06-21-2019, 09:31 AM
Mr. Riggins is right. With a fine belt and a steady hand it's not only possible to sharpen a convex Japanese hair shear on a Kally, it actually works pretty well. I did just fine on my very first try. It went almost exactly as I expected.
I had a shear that had been sharpened on a Tormek, because about 12 years ago I thought I could make a decent living sharpening professionally, if I could sharpen hair shears as well as everything else. I happened to be in the right spot at the right time to meet the Godfather, Mr. Rupert Lucius. He lined me up to go out to Seattle to meet Bob Crilly, who was using a jig he designed for the Tormek. I bought his jig, and he showed me how to use it.
If you don't know who Bob Crilly is, let it suffice to say he has made a very good living, sharpening hair shears in Seattle. He's very well known in this arena. Soon after I met him, he designed a better machine, and named it the "Aquahone". He didn't change one thing on his patented jig, but since he came out with the $4500 Aquahone, the only way to get the jig is with an Aquahone. The Aquahone is very nice, but it doesn't sharpen any better than a Tormek with his jig.
I recently got a GoPro, so I recorded my first attempt with shears on a Kally. The finest belt I had was a used 800 grit Deerfoos, so I did buff the blade back to a factory mirror finish after the belt, which took maybe 10-15 seconds. I cut several slow snips on a hanging hunk of human hair right in front of the camera. I know how a shear should perform after a sharpening, and it passed with ease.
When I learn how to get this footage into a format everyone can view, it's easy to tell that this was indeed an unrehearsed, unedited first attempt. I started with a new 400 grit belt which was way too coarse for the job, but it didn't hurt anything. It just showed how quickly you can shape or reshape a convex blade, which happens to be "very".
Am I saying anyone with a Kally should immediately go freehand hair shears? Not exactly. I grind blades for a living, and I have a lot of experience on grinders of all kinds. I understand blade/edge geometry thoroughly, and I spent quite a bit of time and money learning how to sharpen hair shears. It just turned out that I didn't like sharpening as much as I thought I would.
There are a couple things I've been doing all my life, sharpening and making stuff. I still do both things, but making high end hand forged knives is more my speed than just sharpening. Interestingly, I've been talking to another very successful hair shear "sharpener" recently. He doesn't just sharpen though, he actually went overseas and learned how to Make high end hair shears. I'll have to wait a few months because this is my busiest time of the year, but I'm really looking forward to visiting him in Phoenix this fall.
I see it like this. If a guy can make high performance knives, sharpening them is a small part of the process. If a guy can make high end shears... well, shears are already just another edge to me. I think a lot of sharpeners should be able to see things the same way.
Convex hair shears don't have to be expensive. Anyone can pick up cheap convex shears, or used shears to practice on. Demystify it for yourself before buying into the unbelievable racket of convex hair shears. They're just scissors. It's just an edge.
I had a shear that had been sharpened on a Tormek, because about 12 years ago I thought I could make a decent living sharpening professionally, if I could sharpen hair shears as well as everything else. I happened to be in the right spot at the right time to meet the Godfather, Mr. Rupert Lucius. He lined me up to go out to Seattle to meet Bob Crilly, who was using a jig he designed for the Tormek. I bought his jig, and he showed me how to use it.
If you don't know who Bob Crilly is, let it suffice to say he has made a very good living, sharpening hair shears in Seattle. He's very well known in this arena. Soon after I met him, he designed a better machine, and named it the "Aquahone". He didn't change one thing on his patented jig, but since he came out with the $4500 Aquahone, the only way to get the jig is with an Aquahone. The Aquahone is very nice, but it doesn't sharpen any better than a Tormek with his jig.
I recently got a GoPro, so I recorded my first attempt with shears on a Kally. The finest belt I had was a used 800 grit Deerfoos, so I did buff the blade back to a factory mirror finish after the belt, which took maybe 10-15 seconds. I cut several slow snips on a hanging hunk of human hair right in front of the camera. I know how a shear should perform after a sharpening, and it passed with ease.
When I learn how to get this footage into a format everyone can view, it's easy to tell that this was indeed an unrehearsed, unedited first attempt. I started with a new 400 grit belt which was way too coarse for the job, but it didn't hurt anything. It just showed how quickly you can shape or reshape a convex blade, which happens to be "very".
Am I saying anyone with a Kally should immediately go freehand hair shears? Not exactly. I grind blades for a living, and I have a lot of experience on grinders of all kinds. I understand blade/edge geometry thoroughly, and I spent quite a bit of time and money learning how to sharpen hair shears. It just turned out that I didn't like sharpening as much as I thought I would.
There are a couple things I've been doing all my life, sharpening and making stuff. I still do both things, but making high end hand forged knives is more my speed than just sharpening. Interestingly, I've been talking to another very successful hair shear "sharpener" recently. He doesn't just sharpen though, he actually went overseas and learned how to Make high end hair shears. I'll have to wait a few months because this is my busiest time of the year, but I'm really looking forward to visiting him in Phoenix this fall.
I see it like this. If a guy can make high performance knives, sharpening them is a small part of the process. If a guy can make high end shears... well, shears are already just another edge to me. I think a lot of sharpeners should be able to see things the same way.
Convex hair shears don't have to be expensive. Anyone can pick up cheap convex shears, or used shears to practice on. Demystify it for yourself before buying into the unbelievable racket of convex hair shears. They're just scissors. It's just an edge.