Update: I used to sharpen every chisel by hand on an oilstone, took me about 20 minutes each. Now I use a cheap little honing guide and a diamond plate... finish in under five.

2 comments

2 Comments

That "finish in under five" thing misses the whole point for me. The twenty minutes by hand wasn't just about getting a sharp edge, it was about learning the feel of the steel and the stone. You build a real connection to the tool. A guide and a diamond plate just turns it into a fast chore, like changing a battery. You lose the skill of holding the angle yourself, and that skill matters when you're actually using the chisel. Speed isn't always the win.

aaron_gonzalez5d ago

Totally get where you're coming from. Honestly, I learned to sharpen freehand on my grandpa's old stones and it taught me so much about the tool's balance. Now when I use a guide, the chisel just feels like some dead thing in a jig, and I swear my edges don't last as long in use.