Quiz: Woodworker Skills

Sharpening a chisel

A chisel is much more difficult to use if it is blunt so it needs to be kept very sharp at all times. Honing a chisel before starting to work is a good habit to get into as it will save a lot of time in the long run.

A chisel blade has two different angles that come together to form the actual cutting edge. The ground angle forms the bevel and is twenty five degrees, and the honed angle is thirty degrees.

Some chisels are ready honed by the manufacturer and they are ready for use when you buy them, but others are sold unsharpened and the user has to rectify this before starting to use them in the workshop. It is wise to make sure that you know what kind of chisels you are buying in advance so that a fine grade oil stone and a honing guide can be made available before starting to work.

Very cheap chisels are difficult to sharpen properly and do not hold their edge for very long. They will soon become blunt. The best chisels are often found among old hand tools for sale at car boot sales, garage sales and yard sales.

To start honing a chisel blade, put a little oil on a fine grade stone. Place the chisel into the honing guide and make sure that it is correctly fitted. Then gently rub the blade backwards and forwards at a thirty degree angle until a small burr appears on the metal edge.

Next, remove the blade from the honing guide and reverse it so that the other side is against the stone. Rub slowly from side to side until the burr goes back the other way and then turn the chisel over again and repeat the process. This may need to be done several times before the burr has completely gone.

Carrying out this honing process on a regular basis will keep chisels sharp and ready to use and having the tool ready sharpened will cut down on the time needed to prepare for a job.