Our Readers Keep Us on Our Toes

Our Readers Keep Us on Our Toes

We heard from a few readers who had more ideas about how to sharpen straight edge chisels. Abe Peled sharpens his straight and his turning chisels on a fine-grain grindstone, complemented by honing with a flat or round diamond stone. The chisel being ground needs to be slid back and forth across the surface of the stone, which is revolving at 1,500 rpm, to keep it flat. Abe has a chisel sharpener, but he likes the stone method because he thinks it’s simple, fast and effective.

Cal Meier likes the feel and sound of a nice stone, too, but he thinks waterstones are a little pricey for him. He uses plate glass and wet-dry sandpaper in a range of grits. He knows his “stone” is flat, and his Veritas honing jig keeps him keeps a constant angle as he feels his way through.

Redmond Blair adds another sharpening tale: “When I was taking a woodworking class at night school, the instructor told us of a carpenter who didn’t know how to sharpen chisels. So each time he started a new job, he bought a new chisel. When he retired, he had a box with 600 chisels in it.”

Readers who responded to some of the ideas shared for Setting Up a Basement Shop had a couple of ideas to share.

Chris Ely of Hartford, South Dakota, thought that waterproofed wafer boar he applied to his basement made it much dryer and warmer. It was relatively expensive to put in, but Chris points out that it’s permanent, and will make the expansion equal in all directions.

Larry Cox, on the other hand, thinks that the solution of putting a plastic vapor barrier over insulation on concrete basementwalls is asking for trouble. “Due to the moisture transmission of conrete, the vapor barrier will trap moisture in the insulation. Mold thrives in cool, dark, wet areas just like the area that is created. The moisture must be allowed to escape through the insulation and sheetrock through evaporation, then a dehumidifier can rid the workshop of moisture. Mold causes many problems, both healthwise and structural damage.”

Finally, Sam Whitley, an industrial chemist thinks that Michael’s suggestion of using a fan as a suction device for a Small Spray Booth is not the only option. According to Sam, “It makes much more sense to use the fan as a forced air supplier instead. If you place the box fan high, use the A/C filter mentioned in the answer, and let the fan blow INTO rather than OUT OF the booth, you will gain in a couple of ways. The fact that organic vapors (methane excluded) are heavier than air means that a high placed fan blowing into the booth has a very very small chance of being an ignition source to vapors. The exhaust air port for the booth should be located low so that it carries the maximum amount of organic vapors out as quickly as possible. This port should also be equipped with a filter to prevent dust and debris from entering the spray booth. The exhaust port should be much larger than the inlet port. This will keep the pressure inside the booth at near ambient pressure. By placing the fan blowing INTO the booth, the fan blades should never coat with paint spray. “

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