Knife-sharpening confuses the hell out of me — there are so many old wives tales, half-truths, and rules of thumb offering contradictory advice on how to do it. Luckily the Lansky Knife Sharpening System takes the guesswork out of putting a sharp, safe edge on a blade.
Engine turning (also known as damascening, jeweling, krayling, or swirling) has long been associated with fine metalworking. Whatever you call it, it’s a great way to add some bling to your project. The process consists of using a spinning abrasive cylinder to make dazzling 3-D looking patterns on polished metal. You can see examples of the technique on everything from antique handmade pocket watches to retro hotrod parts. If you want to try it yourself, Eastwood offers 1″ and 1/2″ kits that can be used with any drill press.
Ingersoll Rand is well known for their line of pro-level pneumatic tools. But they’ve made a name for themselves with impact drivers of all types. So when these guys come out with a line of cordless tools that includes high-powered wrenches and ratchets as well as drills and grinders – we noticed.
Sean posted about these Microplane sanding discs back in May 2006, and now they’re on sale: Microplane is currently offering a 3-pack for listed for just $13.95. The 3-pack includes a coarse 40-grit, medium 80-grit and fine-120 sanding disc. Microplane claims that each disc is equal to about 35 sheets of regular sandpaper and’ll work perfectly for sanding bare wood projects like doors, furniture, and fencing.
These discs fit a regular 5″ orbital sander and includes matching hole patterns.
3-Pack Sanding Discs [Microplane]
Street Pricing [Google Product]
A ten inch disk sander’ll lighten your wallet at least $150. So why not turn your table saw into a disk sander for under $35 instead with CMT’s balance blade and sanding disk? Their disk mounts to saws with a standard 5/8 inch arbor and utilizes standard self-stick sanding disks. Sounds to me like a great way to pocket over a hundred bucks and gain valuable shop space.
Using fresh sandpaper – particularly sanding belts and discs – can be a joy. But once they get clogged up with pitch and loose sandpaper grit it’s miserable. And if you’re making fine furniture, it can ruin your work as well. Woodstock International’s Pro Stik abrasive cleaner sticks are basically formulated from crepe rubber that easily removes the built up gunk on your favorite abrasive belts and discs.
Why detail sand by hand when you can buy a power tool to do it for you? To mimic hand sanding, the Festool Duplex LS 130 EQ linear sander’s head reciprocates in a straight motion. This allows it to sand with the grain, which leaves less visible scratches. And when you consider the advantages of finishing the job up to three times faster and landing most of the dust in your dust collection system instead of on you, its price of $290 doesn’t sound so high.
Felker practically invented the first diamond-impregnated saw blade back in 1924, but the military’s use of the blades during WWII to cut quartz frequency crystals for radios and walkie-talkies secured Felker’s place in history. So we’re not surprised to discover that their new Tile Master XL Plus High Production tile saw is pro-level gear that’ll cut pretty much any kind of tile, from granite and marble to ceramics and porcelain — up to 31” wide (22” if you’re cutting diagonally) and up to 3-3/4” thick.
TMS wholesale — who rudely branded the factory image above — nevertheless offers the pictured benchtop belt sander for a very reasonable $40. It offers a no-load speed of 3,450 rpm, uses 1″ x 30″ sanding belts, includes a zero to 45-degree tilting work table, and ships for free.
Belt Sander [TMS Wholesale]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Mirka Abrasives offers a revolutionary solution to the long-standing problem of woodworking dust inhalation: their Abranet sanding discs look like a sanding screen, but the abrasive particles are arranged in a row formation. This means that dust is never more than half-a-milimeter from an opening through which dust collector can extract it — and prevent it from entering the air. As a side bonus, Mirka says the discs also last three to five times as long as standard abrasives.
We’ve always said that if you can make a tool cordless — regardless of whether or not that’s a good idea — Ryobi’s probably offers one in their 18V One+ line. Here’s one that looks pretty useful, though: the P410 random orbital sander.
Granted, it’s probably not the ideal choice for all sanding — and it does look like the tool equivalent of Frankenstein’s wife – but when you just need to knock down a few fibers or correct a little imperfection, it’d be handy to grab this instead of digging out the extension cord. And that overmold rubber GripZone up top looks pretty comfortable.
Nobody likes sanding by hand, and to make matters worse, cutting paper to size and mounting it is usually a PITA, too. This generic sanding pad from Auto Body Tool Mart at least simplifies prep part of sanding a bit. It accepts 6” round dual action (DA) sanding discs without any mods, and the discs attach via the same method as the power sanders: a hook and loop fastening system.
The D&S Scary Sharp system originates from a post on the usenet group rec.woodworking, although the method itself probably predates WWII: with a piece of plate glass and progressively finer grits of sandpaper, you can hone your tool to an edge a professional sharpener would envy — without messy oil or water. And if you don’t have the materials on hand, Rockler sells a kit with everything you need to get started for just $30.
Here’s another fun scroll saw attachment you may not have tried: scroll saw files. These “filing blades” dramatically reduce the frustration and time it takes to produce a complex pattern by automating detail sanding and shaping. And because of their silicon carbide coating, you can use them in a variety of materials.
If you’ve ever been frustrated trying to smooth out your rough scrollsaw cuts – or other cramped edges – scroll saw sander belts can provide some relief. They’re flexible, cloth-backed sanders that attach to most scroll saws and hug the edge of your cuts, sanding without flattening or gouging wood as rigid-backed abrasives can.
Unlike most “contour sanders” which can change the shape of the material as you work, this one holds sandpaper in exactly the profile you set. It works just like a contour gauge, but with sheets instead of pins so it can support sandpaper.
Sometimes you can get away with slicing off a thin piece of sandpaper and folding it up to fit into narrow spaces when detail sanding, but what you really need is abrasive cord. It’s already round — which means no folding — and it’s much stronger than thin strips of sandpaper. It’s cheap, too.
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