spend enough time with the fine cut, or didn't have the stone graded properly. The honing compound is capable of polishing out the scratches from the fine cut. If you still see scratches after using the honing wheel, they're from coarser cutting.

If the steel is that hard, open up the stone (use coarse side of grader) and do it in two steps. I find most knives cut easily enough that I don't do that, using just the fine cut and the honing wheel. But, if I run into something hard, instead of spending a lot of time on it, I'll just open up the stone and Git 'er Done. 

There's nothing foolproof, but the concept is to grind equal amounts off both sides and have the bevels meet. If you grind equal amounts off both sides, but they don't meet, you have trapezoid, not a triangle. Take a little more off each side until the bevels meet. If the bevels are roughly equal to begin with, you can use equal amounts of time on both sides to be your guide.

Also, the world will not go spinning off its axis if your bevels are not perfectly equal. The closer the better, but the knife will still cut if it is sharp, but has uneven bevels.

White lith is an excellent choice, Herman. Probably better than the Teflon lubes. It holds up better to the moisture.

No, it is a US-103.

Patrick,

The shorter one is from a T-3 (or 1206).

The linked tool would be pretty easy to sharpen using the SVM-45 knife jig.

Michael,

There are basically two kinds of pruning tools, bypass and anvil. Bypass tools where the tool can be taken apart are relatively easy to sharpen. The convex blade is sharpened with the scissors jig SVX-150 while the concave blade is cleaned of debris and lapped gently on the sidewall of the stone, with nothing necessary on the inside curved surface.

Anvil pruners vary in blade design. Some have a single bevel and some have a bevel on both sides of the blade. Where the tool can be taken apart, the blades can either be sharpened with the SVX-150,  SVD-110 or (in the case of tools with a bevel on both sides) the SVM-45 knife jig.

All but the very cheapest tools can be disassembled for sharpening. If they can't be, they were designed to be disposable in the first place.

The very easiest to sharpen are those quality tools where the blade is completely separate from the handle. Just pop them out and sharpen them with the SVX-150.

I recently converted my 2000 machine to the Stainless Steel Shaft and EZ Lock
My first impression was how on earth will this ever hold the rotating wheel from slipping during normal use.
The next day I had occasion to change the Wheel for a different wheel,
I followed the instructions and in no way could I loosen the EZ Lock nut by hand.
I ended up using Channel Lock Pliers to grasp the EZ Lock Nut and rotate the wheel as indicted in the instructions.
I want to meet the original Gorilla who indicates it is only hand tight.
Even with the lightest of touches during installation, the result is the same.
I was shocked at how tight the EZ Lock Nut holds the wheel even after one minute of rotation.
While not as difficult to release as the Original Nut Assembly I was not expecting anything more than finger tight resistance.
I would like to suggest a nut similar to what is used on the Honing Wheel would be more appropriate.
I now have all three Wheels and would like and easier means of releasing the wheel.

If you used ChannelLocks, you didn't follow the instructions. 

Biggest thing to get your mind around is that you don't turn the nut itself at all. You turn the stone. Turn it opposite the direction of rotation and the nut will pop right loose, easy peasy.

The pivot pin doesn't have a cap nut. It is a press fit. Tap the bullet shaped end and the pin will come out, allowing the motor to separate from the frame.

Ken,

That was a one time promotion in 2007 at the introduction of the T-7.

The truing tool is appropriate for the SJ-250. Go slow and use the grader when you're done.