A Hollow and Round sharpening epiphany
#10
I bought a half set of hollows and rounds from a member here some years ago with the intent of using them in projects.

Problem is/was I could never get the rounds sharp enough to trust using them on a piece of wood that I just labored over in getting it to the state it was in for finishing touches like decorative edging and such.

The concave blades just give me fits when using slip stones. Certainly all user error as I know many here don't have the issues I do.

So I tried using a dowel wrapped in sand paper and I just wasn't right, just not the right contour and I didn't want to change the shape of the blade.

So as I sat at the bench feeling a little defeated, I'm gazing over 18 wooden planes sprawled out over the bench top, it occurred to me. Why not put the sticky sandpaper I have on the hollow plane sole and sharpen the round plane blade over it's opposite twin. 

I did just that and I must say I really like the results. I now have enough confidence in their sharpness to go screw up the nightstand top that I've been working on for the wifey, maybeI can gouge my finger half off while doing so, we'll see.

Anyway anyone else sharpen their hollows and rounds by sticking sandpaper on the sole of the opposite plane of the same size.
Bruce.
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#11
I haven't heard of that method, but I know some guys that use the iron to shape some mf or pine and then charge the mdf/pine with diamond paste to sharpen the iron.
Currently a smarta$$ but hoping to one day graduate to wisea$$
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#12
(12-27-2018, 08:24 PM)stillgotten Wrote: I bought a half set of hollows and rounds from a member here some years ago with the intent of using them in projects.

Problem is/was I could never get the rounds sharp enough to trust using them on a piece of wood that I just labored over in getting it to the state it was in for finishing touches like decorative edging and such.

The concave blades just give me fits when using slip stones. Certainly all user error as I know many here don't have the issues I do.

So I tried using a dowel wrapped in sand paper and I just wasn't right, just not the right contour and I didn't want to change the shape of the blade.

So as I sat at the bench feeling a little defeated, I'm gazing over 18 wooden planes sprawled out over the bench top, it occurred to me. Why not put the sticky sandpaper I have on the hollow plane sole and sharpen the round plane blade over it's opposite twin. 

I did just that and I must say I really like the results. I now have enough confidence in their sharpness to go screw up the nightstand top that I've been working on for the wifey, maybeI can gouge my finger half off while doing so, we'll see.

Anyway anyone else sharpen their hollows and rounds by sticking sandpaper on the sole of the opposite plane of the same size.
............
A belt grinder and a muslin buff can make short work of it. Fine belt for the outside bevel and a charged buffing wheel for the inside.,altho after sharpening on a fine belt, I take the outside bevel to the buffing wheel also..It's a "curve worth learning". You will be surprised at how sharp you can get them in such a short amount of time.
Often Tested.    Always Faithful.      Brothers Forever

Jack Edgar, Sgt. U.S. Marines, Korea, America's Forgotten War
Get off my lawn !
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#13
Lee Valley sell wooden slips. I use them with diamond mesh.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.as...at=1,43072

Regards from Perth

Derek
Articles on furniture building, shop made tools and tool reviews at www.inthewoodshop.com
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#14
(12-27-2018, 08:24 PM)stillgotten Wrote: The concave blades just give me fits when using slip stones. Certainly all user error as I know many here don't have the issues I do.

So I tried using a dowel wrapped in sand paper and I just wasn't right, just not the right contour and I didn't want to change the shape of the blade.

So as I sat at the bench feeling a little defeated, I'm gazing over 18 wooden planes sprawled out over the bench top, it occurred to me. Why not put the sticky sandpaper I have on the hollow plane sole and sharpen the round plane blade over it's opposite twin. 

I did just that and I must say I really like the results. I now have enough confidence in their sharpness to go screw up the nightstand top that I've been working on for the wifey, maybeI can gouge my finger half off while doing so, we'll see.

Anyway anyone else sharpen their hollows and rounds by sticking sandpaper on the sole of the opposite plane of the same size.

The problem with your method is that we don't sharpen the moulding plane iron parallel to the sole of the plane, we sharpen it at the clearance angle which is 15 or more degrees from the sole. Because of this the shape of the bevel on a hollow plane becomes slightly elliptical rather than the part of a circle which is the shape a hollow plane actually makes. We use a slip stone which is considerably smaller in diameter than the moulding we are making to achieve this elliptical shape. 

You want to be able to use the slip stones in such a way that you can concentrate on whatever part of the bevel needs work, not just blindly sharpen away on some form. In addition we usually sharpen with some side clearance on the prongs of the hollow plane iron, so we angle the slip stone slightly when working on these areas. A hollow plane is a sophisticated tool.  I recommend coarse medium and fine slip stones. A set of India stones like this costs $35, a lot less than a plane. Or coarse Inda, fine India, soft Arkansas as a set.
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#15
With these responses it seems I need to rethink my approach, thank you all for the information.
Bruce.
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#16
If you twist a dowel a bit smaller than the profile very slightly relative to the iron, you may be able to fit it to the profile.
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#17
I have a half set, and found the biggest problem for me was getting the profiles for each iron exactly matched to the sole.   The best I could come up with a test, and it is not all that good, is holding a business card or index card parallel to the length of the plane and at different points along the sole to see if the iron projected evenly -  if you move the card just a little back and forth, you shave off a tiny amount of paper - ideally, you get the same amount of paper to come off throughout the whole profile of the sole.  I know  some suggest to trace the projection onto the back side of the iron, then grind it to match, but that has not worked for me.    When I have it just right, they are a joy to use, if nte iron does not match the profile exactly,  you have to keep adjusting the angle of the plane to avoid an elliptical result on the stock.
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#18
Another option to fine tune the radius and hone up the cutting edge is to use a conical rubber abrasive in a hand held grinding wheel - and if you then want to really polish it off go to a fine slip and a rouge charged dowel.  I think MLCS carries rubber abrasives in a conical shape with an 1/8" arbor.  Grab the magnifying headset and use a light touch.  
I'm assuming you're using layout fluid and a scribe to ensure the profile matches the sole?  If not - do that but be mindful of parallax issues as you scribe.  DAMHIKT.....
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