Mini Review:Charlesworth Precision Chisel Prep

[Ian Dalziel]

This arrived by special delivery yesterday…Thanks Theresa. I watched it last night and thought seeing as its just out …my thoughts.
It’s the 4th DVD David has done in conjunction with Lie-Nielsen and has a similar layout and theme to his others. If you use in the pc there is a PDF file of how to make a waterstone board with built in jig settings
I do prefer to watch someone doing something rather than reading it. Besides I can never trust myself to have read and understood it.
I prefer David’s approach of sharpening using waterstones, they are a bit messy and I don’t like mess but I learn to deal with it. I also prefer to use jigs. I was taught how to sharpen freehand and I am very good at it but with the little eclipse jig it just makes it simple and consistent….consistency is now what I’m after. I don’t think 5 secs to set it up is long anymore.
In the main he covers
Initial preparation of the chisel back
Triple bevel for fast sharpening
Perfecting squareness
Notes on waterstones
One thing I picked up on right at the start was the sound of a sharp chisel. I frequent a cabinetmakers/furniture restorer shop and he always says trust your senses. Well David has brought out the main 3 for me here…Sight…Sound and most important to a skilled worker TOUCH. Throughout the DVD he is teaching you how to use your touch. Watch his fingers closely they show just exactly how he uses his touch to feel how much metal he is removing….This is something he doesn’t explain but is visible when you know what to look for….if that makes sense
David goes directly to the point of flattening backs…he shows an old chisel that’s in pretty poor shape but you wouldn’t know until he shows how bad it is.
Camera action is also improved over the others ….they are actually able to show the chisels at different stages of prep under different lighting conditions…something I hadn’t picked up on his previous dvd’s.
As you can expect he works on a bevel edge chisel…..presumably as these are the most popular…he does talk briefly though on other types of chisels and steels. He concentrates mainly on a LN bevel edge A2 steel chisel.
He explains why its important not to do the ruler trick with chisels….
In the main he uses 3 waterstones….and how he works them and good camera positioning shows the different scratch patterns you should expect during the process.

Triple bevel edge for rapid sharpening also surprised me as I have only ever done 2 bevels. I didn’t think to do 3 and after seeing it done.
In-between movement 1 and 2 he shows a slight hollowing, this increases the probability of polishing off the wire edge, on the superfine stone….

Something I also liked was his approach to getting the tip of the chisel square. I have to confess to using a Tormek and the Veritas MK11 and both these setups are difficult to master and get a square end. In particular bevel edge chisels due their small width being held in the jigs.
Again by studying his fingers he teaches you how its possible to change an out of square chisel back to square. I love to watch and study exactly how a craftsman fingers work and the camera close-ups show this in abundance.

He also touches on the importance of keeping waterstones flat…a bit of a repeat from his other dvd’s but is very relevant to the whole dvd if you only ever buy one of his series.
I also prefer David’s slightly slower teaching approach…although I sometimes feel running the dvd at 1 ½ times the speed but he gets the important points across and it allows me to absorb the points he is putting over more thoroughly although sometimes his voice can be tiring.
I also think it will take me a few views of the whole dvd to actually absorb all the info it really puts over.

There are things I have skipped on as you will do them naturally while you sharpen anyway.

The most important thing for me is…. his methods work…..a novice will also pick it up very quickly.

Did I learn from it….yes…as I did from his others.

I am very good at watching, listening and understanding Davids approach here makes it that little bit easier to do this.

Is it worth the money…..for me yes…The more DVD’s he does the better he gets.
I think David teaches very well and I assume TLN agrees hence the dvd. His staying power over the last 30 years has proved he knows what he’s talking about, I see no reason not to follow his lead. Other professionals might have different ways and views but for someone wanting to learn how to get a chisel working well quickly you won’t go wrong with this.
With the amount of chisel questions recently here then it’s a worthwhile investment

Cheers

Ian

 

[Philly]

Thanks for the review, Ian. Look forward to seeing the DVD.
Cheers
Philly

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the review Ian, very thorough and interesting. I think I'll take the plunge as there is always something new to learn

 

[Paul Chapman]

Thanks for that review, Ian - very helpful :wink: The DVD sounds good :wink:

Paul

 

[Pete W]

Good review - thanks, Ian.

In the bit about triple bevel edges, you said this:
"In-between movement 1 and 2 he shows a slight hollowing, this increases the probability of polishing off the wire edge, on the superfine stone…. "

Can't quite picture that; could you explain a bit further?

 

[Ian Dalziel]

Pete,
I've picked a bad day to post...Fridays are really hectic for me and i'll need more time to elaborate.....
David C might come along later

I

 

[Ian Dalziel]

Pete,
the way he runs the chisel in movement 1 and the way he wears the stone from either side he actually created a convex stone. when he started the second movement the back of the chisel was then worn very slightly concave. This then allows removal of the wire edge that bit easier.

hope i explained that right

I

 

[Pete W]

hope i explained that right

Explanation seems to make sense

I guess it would work only on pretty soft waterstones, yes?

 

[David C]

Good explaination.

I like to put it like this.

If the back of the chisel is made minutely concave in length, the probability of polishing off the wire edge, on the flat polishing stone, is massively increased, leading to the best possible edge.

Alternatively;
If we prep backs "Flat" what is the probability that the polishing stone and tool back will actually match? I would suggest fairly low. I think this may partially explain the phenomenon of 'it gets sharp this time but not next time'.

In a way, the minute concavity is a sort of analogy, to the ruler trick theory ;-) but please do not use ruler trick for chisels! All other edge tools ie hand scrapers but never for bench chisels.

David Charlesworth

 

[ByronBlack]

David, i've seen mention of your 'ruler trick' a number of times, and can't seem to find any more information on how it works and what it does - could you elaborate for me, OR let me know which of your DVD's covers the technique as I would like to expand my sharpening skills.

 

[mr]

DC DVD1 http://www.classichandtools.com/acatalog/copy_of_Hand_Tool_Techniques.html
Unless Im mistaken.
Cheers Mike

 

[Scott]

If we prep backs "Flat" what is the probability that the polishing stone and tool back will actually match? I would suggest fairly low. I think this may partially explain the phenomenon of 'it gets sharp this time but not next time'.

I'm intrigued enough to want to see this now! Order on the way

 

[MikeW]

Hi Ian--great responses here vs., well, you know :wink:

Thanks for taking the time to write this up. And thanks for making this DVD, DC. Gives me one more for the hand out I include in the sharpening classes. Which means now I should watch it before my next class!

Take care, Mike

 

[David C]

Mike,

do play it at 1 1/2 X speed, to avoid being put to sleep by my slow delivery!

My excuse, cracked rib, from car crash a few days before.

Hang on its always a little slow....... more time for taking notes ;-)

David C

 

[David C]

Pete,

I use King stones, 800, 1200 and 6,8 or 10 000grit to polish.

If chisel is worked across any stone and the back is longer that the stone is wide, I think a slight hollowness will result. So the method should work on oil, arkansas, or ceramic stones.

Byron,

DVD 1 has the full plane blade and chipbreaker sharpening and prep, including the infamous RULER TRICK.
Available from me as well as Classic and L-N!

www.davidcharlesworth.co.uk

 

[MikeW]

Mike,

do play it at 1 1/2 X speed, to avoid being put to sleep by my slow delivery!

My excuse, cracked rib, from car crash a few days before.

Hang on its always a little slow....... more time for taking notes ;-)

David C

Ha. As long as its pace is a tad faster than the WoodRat DVD...no worries on sleeping...

This subject of flat backs on chisels--talking the dead flat some people strive for--is one I have only moderately cared about. None of my chisels are what would be considered dead flat. All have a slight concavity to them in their length [I just checked most]. This is especially true on my vintage chisels and newish [several years old] Sorby paring chisels.

So reading a thread where a why is given as to its efficacy in the final wire-edge removal does interest me. One of the issues which has faced the majority of students has been avoiding a slight but longish micro-back bevel during the honing process. This I have attributed to too much pressure near the tip of a chisel when prepping the backs, which may also be a factor. But it also may lay in the manner in which the backs were flattened to begin with and subsequently attempting to remove a wire edge during honing.

Hmm. Gonna have to pay more attention at the beginning of class myself. Thank you, David.

Mike

Take care, Mike

 

[Pete W]

If chisel is worked across any stone and the back is longer that the stone is wide, I think a slight hollowness will result. So the method should work on oil, arkansas, or ceramic stones.

Thanks for the additional info, David.

Unfortunately (?!?) I use diamond stones - bought, in no small part, because the whole issue of hollowing stones was one I didn't care to deal with. Which prompted my question to Ian in the first place; someone finding an advantage in stones that could be readily hollowed :shock:

Anyway, I'm sure I speak for many on the forum when I offer my appreciation for your willingness to contribute here; your input and opinion is highly valued.

 

[David C]

Thanks Pete,

If diamond stones not too wide the hollowing effect may also work. And there is nothing wrong with flat stones if they are flat.

Interesting picture in Adam Cherubini's article in Pop W. (The sandstone grinding wheel one) This shows exactly what happens to chisel backs on a slightly hollow oilstone. As he says the tools do get sharp. The problem only becomes apparent when the oilstone is flattened!!!!

My prep techniques were developed entirely because my softish waterstones hollow so quickly. It is not clear how the Japanese deal with this issue, I have never read a good explaination, but suspect that there will be some cunning technique.

Mike,

I was taught to look for hollow backed chisels in the tool shop, and reject anything with a belly. I also noticed that better manufacturers seemed to do the hollow deliberately. This about 35 years ago and I heard the same story from Jim Kingshott who must have been an apprentice before the war.

David C

 

[MarcW]

It is not clear how the Japanese deal with this issue, I have never read a good explaination, but suspect that there will be some cunning technique.
David C

David,

That's exactly what I think. A lot to discover yet. Yesterday I watched a tv report on japanese restaurants in Tokio. In the kitchen I merely saw huge knives, no trace of such small hochos we tend to name japanese. Stunning was a big waterstone, DIN A4 dimensions and maybe 8 cm thick. =P~ It looked to be a King stone by color, but needless to say I could go wrong. I'd like to see how they will flatten it. Sometimes we seem to forget that a huge amount of what we know of japanese woodworking comes from one man, i.e. T. Odate. I think it'd be a challenge to get over the pond and make a Marco Polo tour on japanese woodworking. 3 or 4 weeks in a traditional japanese workshop would be a life long lasting grip in a treasure chest. That'd be an idea for a next book?

For the slow dvd, I like it. This way I can understand it 100% =D> and feel I could perfectly manage English. Seems that I have to place an order. :mrgreen:

Regards, Marc

 

[David C]

Marc,

I have always wanted to visit Japanese toolmakers and craftsmen, but have been told one would need a very knowledgable guide/translator, as the cultural differences are so extreme.

One cannot offer to buy a tool from a maker, you have to wait to be offered the opportunity....
best wishes,
David C