Recent posts

#11

Knife Sharpening / Re: some subtle information ab...

Last post by Swemek - April 11, 2026, 01:27:05 PM

Isn't it surprising that he said that the grinding direction doesn't matter?

In my experience, the grinding direction doesn't matter (much) in terms of final sharpness. There are some knives, mostly of very soft steel, where sharpening edge-trailing will indeed form a much longer, foil-like burr. However, these steels are so soft that the foil burr will be removed easily anyway ... and edge retention will be bad either way.

That being said, it might be hard to tell from sound and feel alone when you're done honing a foil burr. I'm not sure it takes much longer though.

I also found that grinding edge-leading with the SJ stone might give the impression that there is no burr, when there actually is a line of well-aligned plastified steel just at the edge.

Eventually, I didn't find much of a difference in terms of edge retention between edge-leading and edge-trailing.

Maybe it's splitting hairs in the context?

Or whittling hair ? I don't know if it was intentional, but nice one anyway 

Thanks for interesting post! Yes for me as booth noob and hobbyist there are a lot of variables, like how different steel behaves in one application.

I remember when I've had my T4 for a couple of months and that I kind of saw myself as some kind of sharpening guru..

For hobbyist it's always the risk falling down that famous rabbit hole.

#12

General Tormek Questions / Re: Good Light

Last post by John Hancock Sr - April 11, 2026, 07:08:21 AM

I have good shed lighting, but not quite enough when sharpening. I have two additional 18W rectangular LED lights over the sharpening area which helps a lot.

#13

General Tormek Questions / Re: New Knife Sharpening Kit f...

Last post by Ken S - April 10, 2026, 07:17:07 PM

 Herman,

Let's be fair. Although not quite as fast, the new knife kit is capable of doing almost everything your homemade platform can do.

Ken

#14

General Tormek Questions / Re: Good Light

Last post by Ken S - April 10, 2026, 07:09:32 PM

"And Torgny said, 'Let there be light'. Although I had studied the handbook, setting up my Tormek in good daylight for the first time in bright daylight instead of my poorly lit garage was quite a surprise.

Great idea about the headlights!

Ken

#15

General Tormek Questions / Good Light

Last post by Herman Trivilino - April 10, 2026, 05:17:20 PM

The importance of good light when setting jigs and sharpening has been mentioned here many times. I find that these newer head lamps are awesome. They have a strong LED lamp and a rechargeable Li-ion battery, and are very inexpensive. I have two so that at least one of them is always charged and ready to go.

#16

General Tormek Questions / Re: New Knife Sharpening Kit f...

Last post by Herman Trivilino - April 10, 2026, 05:13:28 PM

Any thoughts from anyone else?

For $400 US I think I'll stick with my homemade jig, described here.

I could be wrong but I'm of the opinion that getting a kitchen or pocket knife beyond razor sharp is not of much utility. They will quickly lose that high level of sharpness after the first use. I get mine sharp enough to do that demonstration where you slice through a sheet of paper held in your hand. That seems to serve me well enough.

#17

General Tormek Questions / T8 water trough noise

Last post by Ken S - April 10, 2026, 03:32:58 PM

The adjustable water trough introduced with the T8 is a real innovation. However, it can also be prone to introducing noise. This is preventable and easily corrected. It is explained in the new Tormek video on cambering plane blades, starting at around 20 minutes. The problem is not related to cambering or any jig. I suggest watching this video, whether or not you sharpen plane blades. Here is a link:

https://youtu.be/TIicRhEh57E?si=csPW48Q1pxzo2T1Z

The problem is caused when the two forks which support the water trough get slightly bent. This can be prevented by using an inexpensive turkey baster from the grocery store to withdraw the water instead of just dumping it. Making this part of your sharpening routine should prevent the noise.

Ken

#18

Gardening Tools / Re: Shovels and Hoes

Last post by RichColvin - April 09, 2026, 11:20:47 PM

John,

I've cataloged all that, and more at:  https://sharpeninghandbook.info.

Rich

#19

Gardening Tools / Shovels and Hoes

Last post by John_B - April 09, 2026, 09:09:45 PM

Now that the ground is not frozen and we have the new Gardening Tool section I have a question.

What approximate angle do hoes and shovels require for best performance and resistance to denting the edge?

#20

Gardening Tools / Re: Approach to sharpening law...

Last post by gazzor0 - April 09, 2026, 06:53:36 PM

I used the SG wheel and measured both ends to ensure the sharpened blade was evenly ground and balanced. My neighbour was happy with the result commenting on how well it cut his grass. On a side note, I honed the blade,  my logic is a bur could shorten the sharpness life.