Love that you got the camera man to laugh. I remember you saying that you’re always trying to do just that, and he’s usually good at not breaking his role, but sometimes the fantastic little jokes you add in are just too much to handle. Loved every second of this, such an amazing amount of sharpening knowledge in this video series. Best wishes from coastal nh
Thank you so much. Just cut up a red oak that fell at my parents and used my froe for the first time, and now I've got to sharpen up my bevel up knife so that I can use it for the first time! Should be a pretty fun summer in the shop. Looking g forward to getting my knife honed up finally. Thanks again, Scott Adams - Jackson, TN
Finally, an honest sharpening video. Thank you. I find there are way too many (videos and people) out there that can raise a burr just by magically waving a stone over a tool.
"I guess they're better. They cost a lot more." "It looks pretty bad through that though. Maybe I ought to just stop lookin' at it through there." "WE haven't done anything." The information is great but such interjections make it down right fun! Thanks for the fun video!
"Looks pretty bad through that (magnifyer) though, Maybe I could just stop looking at it"... Priceless & sometimes sound advice. While magnification is a great helper, it can also drive you nuts at times. If the blade is performing as you need it to, stop making yourself nuts.
Curtis, thank you for posting both in-depth videos on how you sharpen a draw knife. Your name comes up frequently on the web regarding this as the best and proper way of doing so. I've never owned a draw knife or spoke shave, but now that I've gotten into milling my own timbers I am starting to build a small collection. Awaiting my vintage knives off two auctions I recently won on eBay. 8" 'Our Very Best Farm Tool' and a 12" Greenlee. Big concern is the proper care and sharpening technique with the correct stones which your videos explain in depth. Just by the detail and attention you put into sharpening your draw knives, It'd be fair to say you take pride in what you do sir. With that said, my guess is you can shave the hairs off a fly's ass I'd reckon!
Hi Curtis, Noticed that you seem to prefer the flat grind while others prefer a convex grind on the bevel edge. I have almost no idea about what I'm talking about but I am taking a guess that for barking lumber or taking large bits of wood off quickly where I will finish up with a knife or plane the convex grind would last longer and work better for its purpose. Your opinion?
A convex bevel will work its just harder to maintain the edge. The blunter the edge the longer the edge will last but the harder it is to get sharp and the harder it is to pull through the wood. You probably don't want to get over 30 degrees. With a convex bevel, every time you sharpen you have to take the stone a little further past the edge in order to come in contact with it, thus rolling the edge a little further each time and blunting the edge. You also have no way of knowing what degree you are actually ending up with. By keeping the back and bevel flat you can sharpen while maintaining the degree on the bevel that you want.
Great video Curtis. Thanks for posting such content up on the web for us all. My issue is that I have a drawknife with a gentle curve in the blade. To be clear, it is curved in the same way the letter "U" is curved, only instead of curving up 90 degree, it only curves hmmm, lets say 3 - 5 degree with the bevel up. Flattening the back is not so hard really, ya just have to slowly roll the knife as you move it across the stone. But doing the bevel side has me stumped. A flat stone would only touch two points on the bevel at any given time. Can you help? or do you know of another resource that would guide me along the process? Thanks Bill
Bill, my old knives have a curve in 2 directions. This enables the blade to lie flat and so you should be able to hone it with no problem. If yours does not lie flat them maybe you could use a narrow stone like a diamond paddle or use a stone with a slight curve.. Good luck
Hello there, I’m not sure if this question will get to you. First of all, great videos, such an inspiration. I was wondering if the sharpening can be done without hollowing the back and the bevel side (I’m guessing it’s a lot more work anyways, but I don’t own a grinder). Thanks in advance!
Yes, you are right on both accounts. You can do it without a grinder and it is a lot more work. If you have one, an extra coarse diamond stone works great.
Thanks for sharing :) What angle would you say the grind is? I just sharped mine and it feels like the knife gets stuck in the wood. If that makes sens? Think my grinding angle might be to small.
Do I understand correctly that sharpening a draw knife you work only the back side? I thought it would be like a chisel, first flatten the back then sharpen the bevel. speaking of the bevel are they about 25 degrees? I am just starting with green woodworking and can not afford an expensive draw knife and have not seen any locally. I saw a cheap one on Amazon that I know will need a lot of work to get it going. They say it has a bevel of 30 degrees. Is that too steep or should I work it down to 25 degrees. thanks for making the video.
Thanks Curtis, this is a Chinese draw knife so it is painted. The handles unbolt so I will take them off and coat it with paint remover. I can see mill marks on the bevel so no telling what is under the paint. Watched your video on riving wood and did not realize you can steer the crack through the wood. I may not go far but I appreciate all the information you have provided. I live in the city of Orange in California not far from Disneyland. Not too many forests to go get wood from but it is fun learning new stuff. Thanks again for the reply and the information.
You may want to take a gander into the land of eBay. I just recently won two bids (VERY INEXPENSIVE) on vintage draw knives made in the 1800s. Waiting on an 8" 'Our Very Best Farm Tool' and a 12" Greenlee.
When you’re using that knife, you *might* notice a difference between a 25-degree bevel and a 30-degree bevel, but I don’t think you’ll notice a difference between 25 degrees and 28 degrees, nor between 28 and 30 degrees. You can measure an angle difference that small, and if you have great eyesight, you might be able to see it, but you probably won’t feel any difference when you’re shaving wood with it.
ya know? there's guys out there that'll darn near cuss at you for using that grinding wheel. there's one fella who'll preach on just using stones all the way through unless they're that bad that stones aren't enough, then he'll use a file. But never a grinding wheel.
+Alvin Dueck There are many ways to achieve the same results. You can use only stones but it is slow. If you use a 50-60 grit friable wheel with a light touch, you can grind fast and without a burn. Drawknifes, like other edge tools, are tempered to a high Rockwell #. They are harder than a file making it impossible to cut with file. If you are able to cut a drawknife edge with a file, the knife has probably been ground past the harder steel that has been laminated on softer metal. In that case, I would throw it away because you won't be able to get it sharp. Curtis
When you said you’d grind the corners off, I thought “Stop! There must be some reason they made it with those corners.” So I tried to think of some purpose the corners serve. So far, I got nothin’.
Love that you got the camera man to laugh. I remember you saying that you’re always trying to do just that, and he’s usually good at not breaking his role, but sometimes the fantastic little jokes you add in are just too much to handle. Loved every second of this, such an amazing amount of sharpening knowledge in this video series. Best wishes from coastal nh
Thank you so much. Just cut up a red oak that fell at my parents and used my froe for the first time, and now I've got to sharpen up my bevel up knife so that I can use it for the first time! Should be a pretty fun summer in the shop. Looking g forward to getting my knife honed up finally. Thanks again, Scott Adams - Jackson, TN
Finally, an honest sharpening video. Thank you. I find there are way too many (videos and people) out there that can raise a burr just by magically waving a stone over a tool.
Another great video. that last bit explained something I have always wondered about bevel up drawknives. thanks
"I guess they're better. They cost a lot more." "It looks pretty bad through that though. Maybe I ought to just stop lookin' at it through there." "WE haven't done anything." The information is great but such interjections make it down right fun! Thanks for the fun video!
Thanks again Curtis. This is extremely helpful. : )
Molly.
"Looks pretty bad through that (magnifyer) though, Maybe I could just stop looking at it"... Priceless & sometimes sound advice. While magnification is a great helper, it can also drive you nuts at times. If the blade is performing as you need it to, stop making yourself nuts.
Curtis, thank you for posting both in-depth videos on how you sharpen a draw knife.
Your name comes up frequently on the web regarding this as the best and proper way of doing so.
I've never owned a draw knife or spoke shave, but now that I've gotten into milling my own timbers I am starting to build a small collection. Awaiting my vintage knives off two auctions I recently won on eBay. 8" 'Our Very Best Farm Tool' and a 12" Greenlee.
Big concern is the proper care and sharpening technique with the correct stones which your videos explain in depth.
Just by the detail and attention you put into sharpening your draw knives, It'd be fair to say you take pride in what you do sir. With that said, my guess is you can shave the hairs off a fly's ass I'd reckon!
Very helpful videos, thank you. I'd guess the hammer divots on the back are people using it as a make-shift froe.
I remove the wire edge by clamping a strop into my shave horse and pulling the knife down it. Never cut a finger this way.
Where do you get the adjustable jig on your grinder?
What is the bevel in degrees?
Hi Curtis, Noticed that you seem to prefer the flat grind while others prefer a convex grind on the bevel edge. I have almost no idea about what I'm talking about but I am taking a guess that for barking lumber or taking large bits of wood off quickly where I will finish up with a knife or plane the convex grind would last longer and work better for its purpose. Your opinion?
A convex bevel will work its just harder to maintain the edge. The blunter the edge the longer the edge will last but the harder it is to get sharp and the harder it is to pull through the wood. You probably don't want to get over 30 degrees. With a convex bevel, every time you sharpen you have to take the stone a little further past the edge in order to come in contact with it, thus rolling the edge a little further each time and blunting the edge. You also have no way of knowing what degree you are actually ending up with. By keeping the back and bevel flat you can sharpen while maintaining the degree on the bevel that you want.
Great video Curtis. Thanks for posting such content up on the web for us all. My issue is that I have a drawknife with a gentle curve in the blade. To be clear, it is curved in the same way the letter "U" is curved, only instead of curving up 90 degree, it only curves hmmm, lets say 3 - 5 degree with the bevel up. Flattening the back is not so hard really, ya just have to slowly roll the knife as you move it across the stone. But doing the bevel side has me stumped. A flat stone would only touch two points on the bevel at any given time. Can you help? or do you know of another resource that would guide me along the process?
Thanks
Bill
Bill, my old knives have a curve in 2 directions. This enables the blade to lie flat and so you should be able to hone it with no problem. If yours does not lie flat them maybe you could use a narrow stone like a diamond paddle or use a stone with a slight curve.. Good luck
Hello there, I’m not sure if this question will get to you. First of all, great videos, such an inspiration. I was wondering if the sharpening can be done without hollowing the back and the bevel side (I’m guessing it’s a lot more work anyways, but I don’t own a grinder). Thanks in advance!
Yes, you are right on both accounts. You can do it without a grinder and it is a lot more work. If you have one, an extra coarse diamond stone works great.
@@CurtisBuchananChairmaker Thank you very much!
Thanks for sharing :)
What angle would you say the grind is?
I just sharped mine and it feels like the knife gets stuck in the wood. If that makes sens? Think my grinding angle might be to small.
28 degrees
Do I understand correctly that sharpening a draw knife you work only the back side? I thought it would be like a chisel, first flatten the back then sharpen the bevel. speaking of the bevel are they about 25 degrees? I am just starting with green woodworking and can not afford an expensive draw knife and have not seen any locally. I saw a cheap one on Amazon that I know will need a lot of work to get it going. They say it has a bevel of 30 degrees. Is that too steep or should I work it down to 25 degrees. thanks for making the video.
Bruce, you do sharpen a bevel down knife just like a chisel. Flatten the back then grind and hone the bevel. 30 degrees is fine, I use 28.
Thanks Curtis, this is a Chinese draw knife so it is painted. The handles unbolt so I will take them off and coat it with paint remover. I can see mill marks on the bevel so no telling what is under the paint. Watched your video on riving wood and did not realize you can steer the crack through the wood. I may not go far but I appreciate all the information you have provided. I live in the city of Orange in California not far from Disneyland. Not too many forests to go get wood from but it is fun learning new stuff. Thanks again for the reply and the information.
You may want to take a gander into the land of eBay. I just recently won two bids (VERY INEXPENSIVE) on vintage draw knives made in the 1800s. Waiting on an 8" 'Our Very Best Farm Tool' and a 12" Greenlee.
When you’re using that knife, you *might* notice a difference between a 25-degree bevel and a 30-degree bevel, but I don’t think you’ll notice a difference between 25 degrees and 28 degrees, nor between 28 and 30 degrees. You can measure an angle difference that small, and if you have great eyesight, you might be able to see it, but you probably won’t feel any difference when you’re shaving wood with it.
ya know? there's guys out there that'll darn near cuss at you for using that grinding wheel. there's one fella who'll preach on just using stones all the way through unless they're that bad that stones aren't enough, then he'll use a file. But never a grinding wheel.
+Alvin Dueck There are many ways to achieve the same results. You can use only stones but it is slow. If you use a 50-60 grit friable wheel with a light touch, you can grind fast and without a burn. Drawknifes, like other edge tools, are tempered to a high Rockwell #. They are harder than a file making it impossible to cut with file. If you are able to cut a drawknife edge with a file, the knife has probably been ground past the harder steel that has been laminated on softer metal. In that case, I would throw it away because you won't be able to get it sharp. Curtis
When you said you’d grind the corners off, I thought “Stop! There must be some reason they made it with those corners.” So I tried to think of some purpose the corners serve. So far, I got nothin’.