[Viator]

Hi..Im new to carving. What would I use to sharpen the INSIDE of very small gouges(like#11 2mm)? I can't seem to find a slipstone that is small enough. I know there has to be some folks out there who use a lot of micro tools. What are your sharpening secrets?

[BobD]

Wet and dry sandpaper folded in half works good for me.

Bob

[lorax]

Using stones on the inside of a gouge can mess up the bevel, so do it as little as possible and very carefully. I have the Two Cherries micro set, and some of those are so tiny that sharpening is very difficult. I use a felt wheel with strop compound for the inside. although I did use 600 grit sandpaper on one, but that is the exception to the rule.

[Mitchell]

I have a set of Pfeil palm tools that I have used for over 10 years. I have never "sharpened" the inside of them. I HAVE (in the past) used a small piece of leather to lightly hone the inside after sharpening the outside......but only rarely. I did this by hand.

I now use the flexcut profiled slip stick ("slipstrop") to touch up the inside of most of my tools because it is easier. I ususally only take about three light passes and I'm done.

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

For my really small flexcut palm tools, I use the flexcut formed strop..it works great, I have made a large strop out of a piece of dowel and wrapped one end with very fine sandpaper and the other end with a piece of leather so I could sharpen and strop a larger gouge. You can also take the gouge and run it across a piece of wood making a channel shaped like the gouge and put some compound in it, it will strop the tool

[BobD]

Chris Pye suggests putting a slight inside bevel on gouges to strengthen the edge and help push the chip away (like the chip breaker on a hand plane), especially on the deep gouges like a #11...but the key is to get an even bevel.

Bob

[dryheat]

For a real small gouge I have had good results using a piece of cord/string that I rub CO into. Then I tie one end to something or clamp it in a vise. You can then pull the gouge along the cord trying to keep it as parallel as possible to the line of the cord to avoid a back bevel although a bit of a back bevel isn’t all that bad. The edge of a tablet back coated with CO works too. For Vee tools folded wet/dry paper works well.
You just need to try the suggestions offered here and you will find the one that works for you.

Good luck

[Kenny_S]

Flexcut formed strop! works very well on 1,2 and 3 mm gouges. a V shape leather power wheel strop also.

You will find many different techniques as there are carvers. Try different ways and stick to the one that works best for you.

[Viator]

Hey thanks everybody for your help, I appreciate it

[wade clark]

The neat thing about the flexcut formed strops is that you could make a similar one for any tool, using the tool itself to make it. You could have one for every tool, if you like to be obsessive!
Flexcut's is very handy!
Wade