GGs

With Scott Grandstaff on this one.

I’m offering a grind angle of between 25 and 30 deg, and a hone angle somewhere
above that. Not sure if it really matters for a plane.

If you ever have the opportunity to inspect a time capsule tool chest that some
old time tradesman closed the lid on 40 or 50 years ago and hasn’t been tampered
with since, you will likely be astounded at the variety of cutter angles. Yet
apparently the tools worked. If the only grinder available is manually operated,
then nice even grinds at specific angles might not be all that alluring.

On the other hand, I’ve never used a manually operated grinder, and I do like to
achieve an even grind on cutters, and a nice shiny honed back, so I’m a habitual
tool sharpener. I’ve got to admit that out on site there’s an element of smug
pride in handing a chisel to another carpenter, and having to look him straight
in the eye and give a ‘this is sharp, proper sharp’ warning.

And this might come as a surprise to the non tradesmen members of this list.
Sharp tools on work sites are unusual. It’s probably always been thus, tools
only need to be sharp enough to earn you a wage.

Oh, and in my 40 odd years of work, carpenters were always ‘him’. It wasn’t
until 2018 that I worked with a carpenter that was a ‘her’. Not to disappoint,
her tools were atrociously un-sharp.

Mick Dowling
Melbourne Australia