Posts: 352
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2006
Tools for working wood has a good selection, the biggest selection I've found is sharpening supplies.com. They pretty much have everything made. Prices for slip stones are pretty steep. I'm saving my pennies for A set of the Chris Pye signature slip stones that are matched for both width and sweep!
Good luck with the carving!
Posts: 1,043
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2012
Location: In da U.P. of Michigan
You can also make your own custom-fitted slips by trimming a piece of hardwood to match the curvature of the gouges and then wrapping a sheet of wet-or-dry sandpaper around the dowel.
Posts: 74
Threads: 0
Joined: Mar 2008
You can use sandpaper wrapped around dowels of the right size until you decide that you like carving and want to invest in the slip stones. Folded leather with honing compound can be used for polishing.
Michael
Posts: 114,862
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2002
Location: Sparkling Clearwater, Fl. Tampa Bay Area
Colonel, go to Ebay and look under manufacturing and metal work...polishing stones.......There is a very good selection of various types listed there right now.. The "cone-shaped" stone mounted to a 1/4" mandrel held in a drill chuck, works pretty well and they are cheap. There are also flat slip-stones with rounded edges listed, for hand use.
As for me, to polish the inside curve of a gouge, I use a single, 1/2" thick, tight stitched muslin buff on my 6" bench grinder. {it stays on one of my bench grinders}.I just use slip stones to establish a very slight bevel on them, finishing with the buff..the buff could just as easily be leather..
Power sharpening is so much faster, whether it's leather or felt or muslin, once you learn how to do it, you will be sold on it, IMO. You can't get tools sharper...
Often Tested. Always Faithful. Brothers Forever
Jack Edgar, Sgt. U.S. Marines, Korea, America's Forgotten War
Get off my lawn !