RWW Live: Sharpening Bench Redesign

Let Me Tell You a Story about a Sharpening Journey

I sincerely appreciate everybody who hung out with me live and asked questions. Sharpening is always a topic you can expect people to have confusion. And my tour and subsequent redesign of my sharpening bench is the perfect example of how we as woodworkers can overcomplicate what is actually a very simple topic. We live in a wonderful world now with many fancy gizmos and sharpening aids and when you are unsure they all look like game changers. I hesitate to say I fell into these traps as each method I used only added to my understanding of sharpening and what works for me and what doesn’t. I stress what works “for me” because I feel that it is a personal thing and often times the journey is what is needed to figure out what you need and don’t need. These days my sharpening regimen is very minimal and I look at it not as a task to be performed but merely a breath in the woodworking action. Sharpening is less event and process and often I don’t even realize I’m doing it. That sounds very zen but think about the last time you got into a groove on something and how you don’t realize how much time has passed nor can you clearly remember each individual task that you performed during that time.

Anyway, I’m waxing poetic now. I’m always open to more sharpening questions and stay tuned for the build of my new sharpening bench. If for no other reason than to see me use a track saw and maybe some pocket screws!!