How to Sharpen a Carving Tool
Woodcarving is a hobby and revenue-producing craft for many artisans all over the world. As such, many carving tools of all shapes and sizes are manufactured to produce various types of cuts and grooves. Over time these tools become worn and dulled and require sharpening maintenance. Sharpening a carving tool is a little different than sharpening an ordinary knife as knives have straight edges and most carving tools are curved or beveled. Sharpening carving tools can be a very simple process with a few basic instructions to follow.
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Things You'll Need
- Leather strop
- Rough sharpening stone or sandpaper
- Fine sharpening stone
- Aluminum oxide buffing compound
Instructions
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Sharpening a Carving Tool
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1
To start removing nicks, push the blade against the coarse-grain stone along its length, holding the knife at an angle of no more than 10 degrees. Repeat this as necessary to remove all nicks and return the tool to its appropriate beveled state.
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2
Repeat step 1 with a fine-grade smoothing stone until a minimal burred area is visible on the business end of the carving tool. A burr is a slight visible rough area formed when sharpening metal.
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3
Take the leather strop (any flat piece of thick leather will work, such as an old belt without embossed designs) and rub the aluminum oxide compound lightly into it with your index finger. Use very little aluminum oxide to start with as it will last a while.
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4
Lay the leather flat on a table. Lay the carving tool flat along the strop and pull the tool along the strop, using a slight pressure away from the cutting edge.
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5
Strop each side of the blade evenly, alternating sides throughout the process. You will begin to see the metal becoming polished. At this pointyou can test the sharpened tool on a piece of wood to ensure that you're satisfied with the sharpness of the tool.
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Tips & Warnings
You can use sandpaper initially, but this process takes much longer.
Do not use a grinding wheel or rotary tool as this can easily damage the small cutting areas of the tool.
