Driving through the countryside or stopping at flea markets, you’re bound to come across large white sharpening wheels. You know, the big ones that you imagine a cartoon character sitting at, sharpening an axe. In reality, there’s a reason that these water-trough stones are so common — they simply work. That’s as true today as it was a hundred years ago. A water sharpening system, like the Tormek shown here, is still a great way to get a razor sharp edge on a variety of tools. In this article, I’ll give you the basics of a water sharpening system, and some of the jigs and attachments that I find useful.
The system I’m using here is one made by , a Swedish company that’s known for making some of the highest-quality sharpening systems and jigs around. The grinder comes with various accessories in the set. You grinders, suchasthe , are quality machines and can be picked up secondhand for a reasonable price.
