Microfinishing / Lapping Film

[transatlantic]

I was thinking of picking up one of these kits from Workshop Heaven

https://www.workshopheaven.com/workshop ... basic.html

Has anybody had any experience with this system? I like the idea of it being relatively cheap compared to waterstones (initial outlay), and not having to bother with keeping them flat.

Each sheet is only £2.70 and can be cut into 4 pieces, but how long do they last? and how do you know when to replace them?

 

[custard]

I sharpen with diamond stones followed by two grades of lapping film (forget what grit they are, one's pink and one's pale green). I probably sharpen two or three tools a day on average and I'll change the lapping film every couple of months, say five time a year. Here's my sharpening station.

A professional workshop I know with four full time craftsmen changes their lapping film about once a month, so I'm probably swapping it more often than I need to. You'll know when to change, the film gets blackened and it starts to take an unacceptably long time to do its job.

If you want this system to work properly you have to be meticulous about removing the glue residue, plus I use a nylon roller to fix the fresh sheet down without air bubbles. A lot of people seem to have problems with tearing the sheets, I suspect they're not taking enough care in getting a clean application surface because I don't find that a problem.

 

[transatlantic]

looks like pale green is 1 micron and pink is 3 micron. What diamond plate grits do you use before them?

 

[bugbear]

Wow - a Starrett surface plate for sharpening.

Wow (again, for emphasis).

I hope you got that second-hand-for-cheap!

BugBear

 

[Farmer Giles]

Here's my sharpening station complete with the film from workshop heaven. I use it for metal and wouldworkig tools, I have plane irons, richard kell honing guide, tormek jigs and other jigs in the drawers. I haven't got into a routine system yet for my woodworking tools yet as I've been mainly working on metalwork for the last couple of years but I have a stack of oak and douglas fir that should be nicely dry now to make a dining table and roubo bench with respectively. So I will be working out the best system for me soon, I may look into a diamond plate too.

 

[custard]

The granite slab was free, there's a small chip on one edge so a local engineering firm was replacing it. Lapping films are more comfortable to use if they're raised a bit to give clearance for chisel handles, so either place them on the edge of a bench or find a way of raising them, a simple platform or a granite slab are two possibilities.

Choice of diamond stones depends. For Bailey plane irons, skewed tools, and small chisels I normally sharpen free hand, often with a single bevel. For thick A2 steel plane irons it's always double bevel and for those or awkward to hold little tools like block plane irons I'll usually use a honing guide. For free hand single bevel sharpening I tend to prefer working up through a broader range of grits, for double bevel sharpening I'll work the primary bevel on something like a 600 grit until there's a burr, then just kiss the iron on something like a 1200 stone to form a secondary bevel and then on to the lapping film for a polish and to clean up the burr on the back.

I try and stay out of sharpening threads as they can get a bit daft. However, personally I suspect there's as much psychology in the subject as there is science. For example practical experience shows me that most woods work perfectly well straight from a 1200 grit stone, but like many woodworkers I like the emotional re-assurance of a polished edge! Sometimes if I'm faced with a particularly tricky joint to cut I'll pause and re-sharpen my tools, often going to a much higher grit that I normally would. Is that necessary? Probably not, I guess it's more like throwing salt over your shoulder, but given that success in woodworking is as much about confidence as anything else it's not entirely wasted time.

 

[bugbear]

The granite slab was free, there's a small chip on one edge so a local engineering firm was replacing it.

BugBear

 

[Fitzroy]

I use an off-cut of a granite work surface I had installed in a kitchen as the base for my sharpening station. If you have a local stonemason i'm sure you could get one pretty cheap/perhaps free. No idea how flat it is but seems ok for my needs.

F.

 

[novocaine]

I have a piece of float glass for mine, because I'm cheap. granted it's 8mm thick and tempered, but that's not the point. I have checked it against a surface plate for flat, it's close enough.

the lapping films aren't anything special and you can pick them up in most engineering places used for honing and such, but for the price from workshop heaven they are worth giving a go, I've not got any left (mine are 3m from somewhere else) but as with custards description of sharpening threads above I find most of what I do doesn't need more than 1200 grit, which I've got in wet and dry and in a oil stone, do all the work with the cheap wet and dry then finish with the stone before stropping. works for me anyways. sure I'm doing it wrong and haven't used the correct grade a yak milk mixed with butter from the upper Himalayas as a lubricant after all.

 

[lurker]

I bought these to see what the fuss was about.
Don't use anything else now.
I thought I had been conned with the finest .... Pink?
But it's actually the most useful

 

[Farmer Giles]

I bought the set but will probably end up doing something like Custard does and use a couple of grades. I use a glass plate, part of the kit. I need to make a wooden cover for it so I can use the top of the sharpening station to hold mountains of random junk like all the other horizontal surface in my workshop.

 

[bugbear]

I bought the set but will probably end up doing something like Custard does and use a couple of grades. I use a glass plate, part of the kit. I need to make a wooden cover for it so I can use the top of the sharpening station to hold mountains of random junk like all the other horizontal surface in my workshop.

You also need to keep random dust (which contains grit) off your nice, paid for, consistently fine grit (the lapping film).

BugBear

 

[Farmer Giles]

You also need to keep random dust (which contains grit) off your nice, paid for, consistently fine grit (the lapping film). BugBear

I knew there was another reason for the lid Maybe I'll make it pyramid shape so I can't stack rubbish on it

 

[Racers]

You also need to keep random dust (which contains grit) off your nice, paid for, consistently fine grit (the lapping film). BugBear

I knew there was another reason for the lid Maybe I'll make it pyramid shape so I can't stack rubbish on it

Two birds one stone...

https://pyramidrazorsharpener.wordpress.com/


Pete

 

[novocaine]

hay look, I can see the ******** light flashing from here.

now off to build myself a tin pyramid to house my plane irons in.

 

[ED65]

I like the idea of it being relatively cheap compared to waterstones (initial outlay), and not having to bother with keeping them flat.

If you want a selection of superfine abrasives as an alternative to waterstones you could look at diamond pastes on steel. You can apply the diamond to wood or MDF but obviously on steel your sharpening media will last a much longer time.

How long? You likely won't ever wear one out. So irrespective of your initial outlay that's it, you're set for life.

Personally I've found the system I trialled recently (linked to in the other thread) works well, and I expect that at my level of use the diamond plate will last at least five years and possibly lots longer, which makes it crazy-good value.

I've yet to wear out a strop so can't fault that for bang for the buck either (v. expensive it was at €0.00)

Oh before I forget, diamond pastes can also be acquired cheaply from AliExpress. I think my set of a dozen syringes cost ~£12 and there are smaller sets that I think are around the £5 mark.

 

[Ttrees]

Thought I'd post a piccy since the subjects being mentioned .
I salvaged some granite last week from a rubble pile and thought I'd do an update .
I thought it was going to be an awful job to get the concrete off the bottoms, but it was easy.
The concrete was kinda like a mix between Styrofoam and cement,
and the glue used for the job was more difficult to get off.

The biggest piece was glued together with two square bits ...
There were some other bits for the edging too and I chipped one piece underneath, trying to shatter the really shattery glue off.
I should have kept going round and around this chunk.
I found the main chunk again trimmed it down a bit ...might try putting it in the fire to remove glue and remaining square chunk.
These are the only tools I used .
Obviously I chiselled most of the (cement?) away and just scraped off the remaining stuff with the axe easily ...
Lifting the angle for removal of the glue. wear glasses for glue especially !
Sorry if a wee bit off topic

 

[Ttrees]

I just hope there flat after all that

 

[Woody2Shoes]

I love Workshop Heaven for lots things (esp. Quangsheng stuff), but for lapping film I buy the rolls of self-adhesive stuff from Axminster (I think it works out quite a bit cheaper):

http://www.axminster.co.uk/hermes-self- ... m-ax834464

As a substrate I use an unwanted (tempered/safety - you can tell because there should be a visible mark) glass shelf from an old bathroom cabinet with a bit of rubber matting underneath. I also use 8" X 3" diamond stones (I've got EzeLap and - much cheaper but still very good - Ultex, they sometimes have special offers at unbelievable prices) https://www.its.co.uk/Hand-Tools/Sharpening-Tools.htm

Cheers, W2S

 

[Ttrees]

That's another pair of glasses gone :lol:
Just barely wearable .... like the last ones (hammer)