January 15, 2020
To this point, perhaps 5-6 months into this journey, I still don't fully understand simple concepts of sharpening: Concept 1 - Sharp is simply the meeting of two surfaces, the top and bottom surfaces of the tool, to a 0 point. That point is where sharp is. It's as simple as that. You can't get sharper than 0. Concept 2 - Something a bit more nuanced: scratches on those two surfaces contribute to a weakness in the steel's surface. Scratches yield a point that doesn't stay at 0-sharp as long as one that is more polished. Nothing is ever scratch free, and there is a point of no return to the polishing that doesn't benefit us in woodworking. The fact is that the edge of a tool is subjected to blunt forces. To expect it to hold up for a long time depends on so many factors, not the least of which is the wood you're working with and it's hardness. A blade's sharpness will last much longer in pine than it would in hard maple, for example. Concept 3 - The type of tool steel your plane irons and tools are made of matters, and is a complicated concept. The steel can influence the type of sharpening stones you can use, and the extent to which your edge could stay sharp. Concept 4 - The back of a plane iron's flatness is not as critical as the back of a chisel's. You use a chisel's back for flat reference when pairing, or cutting into a mortise, for example, the plane iron's front edge (say 1/2") matters in that it is required to have a sharp edge.
March 02, 2021
March 01, 2021
I've been working and not posting. I am sanding the whole interior and applying finish before I glue this thing together. Having experienced the pain of finishing the liquor cabinet after glueup nope not again.
January 15, 2020