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Sharpening a spear-point marking knife isn’t difficult, but it sure seems to flummox some woodworkers. The bevels on the knife are small, and if you aren’t used to freehand [...]

Shannon Rogers interviewed me a few weeks ago and in the interview I mentioned my disdain for certain chisel sizes. Specifically, I said that students who come to woodworking classes armed with [...]

I still remember the first time I achieved a truly sharp edge on my smoothing plane iron. Suddenly, I was able to make whisper thin shavings and achieve a shimmering surface…without a [...]

Early this morning, I dove into my tool chest to pull the stuff I’ll need next week at The Woodwright’s School for a 17th-century joint stool class with Peter Follansbee. And I [...]

The best sharpening advice I ever heard was from Tony Konovalov: Grind, hone and get back to work. Or, to put it another way: Which is more fun? Making your tools sharp or making your tools dull? [...]

I’ve always preferred diamond plates for flattening my waterstones and oilstones. Though a coarse or extra-coarse diamond stone does a fine job, the sharpening stones are pretty hard on the [...]

Many woodworkers fear the act of grinding. And “fear” might be too kind a word. I’ve had several woodworkers send me tools to grind for them (please don’t do this). Other woodworkers spend [...]

Do it by hand, just like you turn.   by Alan Lacer           How do you make a velvety smooth bowl with evenly thick walls and crisp details? Well, it’s not done by [...]

by Tim Johnson         Waterstones have always been my preferred method to produce a razor-sharp edge. I store them in a plastic tub filled with water, so they’re always [...]

12 Tips for Better Sharpening Get better results in less time with these great tips. By Ed Krause Hand tools are a joy to use, but only when they’re sharp. Just as learning to walk is the [...]

I use my grinder almost exclusively for beveling my chisels, so I like to keep the tool rest set to produce the 25-degree bevel I prefer. Having to reset the angle after using my diamond wheel [...]