New Ramelson... Buffed and Polished?

[livens]

I got home today and my first carving tool had arrived, a Ramelson #7 x 3/8 Bent Gouge. I had ordered from texaswoodcarvers.com who said they would buff and polish it before shipping. Of course the first thing I did was try it out on a scrap piece of wood, and it cuts nice and clean.

The first thing I noticed was the brush marks on the steel, Im guessing from the rough grinding at the factory. Then on the outside curve at the very edge it is buffed smooth, the inside curve was left as is. Here are some pics I took to try and explain.

Inside Curve:


Outside Curve:


It looks like they just hit the end of the gouge on a buffing wheel. Is that an acceptable way to sharpen these things? I thought that the entire surface, at least the last 1/4" or so, should be honed down to a mirror finish. Then stropped a little.

Just looking for opinions from the experts

Thanks,

Jeremy

[bigEd_H]

I don't know about anyone else, but I wouldn't think it was acceptable. Both the inside surface and the bevel should be polished in my opinion. I can't imagine how someone could polish just the very edge of the bevel or why.

[Dan S]

It doesn't look like they took much time to do the job. You might want to find another vendor.

Dan

[William]

Hi Jeremy, welcome

I've always had good luck with Old Texas and my #7 Ramelson gouge 3/8 came from them.

I had to use a magnifying glass to see but I think mine may have looked like that when it was new but I've sharpened it so many times I can't tell.

Nice to have you with us

Bill
^v^

[AlArchie]

That second shot still shows grind marks ACROSS the cutting edge that haven't been polished out. Also it looks like a pretty steep secondary bevel has been put on the edge near the top of the photo.

I would want that entire bevel area polished mirror smooth. As far as the back side goes.....you'll NEVER get the front surface and the cutting edge polished if those grind marks stay on the back. Look closely at the second photo and you can actually see the "saw-tooth" profile on the very edge. Those are the grind marks on the back, making themselves known!

A good analogy here would be the sharpening of a plane's blade. The first rule is to get the back perfectly flat and polished. Only then can you get the cutting edge to that razor sharp edge you need for effective planing (or carving).

Al

[Irish]

I believe this is why it is so very important for any carver to learn the basics to sharpening and honing ... a few minutes on your strop with a little red oxice then a few more minutes of newspaper would bring the the entire blade up to a bright polish.

Susan

[livens]

Thanks Guys,

Now dont get me wrong, I wasnt actually complaining about the quality. For only paying $15 this was about what I expected. And I guess I read to much into texaswoodcarvers' "Buffed and Polished" statement. I was just making sure I wasnt wrong in thinking that buffing a secondary bevel on the edge was a nono.

Its nice to be here William Everyone on this forum seems to be real nice people. If you dont mind me asking, how do you sharpen yours? Ive been reading several methods on this site and others, everything from sandpaper and stones to high end sharpening machines.

Jeremy

[TreeWizard]

Laura: What do you use the newspaper for?

[Just Carving]

Treewizard

When you don't have a strop, you can use newspaper for a strop, i.e. "poorman's strop",--the ink serves as the "rouge" or polishing compound when honing the tool.

Rolled up or folded layers of newspaper can be helpful with tools with profiles that are difficult to hone, i.e. v-tools, gouges, etc.

As always, you have to be careful not to round over the edge.

Bob L

[BobD]

Bob's right...it just puts an even finer polish on your edge.

Honestly, I've got an extra fine diamond stone that, if I've gone too long without stropping, I start with. I treat it just like a strop (ie. pulling the tool along it rather than pushing the tool along it like you'd ordinarily do with a sharpening stone). 10 passes on the diamond stone (each way if you're using a knife) and 10 passes on the strop and I'm back carving.

Bob