Veritias MKII Honing Guide

I said I would post a review after I had a chance to try different blades and such in the jig. My first impressions: a well conceived and well built guide.

Veritas MKII Honing Guide


The first blade was a 3/4" chisel: easy to set up. I did not know it but I my chisels were ground at 30 degrees and not 25 as I had thought. Now I can put them back in the guide and with only a few strokes, a sharp edge appears.

The second was the Zen Toolworks plane blade. It came beveled but not honed. I flattened the back (easy as it was essentially flat to begin with), then put it in the guide and away we went. After about 5 min of working through the grits I had a honed, micro-beveled blade.

My conclusions
Pros:
I never really had a sharp edge before this. I only thought I had a sharp edge. The difference between what I could achieve freehand and with the guide is night and day. All my chisels can now pare end grain like butter. Before it was really difficult and frustrating, now it is almost a joy to see them flow through the wood.

I like that I can come back to the same settings easily and without fuss. Makes getting and maintaining an edge a much more enjoyable process.

Cons:
Holding thin chisels can be tricky (1/4"), they want to skew as they are worked on the grit. You have to be extra careful and tighten them in the guide well and be mindful on keeping the chisel straight when drawing it on the grit.

All in all I give two thumbs up. Look around for the best price. I got mine off ebay (NIB) but only saved $2 dollars or so.

Zen Toolworks Plane review

So I've had the white pine plane for a month and have properly sharpened it and used it on a couple of different woods. NICE! It is a great little plane. I have not done any shaping yet to make it fit my hand better but the way it comes is very good. The blade is fairly thick and takes and holds an edge well (at least as well as I can sharpen at the moment). I never really had great success with my bench plane (craftsman #5) so this plane was nice to use. I would highly recommend Zen Toolworks and am looking forward to getting a couple more. He has a scrub and a shoulder plane I have my eye on for the next ones.

Zen Toolworks Plane

So with my Christmas money I went out and got myself a new wooden plane. I found this small one person shop, Zen Toolworks, that was resonable and had great reviews. This plane actually came off his ebay store for $36.99. Hand made with a great blade. That is a great price considering what the price of a new plane costs these days. So today I received a small box well packed with this inside.




So the details: Measurements are about 9x1.5x2.5. The blade itself is with my none caliper ruler 3/32" to 1/8" thick, nice and stout. Instead of a wood blade holder it has a brass cap with a well knurled thumbscrew.


Here is a close up of the throat. It is square with the body and well cut. The blade ramp is smooth and there is no wobble with blade that I can feel.


Overall I am quite happy with the plane. I have not made any shavings yet but I have not been able to properly sharpen the blade yet. I have my eye on a Veritas MK II honing guide and setting up a "Scary sharp" system. This blade will be the one I run through that. Should just be a week or so.

Just as a side note. Hard maple is a pain to cut dovetails in when it is 3/4" thick. I am making a shelf for over the stove and thought this would look nice. It will contrast with the oak trim I put on for the kitchen remodel.

Also a tip of the hat to Kari at The Village Carpenter. I don't know what you use to compose your thumbnail pics but this was with powerpoint. Yours always look great so I thought I would try it. More refining needed on my part.

Woodwright school

Well it has finally happened. Roy Underhill has opened his own school. 'bout time. Anyway we all knew of its existence about a year ago but they finally have it all going and even a schedule. You can find it at www.woodwrightschool.com. The prices seem inline with other schools and the projects are what you would expect. I hope one day to be able to attend even for just a seminar.

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving Ya'll.

peace

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