a list of 'how to do' in the woodwork field
Grinding away the excess metal behind the heel of a Japanese  chisel.

It is necessary to grind away some of the metal behind the heel of a Japanese  chisel to allow the bottom surface of the blade
to be flattened properly.  
Web page reference                 GriHe01
my computer reference          GriHe01
metal being removed behind the 'heel' of the chisel to allow me to flatten the bottom of the chisel
Web page reference                 GriHe01a
my computer reference          GriHe01a
the part of the chisel that I refer to as the 'heel'
The tip of the knife is
pointing to the area
that I refer to as the
heel of a Japanese  
chisel
When I am
flattening the
bottom of a
chisel it will be
positioned like  
this
When I am flattening the bottom of a chisel
it will be positioned like  this

Web page reference                 GriHe02
my computer reference          GriHe02
the bottom of a Japanese chisel needs to be perfectly flat on a water stone
and like this, where it is overlapping the
edge of the water stone.

Web page reference                 GriHe03
my computer reference          GriHe03
and like this, where it
is overlapping the edge
of the water stone.
the chisel will be positioned like this during the flattening of the back of the blade.
and if the excess
metal was not
removed as
indicated, it would
not be possible to
flatten the bottom of
the chisel.
and if the excess metal was not removed
as indicated, it would not be possible to
flatten the bottom of the chisel.


Web page reference                 GriHe01b
my computer reference          GriHe01b
the tip of the blade is pointing to the area of a Japanese chisel that has been ground away allowing the bottom to be flattened
Start off the process
by adding black
marker pen ink to the
area that is going to be
removed, and position
the chisel in the jig on
the Tormek grindstone
with the power
disconnected.   Now
lightly secure the
chisel.
Start off the process by adding black
marker pen ink to the area that is going to
be removed, and position the chisel in the
jig on the Tormek grindstone with the
power disconnected.   Now lightly secure
the chisel.

Web page reference                 GriHe05
my computer reference          GriHe05
the chisel is secured in a wooden jig to allow me to safely remove some metal behind the heel of a Japanese chisel
Now remove the chisel and jig assembly
from the grindstone and place it on the
bench as illustrated. Place a finger near the
end of the chisel and firmly push it so that
the edge of the blade is flat against the
bench top.  Now tighten the wing nuts so
that the chisel is firmly held in the jig.

Web page reference                 GriHe06
my computer reference          GriHe06
Now remove the chisel
and jig assembly from
the grindstone and
place it on the bench
as illustrated. Place a
finger near the end of
the chisel and firmly
push it so that the edge
of the blade is flat
against the bench top.  
Now tighten the wing
nuts so that the chisel
is firmly held in the jig.
the chisel and jig are placed on the bench to allow me to accuratly position the chisel
With the chisel held firmly in this position, the assembly can be returned to the
grindstone.   The grindstone can now be set in motion and the chisel carefully
lowered onto the stone.

I would then switch off the grindstone, remove the chisel and jig from the
horizontal bar, and check where the metal is being ground away.

It may be necessary throughout the grinding process to slightly reposition the
chisel so that it protrudes a little further, or a bit less from the jig, so that the
correct amount of metal is removed.
Web page reference                 GriHe07
my computer reference          GriHe07
With the chisel held firmly in
this position, the assembly can
be returned to the grindstone.   
The grindstone can now be set
in motion and the chisel
carefully lowered onto the
stone.

I would then switch off the
grindstone, remove the chisel
and jig from the horizontal bar,
and check where the metal is
being ground away.

It may be necessary
throughout the grinding
process to slightly reposition
the chisel so that it protrudes a
little further, or a bit less from
the jig, so that the correct
amount of metal is removed.
the jig hs held firmly during the grinding process
Whilst the chisel is still secured in the jig,
you can check if enough metal has been
removed by placing it onto your sharpening
stone as shown below.   The job will have
been completed when the bottom of the
chisel is be flat on the water stone, when it
is overlapping the edge of the water stone
like this.

Web page reference                 GriHe03
my computer reference          GriHe03
Whilst the chisel is still
secured in the jig, you can
check if enough metal has
been removed by placing it
onto your sharpening stone as
shown below.   The job will
have been completed when
the bottom of the chisel is be
flat on the water stone, when
it is overlapping the edge of
the water stone like this.
checking to see if the bottom of the chisel is flat on the water stone
In the next chapter I
will deal with
removing the excess
metal at the side of a
Chisel so that you will
be able to clean out the
waste between the tails
of a dovetail joint.
In the next chapter I will deal with
removing the excess metal at the side of a
Chisel so that you will be able to clean out
the waste between the tails of a dovetail
joint.

Web page reference                 GriHe08
my computer reference          GriHe08
indicating the large amount of metal that has to be removed before the chisel is suitable for dovetailing
and this is achieved by repositioning the
chisel in the jig.

Web page reference                 GriHe09
my computer reference          GriHe09
and this is achieved by repositioning the chisel in the jig.
a chisel secured in a jig during the grinding process to remove the excess metal at the side of a chisel
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