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Just wanted to post a picture of a make of Martin's design.
It fits the T8 perfectly and can be attached or removed quickly.

Thanks again,

Mike

Martin,

thanks for sharing! I'll give it a try. Congrats, that's a clever design and should print well.
Mike

Ken,

I agree  - that's a clever approach for designing that jig, allowing for centering and adapting to tapered blades at once. I had also imagined the price being higher.
Before crossing the big pond it's even a bit cheaper (got it for ~ 45 USD from an authorized dealer).
Mike

Yesterday I received the new jig and gave it a try.
I'm very pleased with its overall look and feel, and it works very well with a wide variety of blades. It holds blades very firmly without overtightening the screw.

Of course it changes parts of the cherished workflow, eg. there are quite unaccustomed projection distances.
(Ken, I'm afraid you'll have to climb the mountain again, we need new stone tablets  . We presumably need shorter Kenjigs, too)
As you can't change the jig's length, it probably will require more USB setting.
The possibilty of using the secondary stop to create a convex edge is interesting and requires some thinking. For those of us using calculators and measuring distances a little modification to the measuring block may come in handy (if you use one, of course). It just compensates for the 12mm of the USB. (see pictures below)
I'm sure I'll continue to use the SVM jigs for 'average' knives, but I think that jig is a real solution for many of the special blades which have been a challenge so far.

And I'm anxious to hear about your thoughts and experiences.
Mike

FWIW, over here in Europe it's also sold under a different name: KIMILAR Mini 60X LED, at the horrendous price of 8.99€
for example: https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00X5LTKI4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1&pldnSite=1

As mentioned above, printed catalogs from your office or tools supplier are almost as good as phone books. There's no lack of those so far.
And their paper is more suitable for checking sharpness than that of newspapers.

Hi Ken,

I think the paper slicing test ist quite valuable, and running the whole length of a freshly sharpened edge through a piece of paper tells a lot about the quality. The thinner the paper, the better.
Hence an old phonebook or warehouse catalog is always next to my workbench. Performing a slow cut over the whole length of the knife will also reveal breakouts or remaining micro-nicks, burr etc.

One single test cut will IMHO not cause the edge to dull notably - if it would, I'd consider getting better knives (Any physical test will cause more or less dullness, btw.)The thumbnail test is also valid, but may also be replaced by trying to cut into a bent sheet of paper. 

I'd add "Inspection with a good magnifying glass or pocket microscope" to the list. 


Other methods have the drawbacks you mentioned.
Mike

[smaller.]

In principle, you should make sure the stones have identical diameters, or you will have to set the angle again.
Practically, a litlle difference won't matter that much, as long as the second stone is slightly smaller. However, if you change to a larger diameter, you won't reach the very apex, adding more pressure will worsen the effect, so a little compensation might be needed.
I'd strongly recommend using one of the calculators for that.

Maybe you just miss the right caliper  .
I use one like that in the picture. (If you want a bigger 'foot', you could easily add a 3d-printed one.)

Hi Per,

there are several suggestions which work quite fine. If you have access to a 3D-printer, this may be interesting, too: https://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=4726.msg33863#msg33863

It really depends...
... on the kind of knife/steel you want to hone and from where you want to start.
Some also prefer a very last step on a dry strop with no paste or compound at all.
Thus I think there is no general 'most optimal' recoomendation.
For occasionally touching a blade I'd go with some fine diamond spray, because pastes usually require cleaning the blade afterwards.

So sorry to hear about Vadim's passing away. Many of us have learned a lot from him.
I'll always remember him as a highly competent yet modest friend. My condolences to his family.

Any light oil will do, something like pure liquid paraffine has the advantage of being food-safe.
I use Ballistol, which is also non-toxic.

Just saw this...
Actually it can be a claw shaped knife like a karambit, but also has the meaning of "hoof knife".

In German the hoofs of all artiodactyles are also called 'Klauen' (claws).
Thus a Klauenmesser can also be the type of knife you use for the pedicure of cattle, sheep or goats.
[/teacher mode off]
Mike

Another thought regarding the fact that some chisels went well and others didn't:
If chisels are warped or twisted, effects may be similar to what you were experiencing. Can you check the chisels are 100% straight?

I've definitely seen some that weren't straight at all, and these weren't necessarily the ones that seemed to have taken the most abuse.