So today I made what could possibly be the final video in my ersatz video series on using basic equipment to sharpen woodworking tools. In the first two videos a plane iron and a skew chisel are sharpened using an inexpensive home center Arkansas stone and a homemade leather strop. For the record, I normally do not use the stone used in those two videos for sharpening woodworking tools, but I wanted to show that tools can be made "woodworking sharp" even with a $15 stone that can be purchased in most hardware stores.
In today's video I sharpen another skew chisel, but I do so with the 800g and 8000g water stones that I generally use for sharpening most of the woodworking tools that I own. While these stones do cost more money than the home center oil stone that I featured in the first two videos, they are hardly what I would call expensive. In the video I mentioned that the price of both stones combined was less than one hundred dollars, and a search on Amazon confirmed that currently the 800g stone is selling for $25.90 USD and the 8000g is selling for $72.99 USD, which is probably right around the costs I paid for them when they were purchased approximately 6 years ago...I'm guessing as in this case I honestly cannot remember. Regardless, I still consider them inexpensive and excellent stones for the cost. Both are King brand stones if you want to check them out.
Some woodworkers may not like water stones, which is fine. I don't really have a strong opinion one way or the other. I will only say that if you do use water stones, or if you are considering it, then please do not fall into the trap of purchasing an extremely expensive stone, or one that goes to ridiculously high grits. Unless you are planning on performing home surgery, or you are preparing Fugu fish, an 8000g stone and a leather strop, in my opinion, will get your woodworking tools to a level of sharpness that will work for just about any woodworking task you are planning on doing. I've seen woodworking "gurus" advocate for stones that cost several hundred dollars each, which is absurd and utterly unnecessary.
In the video I also mention sharpening guides, again. I have nothing at all against sharpening guides, and I used one when I first began woodworking. They are good for repeatability, and they are good for people that have issues with their hands. They aren't so good for the fact that the cheap guides aren't really worth owning, and the guides that are worth owning are quite expensive. However, woodworking is an expensive hobby, as we all know. I'm only saying that for most people using a guide isn't necessary and with a little practice freehand sharpening is easy, fast, and free.
As in my last two videos, this video is done in one take with no editing. While the video is approximately 10 minutes long, I timed the actual sharpening process and it took right around three minutes, and that was with me talking and stuttering the entire time. I have no doubt that if I weren't filming and talking I could have sharpened the chisel in less than two minutes.
As far as comparing which method was better....well it is fairly obvious that the water stones were able to get my chisel sharper much easier than with the oil stone. The comparison wasn't necessarily fair because the oil stone is smaller than it should be for woodworking tools, and though I don't know the grit level, it is probably not as refined, either. I fully expected the water stones to put a razor sharp edge on the chisel. I wasn't as sure with the oil stone, but I had a hunch that it could, and I feel safe in saying that I was proven correct. I have little doubt that a properly sized and slightly more refined Arkansas stone is comparable to the water stones that I use.
Below I will paste the link to the video, if you care to watch it.
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