If you’ve had trouble grinding a straight edge on a chisel or plane iron, try using your disc sander. All you need is a guide that slides in your sander’s...
These once-standard tools still have a place in the modern shop. Here's what you need to know about the use, care and keeping of drawknives and spokeshaves.
An experiment uncovers cutting edges of the past. “How did they sharpen their tools back then?” I’ve asked this question myself and I have been asked the question, and I’ve...
Here’s a simple way to sharpen chisels using a 3″ sanding drum mounted in an oscillating spindle sander or a drill press. Cut a squared-up 2×4 the length of the...
Additional reading: Check out Michael Dunbar’s Sharpening Method Here are some general thoughts and advice on sharpening, as well as answers to some frequently asked questions. Every shop [...]
Michael Dunbar distills three decades of sharpening into a simple, inexpensive and do-able system. This is a subversive article. Woodworking gurus and companies that make expensive sharpening [...]
Diamond stones are the bedrock of my sharpening routine. I use them as my main abrader throughout my sharpening/honing sessions because they preserve their flatness and keep their hard particles...
A 12-step program for regrowing forearm hair. I head through the main doors, down the stairs to the basement, arriving at the third door on the right. Like everyone else,...
Chisels don’t wait to get dull until you’ve finished a job—do they? The trick is to keep them sharp while you’re working. Rather than pull out my stones to renew...
