Chisel sharpening 101

[iggie zawicki]

I recently acquired a used Tormek sharpening system. The problem I am having is that the chisels are not sharpening to a square finish. I have checked all of the fixtures and everything is 90 degrees to the stone. I have the chisel placed in the guide at 90 degrees and move it steadily across the stone as the stone is turning. I have the same result if using either toward the stone sharpening or away from the stone. So I have both the upper guide and also the lower guide on this tool and get the same result at both locations. Can you suggest a remedy to this problem?
Also the tool does not have the scale on the face of the housing for measuring the size of the stone for angle setting, is that something I can pick up?
Thank you in advance for your help, I love the tool but for this one flaw.

[RobinW]

If you search through this forum there have been many, including myself, who have experienced non-square results with the SE76 jig (assuming you are using that jig). Look under 'Hand Tool Woodworking'

The following posts if you troll through it should help or give pointers of things to try or be aware of.

http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=1366.0

[Herman Trivilino]

First you have to make sure the grindstone is true.  Do you have the diamond truing tool?  The original version is different from the current version, but either one will get the job done.

You have to apply more force to the side of the chisel that's longer, but if the grindstone is not true you'll have nothing but headaches.

You don't need that scale on the face of the housing.  Just use a tape measure or ruler to measure the diameter of the grindstone.

[Jeff Farris]

Since it is used, I wonder if it might not have the older SVH-60 jig with it, instead of the newer SE-76.

Here's a PDF download for some instructions I wrote several years ago to help people get better results with the SVH-60.

http://www.sharptoolsusa.com/squareedgeweb.pdf

[Ken S]

Good PDF, Jeff.

Have you noticed projection length of the blade being sharpened to factor into the out of square problem?  I tend to keep the length as short as possible, but don't know if it really makes any difference.

Ken

[Jeff Farris]

Keeping it as short as possible is logical, but I never really pay attention to it. I have enough projection to get my fingers comfortably on the back of the tool. I have no idea what my "average protrusion" might be on a chisel or plane iron.

[Rhino]

I would agree with all of you.  It seems logical that the smaller the protrusion, the smaller the amount of the universal arm has to be raised, the less chance any bend in the support or anywhere becoming untrue due to the length.  When I think about it, all rods are bent, just that they are bent within spec.  The less a rod is raised, the less the error.  The more a rod is raised, the more the error is amplified.  Also, everything deform under stress.  A short protrusion will deform less.

[iggie zawicki]

Thanks to all of you who responded. I appreciate that you took the time to offer a helping hand. Although I was skeptical of Jeff Farris' suggestion contained in the instructional he wrote several years ago, I found that by changing the tightness on the guide as illustrated in the PDF the angle disappeared in short order. I am now a happy camper.