scraper?

[adb]

Good quality, sharp tools I can't live without. One of the things I like about this scraper holder is I can bend the scraper to allow work on flat belly wood. The burnishing tool also allows me to get a nice burr on the scraper's edge, and I can adjust the burr angle to provide more or less wood removal. I truly believe these simple hand tools have made me a better bowyer.

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[knap_123]

good info guys, i've been using a textile knife but i feel i ned something different.  how do you sharpen your scrapers?  do you want it flat or beveled on 1 side like a scissor edge?

[Pat B]

Ideally you want the edge to be flat with it's edges rolled at a slight angle.
 To do this I clamp my scraper in a vise with about 1/2" above the vise. I use a flat file to true up the flat edge then with a burnisher(a round screw driver shank will work) I rub it down that edge with a slight angle to each side of that edge.   Sometimes I will just lay the scraper edge on my belt sander to flatten it.

[Jesse]

I also use that scraper burnishing too from veritas like Adb. You can set that thing so it peels the wood like a potato and then tune it down when you want less. I should learn to sharpen stuff better by hand but my results on knives and such have been mixed so I tend to rely on sharpening gadgets

[the q force]

for heavy dutty scraping, i use an old machete i've had laying round for years, the blade side i use as a draw knife, and i flattened and tolled the edges on the back side to use as the scraper; it gets dull rather quick, but thats why god gave us the grinder    You kiinda have to wear leather gloves when using this contraption of mine since no matter where you are holding it from there is a sharp edge

for careful jobs i use a buck knife.

[TRACY]

Just about any metal piece that is filed and burnished right works for me. Your hands and forearms will let you know when you have the right edge I like that Veritas, someday maybe.

Tracy

[knap_123]

i've been outside playing with some scissors tht seem to work pretty well for now.  but i will try some saw blades later.

[Dane]

I would highly recommend going to the library or buying "Hand Tools: Their Ways and Workings" by Aldren A. Watson. It is published by Norton, and is a treasure trove of information on how to optimize and use hand tools, including scrapers. He not only talks about flat scrapers, but how to make and use scrapers from piston rings, from the tangs of old files for grooves and making rounded moldings, etc.

This book really taught me how to use a draw knife and spokeshave as well, for chamering, fine scraping and wood removal, making curved surfaces, rough stock removal, almost all things that a bow maker does. The illustrations are just amazing, too.

Dane

[George Tsoukalas]

I used to use an old meat cleaver. Now I use a Swedish push knife. I also use cooper's tools and a jack knife. Jawge

[rkeltner]

being a production machinist, i have access to all kinds of goodies, and i've found the best scraper(in my opinion) is one made from a worn out, all hard, indrustrial hacksaw blade. at about .100 thick, it's absolutely rigid, and when properly sharpened, it will raise a curl hefty enough to equal a fine file, or take as small an amount as you might want to do! i have several that i've made, but my favorite is about 2 1/2" wide by about 6" long. probably the only downside is the fact that rolling a burr requires carbide. i've solved that by putting a carbide round in the drill press, and run the scraper along the spinning carbide at an angle so that it pulls a burr over. great tool!

[sailordad]

i would love to own scrapers that nice.
i am definatly a tool guy,however my tools make my living and this is just a hobby so i cant justify that kind of money just to play.
but hey to each his own,someday maybe my wife or kids will be generous enough and get me some sweet scrapers as gifts.
one can only hope.

                                                             peace,
                                                                    tim

[Dane]

Tim, part of making bows and atlatls and stuff is to keep sane, and to keep in perspective what is important, after coming home from a long day with nasty clients, traffic jams, all of that real life fun. Isn't a six buck scraper worth it? When I buy any tool, though, I justify it by the other tasks I can use for it, in almost all cases.

Dane

[sailordad]

Tim, part of making bows and atlatls and stuff is to keep sane, and to keep in perspective what is important, after coming home from a long day with nasty clients, traffic jams, all of that real life fun. Isn't a six buck scraper worth it? When I buy any tool, though, I justify it by the other tasks I can use for it, in almost all cases.

Dane

dane,
i agree for the most part.i am an auto tech by trade so ya a $6 tool isnt spendy,i am just cheap.
if a tool isnt making me money or isnt aboslutely neccesary i realy cant justify the purchase.
plus i like to make my own tools for making bows, or as Clint Eastwood said in his movie HEARTBREAK RIDGE, "adapt,improvise,overcome"
something else ive learned after 20+ years of turning wrenches.this is a must when being a tech,cause nobody has every tool and sometimes ya just gotta
adapt,improvise overcome.
and like i said,i am cheap but if the wife or kids wanted to buy them for me i woldnt say no

[bcbull]

 i set and algin mechinery  by trade as a millwright  i found some good old shim stock  make s great scrapers i file the edge  then roll a burri have a preformax wet stone that keeps em sharp as i want em  also i use a wood craft  scraper sharpning system perfect edge every time and i roll the burr right there on the pin   brock

[knap_123]

what doe roll he burr mean?
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