4 hours ago, AndrewB said:

The grinder was what I could find for not having to order out for it so I will make it work.

While grinding with the grinder you purchased, I would recommend that you keep a cup of water nearby and dip the tip of your gouge every few seconds to keep it from turning purple.  If it turns purple, you will need to take some serious action.  Find a slow grinder and grind down to take out the purple or toss the gouge.  

 

Larry, that machine you posted reminds me of what Shopsmith has used for many years.  Glue a sheet of sandpaper to the sanding disk and they sell a guide for the gouges.  

 

@Lew, I really like your gauge.  Clever idea.  Thanks.

HSS does not need quenching. Slow speed 8 inch grinder is the preferred and if not CBN wheels then white wheels are best. The Rikon slow speed comes with white wheels I think.

 

The tools you bought are the cheapest steel and will not hold an edge. Buying the really cheap tools will turn you against using gouges. Buy one ofs and not a set. Bowl gouge 1/2 inch , spindle gouge 3/8 and with the other tools you have that will get you started on gouges. The BB steve suggested is great for this start.

 

Now a reference was made to length. The more expensive tools have a longer area which can be ground and with the better steel this makes them a bargain. Wait for more advise before buying and you will be able to get better tools at lower prices, but if you do not follow along and buy all that cheap stuff , good luck.

6 hours ago, AndrewB said:

The grinder was what I could find for not having to order out for it so I will make it work.

 

That grinder comes with a 36 grit wheel and a 60 grit wheel.  The 36 grit is useless for sharpening and the 60 is good for reshaping tools but will not leave a nice sharp edge for cutting.  120 grit is lowest you should use for getting a nice edge.  Since the CBN wheels have come out a lot of people use 600 grit for their final sharpening.  I'm afraid you are going to end up disappointed and toss it all aside.

Would 120 grit be good for sharpening? Home Depot has this low speed grinder with 60 grit and 120 grit wheels.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/WEN-120-Volt-8-in-Slow-Speed-Bench-Grinder-4286/205413322?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&mtc=Shopping-B-F_D25T-G-D25T-25_9_PORTABLE_POWER-Multi-NA-Feed-PLA-NA-NA-PortablePower_PLA&cm_mmc=Shopping-B-F_D25T-G-D25T-25_9_PORTABLE_POWER-Multi-NA-Feed-PLA-NA-NA-PortablePower_PLA-71700000034127218-58700003933021540-92700051577220114&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxfmNtO767QIVqopaBR14jQ6REAQYByABEgIYZvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

As I said the cheap stuff was mainly for learning how to sharpen correctly.  I didn't want to destroy a very nice set of tools.  That is the only reason I went cheap.  Once I find the right tools I wont buy the cheap ones they will be the better tools.  Only reason was for sharpening.  Okay I bought the different grinder I will return the grinder I purchased the other day if HD is open today.

Edited January 1, 20215 yr by AndrewB

1 hour ago, RustyFN said:

Would 120 grit be good for sharpening?

 

That's what everyone used until the CBN wheels came out.  I have 120 grit wheel and haven't invested in the CBN yet.  I plan to this year.  If you are looking to upgrade, check here.  About the best prices I've seen and here a lot of good about the company and owner.

 

https://woodturnerswonders.com/collections/rikon-grinders

As far as chisels go HSS worked for many years for me. I used old Shopsmith chisels that I turned longer handles for. About two years ago I made the decision to try a better steel and after some asking around went with Mike Thompson's cryo steel chisels. They are not the cheapest but they are a world apart from the HSS. They hold an edge more than twice as long. They reduced my sharpening intervals dramatically. As far as sharpening goes I use a jig attached to a belt sander which on low speed using a ceramic belt that is a very worn down 320 gives me an excellent edge. The Shopsmith belt sander allows me to run the belt very slow. The jig has notches for all my chisels so there is little or no changeover which speeds up the sharpening time while turning. 

Paul

12 hours ago, FlGatorwood said:

Larry, that machine you posted reminds me of what Shopsmith has used for many years.  Glue a sheet of sandpaper to the sanding disk and they sell a guide for the gouges. 

 

Steve,

That clip is from the 1937 Delta catalog. Mines from the early 1940's.

Kind of cool all the attachments manufacturers made for machines back then.

 

Andrew here is my philosophy on sharpening. First and foremost you need to develop a sharpening system that gives you the coldest grind you can afford. The water bath method is obviously the coldest grind you can get. After that it’s a belt sander. Keeping the chisel cool during the sharpening process is critical to attaining an edge that will last longer, no matter what steel you are using. The second priority is consistency in the grind. There are a lot of different ideas on what grind is best but you have to determine which one works for you. Fingernail grind, 40/40 grind etc. But after you make that choice the important concept is consistency. Your muscle memory will allow you the best chisel control if the grind is the same every time. That’s where the sharpening jig comes into play. You don’t have to spend a bunch of money on them. They are very easy to make in the shop no matter what system you choose to sharpen. This is all my own opinion but I hope it helps 

Paul

Yea on the sharpening jig I already purchased one.  So I could learn I picked up the one from PSI on amazon as I stated.  Either way  I'm not always the best at making items.  although I probably could make my own gouge I do have a forge but I'm not able to use it LOL.  How ever that being said I do need to learn to sharpen but Id like to get it down.  That was my very reason for buying a cheapo throw away set so I could practice the grind with out wasting an expensive tool.  I didn't want to spend a ton of money on something that I could potentially ruin on the first sharpen.  With all the taken advice  on previous comments... Once I get the sharpening techniques down I will invest in a better set of chisels / gouges.

Edited January 1, 20215 yr by AndrewB

Andrew,

Since you got the PSI setup, you could use the rest/guide with an adapter that allows you to use a grinding wheel on the lathe and have a variable speed grinder. 

Have to disagree with Paul with modern steels (HSS or better) heat in grinding is not much of a problem in a tool the sizes we use for turning. My ceramic white wheels were 80 for skews and scrapers and 120 for everything else and when I got CBN went with the same setup.

 

By the way a 60 grit wheel will not give a good edge for turning but may be ok for cutting grass.

I have already ordered the grinder it is on the way as far as putting it on a lathe I don't think Id do that with the stones how ever buffing pads that would be an entirely different story and one I may try out.

If I want to shape my grind, I use the 60, but for normal sharpening, I use the white 120.  Then I touch it up with a 400 grit diamond block from HF.  It's not the best and I plan on getting a real diamond stone from Highland Woodworking soon.  Sometimes, rather than grind, I just run it over the 300, then up to 400 grit diamond and I get a pretty good edge.  I have never had any training on sharpening, but that is what I learned from Captain Eddy.  

So the question arises.... should we use our CBN wheels to sharpen the mower blade ? 😎

@Masonsailor  I use a 2 by 72 inch belt sander to sharpen the blade for my little electric motor and it is razor sharp.  LOL.  Don't think Id do it with a bench grinder though.

To sharpen my mower blade, I just use a Dremel with a stone tip.  I guess it works fine.  The mower doesn't complain and I never thought of asking the grass.

Have not sharpened a mower blade in many years but best and quickest to me was the high speed grinder. Trick is you do have to balance the blade because the grinder takes lots of metal off.

I've never had a problem using the big belt sander to sharpen it LOL.  I usually use a 120 grit belt for that so its not as rough does the job nicely.

I use a 4” hand grinder with a flapper wheel to sharpen the mower blades.