# To Refurbish a old Draw Knife



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

There were some questions recently about cleaning up and tuning draw knifes as well as using one. It just so happened that an older gentleman approached me at a demonstration and asked if I would be willing to sharpen a couple of draw knifes for him. I don't have a lot of time so I at first declined... at least three times. As his persistence continued it became increasingly obvious how important it was to him. So alas, I agreed to sharpen them. That was a couple of months ago. 

Luckily they weren't in bad shape so all I had to do was clean up the grime, even out the bevel, polish and hone.

The first step was to use an abrasive wool pad with dilute green cleaner to scrub it down. You want to steer clear of the business edge when doing this to avoid cutting yourself or adding a back bevel.

Next the knife was clamped face up on the bench and it's time for some file work. Working at a skewed angle from edge to edge and from each side to the other. 

I'm not going to go into bevel angle or the merits of each because it too much for one thread, I think. For now, stay close to what's already there and we'll get to that in a later thread on using the draw knife.

Once I was satisfied with the rough work I switched to a piece of tool steel 2" wide, approx 12" long and 3/8" thick I previously ground flat on a reference plate wrapped with 150x wet sand paper and lubricated with dilute green cleaner. 

Using the bar with the same technique as a file I further refined the bevel. Once happy with that it's time to work the back....


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

...
Flipping the knife over I again used the bar and made passes across the back. You can see the back had a slight hollow grind, this is a good thing. The hollow, much like with a Japanese chisel, makes it very quick to restore the the back to flat. A couple of passes with 150x and I was happy with it. I then switched to 400x on the bar and made a few more passes. 

You can see in the picture that there is a dull reflection following the edge of the, whether it was poor sharpening or done with intention by a chair building previous owner there was a slight back bevel. I contacted the owner and he said to just go with it. So, go with it I did! 

I then flipped the knife over again and polished the bevel down to 400x then 600x. I then worked the back bevel at 600x then 1,200x. Again working the front bevel I added a micro bevel at 1,200x then 2,500x. All of this done with the same bar mentioned earlier. 

Next I scrubbed in a nice coat of paste wax, let it haze then buffed it off. To finish it all off I stropped the edge. 

I didn't feel the need to show me shaving any appendages but I can tell you it certainly is sharp enough to shave the wooliest of Neanderthals!

And now begin the questions, suggestions and maybe some laughs :smile:


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Wow!!!! That's friggin shiny. I almost needed my sunglasses in order to finish reading. Lol
Looks good. Did you do the handles to? Sorry if I missed that.


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## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

firemedic said:


> ...
> I didn't feel the need to show me shaving any appendages but I can you it certainly is sharp enough to shave the wooliest of Neanderthals!


:laughing: 

That's an excellent restore. It looks fantastic!


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## Fastback (Sep 2, 2012)

That is a real nice job. I bet it didn't look that good when it was new. I'm impressed.


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## MagGeorge (Jul 5, 2012)

Shining like brand new!


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Thanks, I forgot to mention that I also took the time to ease the hard edges and burs left behind by the original stamping / sheering press during manufacture. I like to ease these edges over with a file to soften the feel of the tool.

And as for the handles, I scrubbed them with a wax laden synthetic wool pad then buffed them out. I'm starting to do this more and more on tool handles rather than refinishing them.


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## Wrangler02 (Apr 15, 2011)

Nice job! I tend to just sharpen and use the old tools that I have; but I have to admit that your clean ups look absolutely fantastic. It must be a joy to use stuff that looks like it just came from the store!


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Thanks, I try not to get too carried away with it, Wrangler. I try to focus on performance details but I find it's easiest to identify problems on tools that have been completely de-funked.


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## joe bailey (Dec 15, 2011)

Nice job, Tom - that came out purdy!


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## HandToolGuy (Dec 10, 2011)

Good job!! And just in time for me: I have one a Thisbe guys and need to work on it. Thank You.


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## rayking49 (Nov 6, 2011)

Fine work!


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## RogerC (Oct 15, 2012)

I don't have time to post any questions right now, but I've got quite a few chisels that are in DIRE need of sharpening. They need some serious re-shaping because someone (who shall remain completely anonymous for fear of brutal ridicule and scorn) did some unholy things to them :icon_redface:.

Anyway, great job on the drawknife, and I'm ready to start learning...


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

Thanks.

Rodger, how many chisels? What's your starting point going to be?


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## RogerC (Oct 15, 2012)

Here's my collection of hand tools. 

I can't remember if we talked about the Stanley 5 1/2 or not, but it was my dad's and was in terrible shape. A friend from a guitar forum refurbished it for me.










The Craftsman low angle block plane I just picked up at an estate sale for $5. I'm currently trying to get it into shape. The sole wasn't flat, so I'm working it on a piece of plate glass with sandpaper stuck to it.











Then there are my chisels. These were my dad's as well and were pretty much in this shape when I got them.



















Last is my draw knife. This was a $5 garage sale find. I just used it this weekend to carve a guitar neck, so it's decently sharp, but really needs some work, I think, to be a better tool.




















I've currently got 2 guitars on the bench to finish. Once they're done, my plan is to go through all my tools (hand and power) and really get them into top shape. I've never sharpened anything before, so caring for these hand tools is something completely new to me.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

You've got some nice tools there Roger!

They will certainly clean up well. 

There is no reason the chisels can't look like this. Once you learn to sharpen it's very liberating!


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## RogerC (Oct 15, 2012)

Thanks. That's what i'm hoping for, but I have no idea where to start. The only thing I have right now is the honing guide that you see on the table there. What stones do I get, where do I get them, etc... I really need a remedial sharpening course here.


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