Favorite honing technique?

[JSpill]

Almost every time I am about to use a plane or chisel I find myself asking could this blade be sharper? Of course I want to keep working and not spend a lot of time honing. Do you have a favorite method of honing when in the middle of a project? Do you use a leather strop or diamond plate for honing? Just wondering what are some quick and effective methods for honing a proper edge. Thanks.

[Admiral]

Leather strop charged with compound of your choice. I also have a leather wheel power strop, and the leather wheel on the Tormek, but those make me walk across the shop.... :-)

[Peter Tremblay]

Almost every time I am about to use a plane or chisel I find myself asking could this blade be sharper? Of course I want to keep working and not spend a lot of time honing. Do you have a favorite method of honing when in the middle of a project? Do you use a leather strop or diamond plate for honing? Just wondering what are some quick and effective methods for honing a proper edge. Thanks.

Leather strop charged with 0.5 micron diamond paste

Or I have a hand cranked strop on an old grinder that I refurbished.

This is full grain leather (smooth side out) on a 10" MDF wheel.

   

   

Depending on how dull the edge is I can give it a few (50) strokes on the strop or take it over to the stropping wheel.

Incidentally, my water stones have not been wet in years.  I hollow grind my edges on a 36 grit norton 3X wheel and then take them right to the stropping wheel to hone the edge.  It take only a few seconds and there is no mess.

[Philip1231]

Leather wheel on Tormek

But it does not take much longer to:

clamp chisel in LN honing guide
Set projection in guide
Hone on 15µ, 5µ, 1µ on this super fancy sharpening tile

   

[daddo]

I always get a sharp edge, but listening to you guys here, and screwing up an edge a while back, I thought I might give your techniques a try.
So I made a block for sharpening and maintaining the edge. I made a roller in it to make it easy to push. I've used it on paper mostly, since I haven't any good stones yet- the ones I have are too far worn. But this method actually works much better than free hand.
 I highly suggest it.

[bandit571]

IF I am sitting at the bench, doing  work with the chisels...

   
And an edge needs a touch up....either a few swipes on either of my jeans' pants legs...or, a few swipes on the work  apron....as a quick strop..saves walking around, looking for the strop...

   
Works for me

[AHill]

I have a laminated paper wheel on my grinder charged with the green stuff and I literally only need a couple of seconds per tool to refresh the edge. I got the idea from Jack (power stropping), and I can't recommended it more highly. Before that, I used a charged horse butt leather strop which required around 10 very strong strokes. Never had a dubbed edge. If you can find a video of Paul Sellers using the leather strop, you'll initially wonder why he's stropping so hard, but I'm telling you it works.

[Peter Tremblay]

I have a laminated paper wheel on my grinder charged with the green stuff and I literally only need a couple of seconds per tool to refresh the edge.  I got the idea from Jack (power stropping), and I can't recommended it more highly.  Before that, I used a charged horse butt leather strop which required around 10 very strong strokes.  Never had a dubbed edge.  If you can find a video of Paul Sellers using the leather strop, you'll initially wonder why he's stropping so hard, but I'm telling you it works.

Do you have a link to that video clip?

I strop all the time but I never put much downward pressure.

[Arlin Eastman]

Leather strop charged with compound of your choice.  I also have a leather wheel power strop, and the leather wheel on the Tormek, but those make me walk across the shop....  :-)

You know I was just thinking about this late last night and I was wondering if anyone has ever used a thick piece of glass with compound to hone with???

Why I thought of this was a hard flat surface would be best and now I do not remember what other things came to mind.  So what does everyone here think about it????

Maybe a 1/2" or 3/4" in the size of 6"x 20" would due??

[Peter Tremblay]

You know I was just thinking about this late last night and I was wondering if anyone has ever used a thick piece of glass with compound to hone with???

Why I thought of this was a hard flat surface would be best and now I do not remember what other things came to mind.  So what does everyone here think about it????

Maybe a 1/2" or 3/4" in the size of 6"x 20" would due??

I would not do that.

There are a few reasons that come to mind.

You want the substrate to be on the softer side so that the grit of the compound can embed rather than roll around.

I think you also want just a bit of "give" to the substrate.  That give will allow the substrate to conform to the edge of the tool and polish it.  Hard leather is the perfect balance between stiffness and just enough give to not round over an edge while polishing it with just a bit of pressure.  I think thick cardboard (not corrugated) or even MDF might work.  But I think glass would not give at all.

I'd also not like glass in my shop because I do drop things.  I'm constantly dropping my strop because I leave it on my bench when working and it is always getting knocked to the floor.