220 Grit Waterstone Help Required

[Mike B]

Hi

Anyone have any tips on how best to use a 220 grit Norton waterstone??

I'm finding it very very soft and seem to wear the stone away far quicker than the metal I'm trying to remove - nett result being a hollow stone (which ironically I'm finding very hard to flatten) and curved blade edges etc which then do not hone well on my flat('ish) 1000 and 8000 grit stones (I have no problems apart from the mess with these!).

Cheers
Mike

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

Mike

Here's what to do with the 220 waterstone.

First flatten it carefully. Then get a piece of float glass that is about 6" x 3", in other words a little larger in size. Place this over the top of the waterstone. On the top of the glass glue a piece of 240 grit wet-and-dry sandpaper or a 120 grit Zirconion Oxide sanding belt. Run your blade over this. Marvel now how long the waterstone now lasts!

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[JesseM]

You know I had been trying to find a replacement stone for my Norton 220 so I bought one of those Shapton GlassStones. It lasts longer but still dishes badly especially on wider blades. But Derek's suggestion made me think about just flipping it over to the glass side and using that with sandpaper attached. :wink: At least it won't be a complete waste.

 

[David C]

I have always found that 220 grit stones, from several manufacturers wear very fast.

Therefore I do not use them.

I grind at low angles approx 23degrees, and do all edge shaping and getting of a wire edge on the narrowest possible surface on 800grit stone, say 30 deg or 33 deg, then polish at final angle which is two degrees steeper than coarse stone angle.

I almost always use Eclipse type guide, and the method is almost but not quite as quick as freehand honing.

If no grinder an extra coarse diamond stone might do the grinding work and I have no doubt that the suggested scary sharp idea would also work.

David

 

[Mike B]

Thanks guys. Kind of what I expected really.

Should one use some kind of cutting lubricant e.g. WD40 or water etc when using the wet & dry method??

Only reason I ask is that I tried flattening an old #4 plane sole with it and found that it cut really well for the first 20 seconds or so and then appeared to almost stop altogether. Coarser grades seemed even worse than the finer grades in this regard!

Cheers
Mike

 

[David C]

Mike,

When plane sole flattening, wet & dry does stop cutting quite quickly.
Also the surface skin of old cast iron is very hard.

The most important thing is to start with a coarse enough grade, 100 or even 60 grit according to how much metal needs removing.

This first grade may need changing several times.

Once flat working up through the grades is fairly quick.

Lubrication is more important on finer grades, though can be used on coarser as well. I vacuum the powder from the coarse grades, dry.

David Charlesworth

 

[gidon]

Mike
Try using a stiff wire brush to remove the filings - saves a few changes of paper.
Cheers
Gidon

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

Mike

Kidding aside, 80 then 120 grit Zirconion Oxide sanding belts are the way to begin. This stuff lasts 5x that of anything else.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[ivan]

Wet and dry is conveniently available in a wide range of grades, but is not designed for metalwork. Silicon carbide, although very hard and sharp, is also very brittle, and fractures into smaller particles very easily, so if grinding something harder than paint you must change sheets very frequently.

Emery or aluminium (or zirconium) oxide, will hold up better - bear in mind too, the latter grits are formulated for purpose, so 'sandpaper' is not the most suitable grade for this job either. For coarse grinding a zionium belt (blue colour) is probably the most readily available 'best' abrasive. Microabrasive sheets of diamond designed for lapping would be an expensive (in UK at least) best for finer grades.

I believe alox grains are quite blocky in shape so a fair bit of pressure is needed if you're grinding the whole base of a plane.

 

[bugbear]

Mike
Try using a stiff wire brush to remove the filings - saves a few changes of paper.

rare earth magnets (which, despite their name, are now common) in a container is cleaner and more effective.

I use the head coil magnets from a computer hard disk (free) inside an aerosol can lid (free).

Those magnets SUCK the swarf up most vigourously, and then hold onto them, instead of scattering them around the workshop and/or air (in the case of the fine stuff)

Here's a commercial alternative (sorry Rob)
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx ... 2363,42356

BugBear (who can't be bothered to argue about plane flattening right now)

 

[woodbloke]

I saw this idea at the last Axminster show and made one for myself - works a treat for plane fettling. A piece of 6mm float glass is mounted on a lump of 18mmn stuff with some 6mm ply each side and some 3mm hardboard at each end. The abrasive paper is placed onto the glass and some more 6mm stuff (one piece removed so you can see the glass) on top traps the paper and prevents it from moving and also keeps it dead flat. The abrasive I use here is the blue turners abrasive from Axminster which I think starts at about 100g and goes up to 600g and is sold in metre lengths, ideal for this application. Dead easy to make and has proved invaluable - Rob

 

[Alf]

BugBear (who can't be bothered to argue about plane flattening right now)

You okay, BB? :-s

 

[George_N]

I saw this idea at the last Axminster show and made one for myself - works a treat for plane fettling. A piece of 6mm float glass is mounted on a lump of 18mmn stuff with some 6mm ply each side and some 3mm hardboard at each end. The abrasive paper is placed onto the glass and some more 6mm stuff (one piece removed so you can see the glass) on top traps the paper and prevents it from moving and also keeps it dead flat. The abrasive I use here is the blue turners abrasive from Axminster which I think starts at about 100g and goes up to 600g and is sold in metre lengths, ideal for this application. Dead easy to make and has proved invaluable - Rob

The OPs question was about waterstones, if I recall. Your jig is also ideal for keeping waterstones flat. A few strokes on the abrasive before you soak the stone keeps it nice and flat. I do this every time I use my coarsest stone (600g King stone) and it has stayed flat.

 

[bugbear]

BugBear (who can't be bothered to argue about plane flattening right now)

You okay, BB? :-s

Feeling better now:

http://www.geocities.com/plybench/flatten.html

BugBear (tip toeing)

 

[David C]

That Magnet idea is very cool, will try it.

I like a magnet outside the waterbath of Tormek. Cheap washer inside which gets chucked, with the accumulated swarf.

Surely this rather crude method could be improved on? Would like to encapsulate the washer so it does not rust.

Any suggestions please?

David