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[What to Upgrade on an Old Tormek & What to Keep As Is]

#91

General Tormek Questions / Re: Instruction manuals

Last post by RichColvin - August 01, 2025, 02:14:22 PM

Ben,

Welcome to the Tormek world. 

I have a SuperGrind T-2000 and a T-8.  Both machines use the HB-10 manual which you can download as a PDF from Tormek.com when you register your machine.  The HB-10 handbook has been around for many years, having been started by Torgny Jansson, Tormek's founder.  Over the years, new stuff (jigs, grinding wheels, etc.) gets added to the manual, and deprecated items are removed.  The current version is 10.5 and the essence of it is the same.  If you get that handbook and read it (as every good Tormek user should), you will learn a LOT.  If you want a physical book, Tormek sells them (https://tormek.com/en/products/accessories/hb-10-tormek-handbook).

You may also have some questions about your machine relative to the newer ones.  I compiled this page of information for people who have purchased the older T-2000, and most of it applies to the T-1200 as well.

What to Upgrade on an Old Tormek & What to Keep As Is

(https://sharpeninghandbook.info/PurchasedAnOldTormek.html)

You may have some older jigs which came with your machine.  Those are addressed at that web page, but if you have questions about specific jigs not outlined in the HB-10 handbook, please reach out to this community.  We will endeavour to help you.

You are on a good journey.

Kind regards,
Rich

#92

General Tormek Questions / Re: Instruction manuals

Last post by tgbto - August 01, 2025, 02:01:18 PM

Hello,

I think the safest bet is to email support@tormek.se . You might also want to register your machine on the website even if it's way past the warranty period.

#93

General Tormek Questions / Instruction manuals

Last post by BenElliottUK - August 01, 2025, 12:47:41 PM

Thanks, in anticipatio of your help and patience. I'm new to using Tormek, having just bought a used, very old T-1200. Using it is quite straight forward, having watched a couple of YouTube videos on the T-8, it's very similar. However, I always like to have the instruction manual to read through (I'm really quite boring like that).

Does anyone know where I can access a manual? I can't even find one for the T-3 which superceeded it. Thanks again.

#94

Knife Sharpening / Re: Wheel direction

Last post by Ken S - August 01, 2025, 01:10:02 AM

I have been fortunate to have been coached by two Tormek master knife sharpeners, Steve Bottorff and Stig Reitan. Both are quite capable of sharpening; however, both have different preferences. Stig like to watch the water flowing over the knife edge while edge leading. Steve generally sharpens farmers market knives freehand edge trailing for more control.

Both directions work.

Ken

#95

Knife Sharpening / Re: Wheel direction

Last post by Herman Trivilino - July 31, 2025, 03:07:01 PM

I'm kinda confused. I bought the Tormek T-8 with the knife angle setter and the knife jigs. I follow the tuturials the same as on the YouTube videos.

But the thing is, their wheel is turning away from them and the knife edge. But my wheel is turning toward me toward the knife edge.

Many very experienced knife sharpeners will sharpen with the grindstone turning away from them. Personally, I find it better to grind with the grindstone turning towards me. It's faster, and with the homemade jig I use I get far better control. But it is a matter of preference.

So is there any way to reverse the spinning direction? Because obviously I can't sharpen knifes like this.

As others have pointed out, the way you do this is to turn the machine so that the opposite side faces you. Then you will have to mount the Universal Support Bar (USB) in the mounting hole on the side of the machine facing you. The USB will now be upright rather than horizontal.

#96

General Tormek Questions / Re: Capacitor Impedance for To...

Last post by Herman Trivilino - July 30, 2025, 08:39:39 PM

The impedance is a complex number, containing both a real part and an imaginary part. For an ideal capacitor, the impedance is purely imaginary, with no real part.

But for a real capacitor, there is a real part. Quoting from Wikipedia:

"The magnitude of the impedance |Z| acts just like resistance, giving the drop in voltage amplitude across an impedance Z for a given current I."

My calculation gives the magnitude of the impedance as about 210 ohms.

That's why I said "loosely" speaking. I'm ignoring the imaginary part, which is, as you say, responsible for the phase shift.

Agreed, *but* you based your calculation on the capacitance only, meaning you assume an ideal capacitor.

Yes, you are correct about that. So is it correct to say that what I calculated is the magnitude of the ideal capacitor's impedance?

So you are not ignoring the imaginary part, you are dealing only with the imaginary part.

Yes. I did get that wrong.

The 210 ohms value you computed is a pure reactance, or said otherwise, no resistance at all.

To quote from the same wikipedia : "A pure reactance does not dissipate any power."

But, quoting from the same article:
"In electrical engineering, impedance is the opposition to alternating current presented by the combined effect of resistance and reactance in a circuit."

So it does offer 210 ohms of opposition to the current, plus whatever contribution is made by the (nonideal) resistance.

#97

Knife Sharpening / Re: Beyond Basic BESS

Last post by Ken S - July 30, 2025, 05:22:01 PM

You guys may be on to something, an inexpensive way of determining knife sharpness. All we would need to do it make up a comparison chart comparing BESS with the shriek volume of putting one's hand in the knife drawer. . . . No need to buy expensive test filament. (  (just kidding)

Ken

#98

Knife Sharpening / Re: Beyond Basic BESS

Last post by BPalv - July 30, 2025, 04:28:04 PM

One note though, if you come over for dinner don't stick your hand in the knife drawer.

Do you mean you keep you ultra-sharp knives loose in a drawer   

Just kidding, they now sport sheaths...

#99

General Tormek Questions / Re: Capacitor Impedance for To...

Last post by Dutchman - July 29, 2025, 10:11:23 AM

Now we know enough about possible misunderstandings regarding capacitors.
Thank you.

#100

General Tormek Questions / Re: Capacitor Impedance for To...

Last post by tgbto - July 29, 2025, 07:59:17 AM

The impedance is a complex number, containing both a real part and an imaginary part. For an ideal capacitor, the impedance is purely imaginary, with no real part.

But for a real capacitor, there is a real part. Quoting from Wikipedia:

"The magnitude of the impedance |Z| acts just like resistance, giving the drop in voltage amplitude across an impedance Z for a given current I."

My calculation gives the magnitude of the impedance as about 210 ohms.

That's why I said "loosely" speaking. I'm ignoring the imaginary part, which is, as you say, responsible for the phase shift.

Agreed, *but* you based your calculation on the capacitance only, meaning you assume an ideal capacitor.

So you are not ignoring the imaginary part, you are dealing only with the imaginary part. The 210 ohms value you computed is a pure reactance, or said otherwise, no resistance at all.

To quote from the same wikipedia : "A pure reactance does not dissipate any power."