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#21
Knife Sharpening / Re: Tormek Marker
Last post by Rossy66 - December 12, 2025, 01:33:09 PMTo be honest, for all the money I spent on this setup (over $2000) you would think they would include one, I mean, I am obviously going to need one no matter what wheel I choose. Starting to regret my purchase as I have anouther problem with having to buy anouther wheel to do scissors. 
#22
Scissors Sharpening / Re: Anouther question about sc...
Last post by Rossy66 - December 12, 2025, 01:29:23 PMThanks everyone, not trying to be a scrooge (tis the season) but spending more money makes me a bit angry. In hindsight, I should not have bought the custom T8 and just gone with the basic T8 setup. Oh well, lesson learned.
#23
Knife Sharpening / Re: Tormek Marker
Last post by tgbto - December 12, 2025, 08:47:28 AMYes, they probably chose a very high-end marker produced specifically for application on metal. It wouldn't do to just slap a logo on a run-of-the-mill marker and sell it for three times the price of a Sharpie.
#24
Knife Sharpening / Re: Recommended Reading
Last post by Ken S - December 12, 2025, 01:14:17 AMI second Wim's and Rich's recommendations.
Ken
Ken
#25
Knife Sharpening / Re: Tormek Marker
Last post by Ken S - December 12, 2025, 01:09:04 AMI have used several brands of markers over the years. All worked. However, my less than scientific testing indicated that the Tormek markers provided the best coverage.
Ken
Ken
#26
Knife Sharpening / Re: Recommended Reading
Last post by WimSpi - December 11, 2025, 04:24:50 PMFrom my previous profession (carpenter), sharpening is nothing new to me.
In recent years, I have immersed myself in sharpening by watching high-quality videos. I have benefited most from the videos by the late Dr. Vadim Kraichuk of KnifeGrinders and from Tormek itself. I find that there are many videos on YouTube by people who present themselves as experts and, above all, as the best in their field. That takes a lot of (unnecessary) time.
I have also learned a lot on this forum by reading carefully and asking questions.
From all that information, I have created my own workflow for sharpening, which I now use.
I sharpen knives, chisels, and also hand saws (but sharpening handsaws is completely different from knives and chisels).
In recent years, I have immersed myself in sharpening by watching high-quality videos. I have benefited most from the videos by the late Dr. Vadim Kraichuk of KnifeGrinders and from Tormek itself. I find that there are many videos on YouTube by people who present themselves as experts and, above all, as the best in their field. That takes a lot of (unnecessary) time.
I have also learned a lot on this forum by reading carefully and asking questions.
From all that information, I have created my own workflow for sharpening, which I now use.
I sharpen knives, chisels, and also hand saws (but sharpening handsaws is completely different from knives and chisels).
#27
Scissors Sharpening / Re: Anouther question about sc...
Last post by RichColvin - December 11, 2025, 04:08:58 PMDavid,
Scissors generally are not made from hardened steel so an aggressive stone will wear away the metal quickly. And, you don't want to hone them.
I use the SG-250 on my Tormek to sharpen scissors for my wife. I have not used the extra fine diamond grinding wheel (e.g., the EF-250); however I believe it would also work quite well. The fine diamond grinding wheel (DF-250) may be too aggressive and leave too rough of a surface, but I am not positive of that.
As for jigs, the Tormek SC-60 scissors jig is my recommendation. If you have the older, Tormek SVX-150 scissors jig, that works well also.
The Tormek videos
cover this well. In the second video, Sébastien discusses sharpening scissors on the T-2 which uses a diamond grinding stone.
Kind regards,
Rich
Scissors generally are not made from hardened steel so an aggressive stone will wear away the metal quickly. And, you don't want to hone them.
I use the SG-250 on my Tormek to sharpen scissors for my wife. I have not used the extra fine diamond grinding wheel (e.g., the EF-250); however I believe it would also work quite well. The fine diamond grinding wheel (DF-250) may be too aggressive and leave too rough of a surface, but I am not positive of that.
As for jigs, the Tormek SC-60 scissors jig is my recommendation. If you have the older, Tormek SVX-150 scissors jig, that works well also.
The Tormek videos
- Axes & scissors sharpening | Part 2 | Tormek Live Sharpening Class (https://www.youtube.com/live/QlScXCdisAo?si=b_6xTCoscNwjJZq-)
- Scissors sharpening with the SC-60 Scissors Jig | Part 28 | Tormek Live Sharpening Class (https://www.youtube.com/live/YXh-Gt2TT3s?si=SWj2X0hwBj00hpJp)
cover this well. In the second video, Sébastien discusses sharpening scissors on the T-2 which uses a diamond grinding stone.
Kind regards,
Rich
#28
Scissors Sharpening / Re: Anouther question about sc...
Last post by Royale - December 11, 2025, 04:00:33 PMI think a good place to start, would be how the diamonds are attached to the steel hub.
If I'm not wrong, the diamonds are suspended in a solution that has a metal dissolved in it, then the steel hub and solution are electrified, drawing the dissolved metal out of the solution and onto the hub. The diamonds that are suspended in this constantly agitated solution get caught up in this electroplating process, and are "glued" onto the hub.
Long story short, diamond dust is glued to steel using another metal (nickel)
If the scissor blade manages to scrape off some of that metal, then your diamond grindstone is pretty much BER (Beyond Economical Repair)
The SG-250 is much more forgiving as any gouges/dents can be graded down to flat again. It's also great for practice and doing any experimentation on.
$300 may feel like a lot to add to your toolkit, but it's good to consider what you risk by saving that $300.
I don't have thousands of knives sharpened on the T8 under my belt, but I can confidently say that almost 99% of my customer knives needed reprofiling and repairs. (they are animals)
And once your business picks up, you won't regret having a 220 grit grindstone to power through more knives quickly.
Also, I sharpen scissors entirely on the SG-250. I use it at 220 grit to reprofile/repair, then use it at 1000 grit to smoothen the peaks the 220 grit creates, leaving a somewhat micro serrated edge. (I sharpen scissors mostly for tailors, so they need that consistent "bite" when sewing)
If I'm not wrong, the diamonds are suspended in a solution that has a metal dissolved in it, then the steel hub and solution are electrified, drawing the dissolved metal out of the solution and onto the hub. The diamonds that are suspended in this constantly agitated solution get caught up in this electroplating process, and are "glued" onto the hub.
Long story short, diamond dust is glued to steel using another metal (nickel)
If the scissor blade manages to scrape off some of that metal, then your diamond grindstone is pretty much BER (Beyond Economical Repair)
The SG-250 is much more forgiving as any gouges/dents can be graded down to flat again. It's also great for practice and doing any experimentation on.
$300 may feel like a lot to add to your toolkit, but it's good to consider what you risk by saving that $300.
I don't have thousands of knives sharpened on the T8 under my belt, but I can confidently say that almost 99% of my customer knives needed reprofiling and repairs. (they are animals)
And once your business picks up, you won't regret having a 220 grit grindstone to power through more knives quickly.
Also, I sharpen scissors entirely on the SG-250. I use it at 220 grit to reprofile/repair, then use it at 1000 grit to smoothen the peaks the 220 grit creates, leaving a somewhat micro serrated edge. (I sharpen scissors mostly for tailors, so they need that consistent "bite" when sewing)
#29
Knife Sharpening / Re: Recommended Reading
Last post by RichColvin - December 11, 2025, 03:50:49 PMDavid,
Ken is right that the Tormek classes on YouTube are a great place to start. The playlists on their YouTube channel is available at https://www.youtube.com/@TormekSharpening/playlists.
Regarding books, there is a bit of difficulty answering your question directly. Generally, the best book I recommend for woodworkers is The Complete Guide to Sharpening (1996), by Leonard Lee (of Lee Valley). It is quite thorough and well done.
For other types of tools, there are good sources, but I have found that the best books are for sharpening given tools and the books are usually tool-specific or at least category-specific. For example, I have come to find these are some of the best books:
In the web-based Sharpening Handbook (https://sharpeninghandbook.info), I have attempted to compile the list of these resources two ways:
If you take this as a journey to enjoy rather than a destination, you will find there is much to learn as we all do. And you will find that new information is being released to update your knowledge (e.g., Knife Engineering: Steel, Heat Treating, and Geometry in 2025 by Dr. Larrin Thomas).
Kind regards,
Rich
Ken is right that the Tormek classes on YouTube are a great place to start. The playlists on their YouTube channel is available at https://www.youtube.com/@TormekSharpening/playlists.
Regarding books, there is a bit of difficulty answering your question directly. Generally, the best book I recommend for woodworkers is The Complete Guide to Sharpening (1996), by Leonard Lee (of Lee Valley). It is quite thorough and well done.
For other types of tools, there are good sources, but I have found that the best books are for sharpening given tools and the books are usually tool-specific or at least category-specific. For example, I have come to find these are some of the best books:
- For knives: "Concerning the Sharpness of Blades" (PDF, date unknown), by Tremonia Feterkurier and Knife Engineering: Steel, Heat Treating, and Geometry (2025), by Dr. Larrin Thomas. The late Dr. Vadim Kraichuk of KnifeGrinders (http://knifegrinders.com.au) also published a number of really great articles on his web site.
- For twist drills: "Drill Bit Geometry" (an article from 1989), by Joseph Mazoff
- For metal lathe & milling machine tooling: Design and Use of Cutting Tools (1952), by Leo J. St. Clair.
- For handsaws, Set & File: A Practical Guide to Saw Sharpening (2024), by Matt Cianci
- For cold chisels, Use and Care of Hand Tools and Measuring Tools (2020), by the U.S. Department of Defense. This is AKA: Air Force TO 32-1-101, Army TM 9-243, Navy M6290-AJ-MAN-1010, & Marine Corps 10209-10/1.
In the web-based Sharpening Handbook (https://sharpeninghandbook.info), I have attempted to compile the list of these resources two ways:
- as a composite list (https://sharpeninghandbook.info/indexBooksVideosWebSites.html), and
- by tool to be sharpened
If you take this as a journey to enjoy rather than a destination, you will find there is much to learn as we all do. And you will find that new information is being released to update your knowledge (e.g., Knife Engineering: Steel, Heat Treating, and Geometry in 2025 by Dr. Larrin Thomas).
Kind regards,
Rich
#30
Scissors Sharpening / Anouther question about scisso...
Last post by Rossy66 - December 11, 2025, 01:07:46 PMI bought a T8 custom as doing my research, it was the best fit for my future business needs. After looking through this forum, I noticed that the diamond wheel is not recommended for scissors which is a little upsetting as I have shelled out over $2500 for a system that I thought would get me up and running. I do not see any information about not using diamond wheels for sharpening scissors in any videos (I am willing to be corrected if I am wrong) so now I have to pay an extra $300 for the basic stone?
I have just ordered the MB-102 to help me with maintain a better angle during honing and learning to sharpen chisels and such and was wondering if It would work on scissors as I will be edge leading (I think that's right)the rotation is moving AWAY from me as I have read that its mostly the vibrations that can damage the diamond wheel (as well as the steep angle).
Any thoughts?
I have just ordered the MB-102 to help me with maintain a better angle during honing and learning to sharpen chisels and such and was wondering if It would work on scissors as I will be edge leading (I think that's right)the rotation is moving AWAY from me as I have read that its mostly the vibrations that can damage the diamond wheel (as well as the steep angle).
Any thoughts?