# Veritas variable scraper Burnisher



## Ian Dalziel (3 Dec 2004)

What a fantastic little gadget this has turned out to be. My scrapers have been gathering dust of late and i decided to give them a treat. i have used old saw blade steel for my scrapers and the filing and honing has taken its toll. they are normally filed then honed on the stone then given a rub off the edge of and old round turning tool to get the burr, crude but it always gave reasonable results.
I saw this advertised and thought what the heck i'll give it a go..... it comes with a scraper with the edges already burred but i cleaned these off so as to set it to my liking. it even has instructions for use on the reverse of the box.
The variable burnisher has a carbide rod fixed at an angle inside a brass hub, the hub can then be set from 0 - 15 degrees. i was never sure what angle i was putting into my scrapers but found the angle set to be helpful in that i liked the 10 degree setting. The body of the burnisher is shaped to suit my hand and has a slot running the entire length to allow the scraper to be pulled along the carbide to create a burr. No more careless misses and cut fingers for me.
It works great on old and new scrapers. I also liked the scraper that came with it.
testing my scrapers i pushed and pulled over some twisted grain ash and they cut excellent almost effortless. feather like shavings from whatever angle i used.
I like to feel the scrapers just using my hands but the heat sometimes generated i might consider buying one of their holders.
I must admit that i'm starting to blow the dust off the hand tools more and more.
Would i recommend it........Definitly.......... for seasoned scraper users or new to burnishing process give it a try.........first rate little gadget

regards
Ian


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## Philly (3 Dec 2004)

Ian,
It's a handy little gadget, all right. Surprising how gentle you need to be with it. I used to put a lot of pressure on it and was never happy with the burr. You almost don't want to be able to feel the burr.
(personally, I'm a 5 degree man, myself!  )
Definitely better than a stack of sandpaper!
regards
Philly


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## Anonymous (3 Dec 2004)

Sounds like a dream tool compared to a standard burnisher! Where did you get it from? Brimarc?


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## Midnight (3 Dec 2004)

Got mine from Axminster..

good review Ian.... and a tasty bench too..


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## Alf (3 Dec 2004)

Now I don't want to dent BriMarc's sales, but I've done my bit for them in other ways, so:



On Tue Sep 07 said:


> You might want to invest in a clever burnisher device, or make something like the one shown in Bob Smalser's guide. I did the latter and used a defunct solid carbide router cutter shank, and oh boy, it's the biz.


FWIW.








Ian Daziel":1cq22tmu said:


> I must admit that i'm starting to blow the dust off the hand tools more and more


<snigger>

Cheers, Alf


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## Midnight (3 Dec 2004)

> <snigger>



Behave.....

<tutt tuttin.....


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## Rob Lee (3 Dec 2004)

Alf":asxdrnt7 said:


> Now I don't want to dent BriMarc's sales, but I've done my bit for them in other ways, so:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




... and here I was going to hand carry a Christmas present for you when I hop the pond next week .... for shame.

Rob

(machinist's dowel pins can work well for burnishing too...)


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## Ian Dalziel (3 Dec 2004)

> (machinist's dowel pins can work well for burnishing too...)



as can old turning tools....... 



> I did the latter and used a defunct solid carbide router cutter shank, and oh boy, it's the biz.



tried that but wasnt comfortable, just a bit on the short side, 

veritas is the safest i've found 

Tony i got it from axminster

Alf,

Youve got me all shy now i was going to do a write up on the veritas beading tool but i'll leave it for now.

regards
Ian


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## Alf (3 Dec 2004)

Rob Lee":3mysj6kn said:


> ... and here I was going to hand carry a Christmas present for you when I hop the pond next week .... for shame.


Damn, damn, damn. Timing's never been my forte...










Ian Daziel":3mysj6kn said:


> > I did the latter and used a defunct solid carbide router cutter shank, and oh boy, it's the biz.
> 
> 
> 
> tried that but wasnt comfortable, just a bit on the short side,


Who didn't follow the link then?



The beauty of that design is you get a set angle of your choice and get to make a fancy turned handle for it too, should you desire (I did, needless to say). And just great for Normites with lots of defunct router bits. I had to actually use a brand new, unused bit from a set 'cos I so rarely use any router cutters now.







Ian Daziel":3mysj6kn said:


> Youve got me all shy now i was going to do a write up on the veritas beading tool but i'll leave it for now.


Tsk, didn't mean to do that. Sorry.



Please do review the beader; as long as you don't mind links to scratchstocks as well...*





Cheers, Alf

*Not necessarily from me; BB's very keen on scratchstocks


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## Shady (10 Dec 2004)

Awww, comeon guys, stop: this is one area where I'm really happy with my old screwdriver shank: I love the cheap re-use of an old friend, and I don't want to even think that anything will really make a difference....


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## bugbear (13 Dec 2004)

> my old screwdriver shank



I would strongly suggest someone much harder, and shiny to boot.

My burnisher is an old kitchen sharpening steel with the "teeth" polished off.

Works nicely;; as other have mentioned, don't press too hard, no matter which burnisher you use.

BugBear


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## Anonymous (13 Dec 2004)

Cut a slot in an offcut of oak and drilled a 15 degree hole across it on the drill press to hold a 1/2" shaft of an old router bit yesterday afternoon (10 mins to make). Works great and cost nothing which is good as my christmas list won't stretch to £30 for a burnisher


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## Alf (13 Dec 2004)

bugbear":20ajrzzj said:


> My burnisher is an old kitchen sharpening steel with the "teeth" polished off.


You might need to set aside some spare time if you want to go down that route though...





Cheers, Alf


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## Chris Knight (13 Dec 2004)

Tony":t9or9vtj said:


> Cut a slot in an offcut of oak and drilled a 15 degree hole across it on the drill press to hold a 1/2" shaft of an old router bit yesterday



Tony,

You must have asbestos knuckles if you can scrape with that much angle on the burr"!


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## Anonymous (13 Dec 2004)

waterhead37":9z40767k said:


> Tony":9z40767k said:
> 
> 
> > Cut a slot in an offcut of oak and drilled a 15 degree hole across it on the drill press to hold a 1/2" shaft of an old router bit yesterday
> ...



Why so? This is the angle I had read about as the one to use. Seems OK in use with the scraper held at somewhere around 45 degrees to the job.


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## Chris Knight (15 Dec 2004)

Tony,

I find that with that much angle I have to tip the scraper so far forward that my knuckles touch the surface as I scrape - and get hot/sore! I find about 5 degrees plenty for most scraping jobs and generally the lower the angle the longer the burr seems to last


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## Anonymous (15 Dec 2004)

Thanks Chris. 

I will try 5 degrees. Strangely, with the 15 degree burr, I don't find my knuckles touching the wood or even near it. Either :

A) You have exceptionally large knuckles (Chris Neanderthal Waterhead?)
B) I can't use a scraper correctly

It's B isn't it?


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## Neil (17 Jan 2005)

Snapped a (cheap) router bit the other day :evil: - at least it means I now have a 1/2" shaft to make a Bob Smalser burnisher with. The question is, what angle should I set the bit at? In the article, Bob uses a 15 degree angle, but Chris has said here that a 15 degree burr is way too much. Any recommendations? 5 degrees maybe?

Thanks,

Neil


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## Philly (17 Jan 2005)

5 degrees is good for me Neil-give it s go!
Cheers
Philly


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## Neil (17 Jan 2005)

Thanks, Philly - 5 degrees it is!

Neil


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## frank (17 Jan 2005)

neil how do you make this burnisher ,i have a few cheap cutters i can use .   i just looked at alfs post .


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## roystr (27 Mar 2006)

http://www.cianperez.com/Wood/WoodDocs/ ... rapers.htm

btw,im new here. you guys have a great site from what ive read so far. 3 or 4 hrs now. i need to get some sleep,its 430 in the morning. 

well maybe after i read that site as well.

roy


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## Colin C (27 Mar 2006)

Hi roystr, Welcome to the forum


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## Jasper Homminga (28 Mar 2006)

Tony":2cnkvzkw said:


> I will try 5 degrees. Strangely, with the 15 degree burr, I don't find my knuckles touching the wood or even near it. Either :
> A) You have exceptionally large knuckles (Chris Neanderthal Waterhead?)
> B) I can't use a scraper correctly


C) Eventhough the rod is in the holder at 15 degrees it's not used at 15 degrees. As you hold the holder at an angle to the scraper you reduce the angle (just like skewing with a plane). 

The formula would be: effective angle = invtan ( cos(angle of holder to scraper) * tan(angle of rod to holder) )
So for a 15 degree rod to holder angle (like Bob Smalser):
0 degree angle of holder to scraper --> 15 degree effective angle (duh)
30 degree angle of holder to scraper --> 13 degree effective angle
45 degree angle of holder to scraper --> 11 degree effective angle
60 degree angle of holder to scraper --> 8 degree effective angle
90 degree angle of holder to scraper --> 0 degree effective angle (again duh)



Tony":2cnkvzkw said:


> Seems OK in use with the scraper held at somewhere around 45 degrees to the job


Jasper (geek, I know)


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## Neomorph (28 Mar 2006)

It's surprising how much you learn on this site. Not to sound like a total noob but I have never even heard of scrapers until I watched Norm scrape some french table legs. 

When I last did curved table legs I used spokeshaves! Was that wrong or is it just a matter of taste/style?


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## Colin C (29 Mar 2006)

Neomorph":4wxjsfma said:


> When I last did curved table legs I used spokeshaves! Was that wrong or is it just a matter of taste/style?


Using a spokeshave is fine but some times ( depending on what wood you use ) you can get lines from the spokeshave and one of the quickest ways to get them out is a scraper


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## Philly (29 Mar 2006)

John
Scrapers are useful as they can be used regardless of the grain direction-shaves reallly prefer going with the grain.
They also replace a whole lot of sandpaper in my workshop.
Hope this helps
Philly


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## Taffy Turner (29 Mar 2006)

I had a bit of a revelation regarding scraper use last weekend.

I have made a set of stools for the kitchen from Beech, and was having trouble getting the tops finished to a standard that I was happy with.

As I was doing an order for Axminster, and was just under the £45 required for free postage, I order their set of 3 scrapers more or less on a whim.

When they arrived I used the straight edged one to clean up the tops of the stools - they came up an absolute treat - almost glass-like!

The finish is far better than I could have got without hours of sanding, and much more satisfying than the dreaded dust storm method!!

Only slight problem - scraping doesn't half make your thumbs hurt!!! :? 

Regards

Gary


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## Colin C (29 Mar 2006)

Taffy Turner":fcp6cuma said:


> Only slight problem - scraping doesn't half make your thumbs hurt!!! :?
> 
> Regards
> 
> Gary


If you do it for long enough you will get use to it ( but I will not tell you how long that is :twisted: ), depends how long you use it


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## anto_pappa (3 Aug 2008)

http://www.il-truciolo.it/showthread.php?t=961


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