Ask the Expert
IF YOU HAVE A PRODUCT RELATED QUESTION, PLEASE USE OUR CONTACT US FORM FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE. THIS SECTION IS RESERVED FOR GENERAL WOODWORKING RELATED QUESTIONS.
Michael Van Pelt is the founder of American Sycamore Woodworker’s Retreat. He has a reputation as the tool guru. Mike has been in woodworking for over thirty years. His knowledge of tools comes from his many years of intertwining experience in the woodworking industry. Mike’s experiences include being active as an Industrial Arts Teacher, professional instructor of power machinery and tool techniques, tool sales, management and owner of woodworking tool retail store, Delta Machinery representative and technical advisory.
If you have a question for Michael, choose the Submit Question button to the right by November 30th. We will send you a reply with Mike's response in mid-December and then post it to this page for other members to view. You never know...someone else may have the same question
IF YOU HAVE A PRODUCT RELATED QUESTION, PLEASE USE OUR CONTACT US FORM FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE. THIS SECTION IS RESERVED FOR GENERAL WOODWORKING RELATED QUESTIONS.
Listed below are questions and answers that have already been submitted.
Questions
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9/24/2009
Sharpening Forstner Bits
Answer provided by Mike Van Pelt
| Q. |
I would like to know if Forstner bits can be sharpened? How to do it? What to do it with? Also what speed on a 12 speed drill press? and hand held drill motors? I have a set of 16 that is getting very dull, some will not drill without really pushing against them. |
| A. |
I send them out to a professional sharpening shop. It is very time consuming to try and sharpen them myself and it is very difficult to sharpen Forstner bits without professional sharpening equipment. Forstner bits are not designed to be used in a hand held drill, drill press only. The larger the bit, the slower the drill press speed. Please take a look at the following link from Wood Magazine: http://www.ibiblio.org/twa/info/drillSpeedChart.pdf |
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4/16/2009
Chisel Sharpening
Answer provided by Scott Phillips
| Q. |
You answered a question about sharpening chisels by stating that you should sharpen the whole chisel to the original bevel angle, no other bevels allowed, or words to that effect. I've always been told to sharpen a secondary or micro bevel so that you would only be re-sharpening that small bit when you had to re-sharpen the chisel. ie: 25 degree main bevel, 27 to 30 degree secondary. Are you saying 'no' to this method? Please explain as I've been doing this for years. |
| A. |
If you use DMT monocrystaline diamond stones (the Red fine and Blue coarse) it is very easy to sharpen the entire bevel and skip the micro bevel. I have found this technique works better than micro bevels. It just does. |
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4/14/2009
Sharpening Services
Answer provided by Mike Van Pelt
| Q. |
I have a 1969 Sears 10" radial saw, a Powermatic 66 table saw and have noted the lack of local sharpening services for circular carbide blades in my area. I'm not too comfortable in having a home based sharpening business handle this due to the questionable sharpening equipment. I've checked on the web and have found a few firms that specialize in sharpening and some have high-tech sharpening equipment. Would appreciate some input and recommendations from you on the subject. |
| A. |
You are
right on the mark about not wanting some Jack Legged Self appointed sharpening
expert to sharpening your good saw blades and knives. You have a sizeable
investment in your tooling and it needs to be done right. I did a Google search
for saw sharpening in the Rockville Maryland area and several came up. I would
call and ask for references. Ask them what large cabinet and woodworking
businesses do they sharpen for and call them and find out if they are
satisfied. Call your local Wood Craft and or Rockler and ask who does their
sharpening? |
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3/26/2009
Sharpening Tools
Answer provided by Mike Van Pelt
| Q. |
My chisels, turning tools, wood planes, continue to come up less than razor sharp even though I do my best. Are there some secrets to getting really sharp edges consistently? Also, how often do you need to sharpen hand tools generally? |
| A. |
Sharpening is tone of the most important skills a
woodworker must learn. The secret is………learning to control the tool at the
correct angle and not burning the steel. One can learn to do this by hand or
one can go to the never ending power sharpeners. I have ever gidget and gadget
known to man kind for sharpening. They are buried somewhere in a drawer in my
shop now that I stepped up to the plate and bought a Tormex grinder. It is
expensive, but in my humble opinion, the best. I also like using a slow speed
grinder and a Wolverine jig for my turning tools. Turning tools do not need the
polished edge that a chisel and or a plane iron require. |
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2/25/2008
Learning to Sharpen
Answer provided by Mike Van Pelt
| Q. |
How do you learn to sharpen tools? I enjoy wood
working but I cannot get sharpening down no matter how hard I try. What do you
suggest? |
| A. |
I truly believe that learning to sharpen ones
tools is the step in the right direction of becoming a great woodworker. Take a class, call a friend, buy a book, rent
a video and then lots of practice. |
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2/19/2008
Sharpening with a Belt Sander
Answer provided by Mike Van Pelt
| Q. |
How does one put a razor sharp edge on kitchen
knives and tools using a belt sander? |
| A. |
In my opinion you don’t. It is so easy to burn your edge with a belt
sander. Most run too fast. I believe you would be better of with a set
of sharpening stones. |
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2/18/2008
Sharpening Lathe Tools
Answer provided by Scott Phillips
| Q. |
What
is the best way to keep your turning tools sharp or sharpening after using? Do
you have a book, DVD, or CD on the subject? |
| A. |
I have covered
this many times on my T.V. show. We will be posting some of these episodes on
wbgu.org/americanwoodshop and on Delta Porter Cable’s site in the future.
I like to use a strip sander with 80 grit
Aluminum Oxide for all lathe chisels and I leave the burr. The lathe skew is
first bevel sharpened on the strip sander then honed with the 600 Fine DMT
diamond stone. The skew is the only lathe chisel that must be honed prior to
use. |
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2/18/2008
Sharpening Angle
Answer provided by Scott Phillips
| Q. |
I have a stationary
Delta 15" planer with standard HSS knives. I would like avoid the hassle
of sending the knives out for sharpening and do it myself. Information about
the best sharpening angle is difficult to find.
The angle of my
portable 12 1/2" planer's factory throw away knives is about 37.5 degrees.
At what angle
would you sharpen the knives of the 15" planer? It is used, most of the
time, for planing White Oak and Walnut, the woods I use most of the time for my
projects.
Additionally, if you know of any shop-made jig
plans for sharpening jointer and planer knives please send me the link or info. |
| A. |
Match
the angle on the knife. Use a large DMT 600 grit red wet Diamond stone to hand
sharpen it. It works just fine. Sometimes simple is better. This is as simple
as it gets. DMT has a jig that is used to hold the knife for Sharpening. Check
out their web site. |
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2/15/2008
Sharpening Stones
Answer provided by Scott Phillips
| Q. |
What
diamond stones do you recommend, size, and grit?
|
| A. |
I
like the Duo Sharp 300 / 600 combination DMT for general work and the 1200 for
honing. I recommend lubricating with water for best results. |
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2/15/2008
Sharpening
Answer provided by Scott Phillips
| Q. |
How
exactly do you sharpen wood chisels in a delta sharpening center? I can’t get
the 25 degrees angle correctly, or is there a special accessory to get the
right angles? |
| A. |
Tilt the tool rest until the bevel lays flat on the surface of the
wheel. Lock the tool rest in place. The bottom of the chisel will be facing
you. Sharpen the entire bevel so it matches the bevel already on the tool. No
multiple facets allowed! The bevel must be flat and shiny from the heel to the
cutting edge. Hone off the wire burr on the back of the blade with a fine
diamond stone and you are in business. It is just that simple.
|
