I built a new chisel sharpening jig to make it easier to sharpen chisels, hand plane blades and marking knives. I’m making a quick and dirty build using:
- Laminated OSB and scrap plywood for the base for everything
- 15-minute epoxy to secure the stoppers and markers
- A 400/100 grit diamond sharpening stone
- Medium & fine leather strops
- A cheap honing guide
The measurements I’ve fixed to the chisel sharpening jig are 50mm, 40mm, 30mm, 21mm, 15mm. These will correspond to your chisel according to the thickness of your blade and the angle you want to achieve.
You can find the reference at the side of your honing guide if you have one like mine.
In this video, you’ll see me sharpening one of the chisels from the Narex chisel kit I bought recently. I highly recommend these chisels, and I’ve been using them recently over my Stanley Sweetheart chisels.
Why a Chisel Sharpening Jig?
If you sharpen many chisels and plane blades, you know how important it is to get to the right angle. I was never going to be good at sharpening freehand, so I got one of those cheap honing guides you see on Amazon.
These worked well, but every time I wanted to sharpen stuff, I looked for all the other components. They seemed to disappear just when I needed them.
If you prefer, you can build a chisel sharpening jig or chisel sharpening station to complete the process much quicker.
To achieve the desired angle, the blade simply has to protrude a certain distance from the front edge of the honing guide. Adding stops at the most common measurements allows you to skip the guesswork and get the right angle every time.
There are many ways to sharpen. Some involve water stones, sandpaper, or float glass. My method is much simpler: minimal grinding on the 400 and 1,000-grit diamond surfaces followed by a dozen strokes on the leather.
I found that the results are good enough for almost anything I do. Why waste time with unnecessary sharpening? I have a 6,000 / 12,000 grit waterstone if I ever need a finer edge, but the leather strops perfectly substitute it.
Try it yourself. Build this chisel sharpening jig and see how much time you can save by sharpening it quickly.
