Sharpening your own blades

[nuttychestnut]

Hi,
Can anyone point me in the right direction please. After seeing how straight forward it was to sharpen blades, can anyone recommend a sharpening stone/plain thing?!
Thanks

 

[TheEngineer]

It isn't,you cant and you will ruin them. After near on twenty years sharpening blades, I have yet to see a "DIY" home set up that works. Most people do not even have any comprehension as to what "sharp" actually equates to. I have had people touch the points of the teeth and say, "These don't need doing they are still sharp", which has no bearing on their cutting ability. A proper sharpening machine will cost about £4k but will give good consistent results. The best process is called Lapping and this imparts no damaging heat to the blades as well as removing a minimum of metal to give the best life. Anyone who turns up with a flat stone or a sanding belt,will undoubtedly have a Stetson hanging somewhere close by!

 

[applecart14]

My Dad was a machine tool fitter and service engineer for BSA machine tools for 40 odd years and has all the gear set up in his shed, lathes, grinding machines etc. He sharpened mine for me and they were fine. But then he is an expert and knows what he was doing.

He also bought a load of hardwood and tongue and grooved my trailer floor, it looks like its been done by a pro.

 

[marmalade88]

Why would you bother when you can get it done at such low prices? I used a company and it cost me approx. £15 for 4 blades, free P&P and excellent service.

 

[Prince33Sp4rkle]

Why would you bother when you can get it done at such low prices? I used a company and it cost me approx. £15 for 4 blades, free P&P and excellent service.

exactly!

 

[ester]

I have had people touch the points of the teeth and say, "These don't need doing they are still sharp", which has no bearing on their cutting ability.

wow, really!?

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

The correct equipment to do the job is expensive plus you really have to know what you mare doing or you'll ruin your blades. To recover the money spent on the machine, assuming you know how to use it, would take many many years of blade sharpening. It's not really viable, send them to someone who knows what they're doing it will be cheaper in the long run.

 

[Procrastination]

It isn't,you cant and you will ruin them. After near on twenty years sharpening blades, I have yet to see a "DIY" home set up that works. Most people do not even have any comprehension as to what "sharp" actually equates to. I have had people touch the points of the teeth and say, "These don't need doing they are still sharp", which has no bearing on their cutting ability. A proper sharpening machine will cost about £4k but will give good consistent results. The best process is called Lapping and this imparts no damaging heat to the blades as well as removing a minimum of metal to give the best life. Anyone who turns up with a flat stone or a sanding belt,will undoubtedly have a Stetson hanging somewhere close by!

Is there a good way to check if your blades need doing? Apart from when they stop cutting the hair lol

 

[happyclappy]

Don't do it.

It is not as easy as you seem to think, plus a decent stone costs a huge amount, you will spend less having them sharpened, and maintain blades for years when done professionally.

 

[applecart14]

"QUOTE" Why would you bother when you can get it done at such low prices? I used a company and it cost me approx. £15 for 4 blades, free P&P and excellent service
Read more at http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/foru...harpening-your-own-blades#HSmlfVYllFodxZ50.99 "QUOTE"

Because its a ten minute job. Why pay for something when you can just go down the shed in the garden and do it FOC??? I don't understand.

 

[ester]

Because most people wouldn't have the kit in the shed!

 

[marmalade88]

Because most people wouldn't have the kit in the shed!

That's why.

 

[WelshD]

"QUOTE" Why would you bother when you can get it done at such low prices? I used a company and it cost me approx. £15 for 4 blades, free P&P and excellent service
Read more at http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/foru...harpening-your-own-blades#HSmlfVYllFodxZ50.99 "QUOTE"

Because its a ten minute job. Why pay for something when you can just go down the shed in the garden and do it FOC??? I don't understand.

Because your dad has the kit and the knowledge

Even if you went down to the shed and were presented with the right tools you wouldn't know what to do, now consider that same situation for someone not possessing the right tools

 

[applecart14]

Why would you bother when you can get it done at such low prices? I used a company and it cost me approx. £15 for 4 blades, free P&P and excellent service.

I know most people don't have the kit. But I was responding to Marmalade88s question to me about why I would do this when I can get it done cheap.

 

[ester]

I think she was replying to the thread, not you specifically.

 

[marmalade88]

I wasn't aimed specifically at you. geez.

 

[nuttychestnut]

Oh I had no idea it was £4k to buy the tools. It really didn't look that much when I saw it done. Looked like a flat cheese grater and was a manual device.
Checked out the videos on YouTube for small blades, ie hair clippers but just thought it could be transferred to horse blades.
The reason I asked was I would like to be able to do it whenever I wanted, ie after each full clip, plus it's nice to be able to learn a new skill.

 

[TheEngineer]

Horse/cattle blades are done on a separate type of machine to trimmer blades. You can by a machine to do trimmer blades for a couple of grand, but problems will arise if you try and use it for horse blades. There have been several people marketing "Gadgets" like round plates with grinding paste which allegedly "sharpen" or "prolong" blade life, but I have never come across one that works. Most blade firms are around £8 inc postage and it does not take 10 minutes. If it is done in ten minutes it is not being done right. People are always looking to get blades done "cheap" or "DIY" because like many things people have de valued "skill". I once worked for a company where the boss told me "Monkeys can sharpen blades" In the years since I left, they have got through lots of monkeys and destroyed a vast number of blades. Damage caused by badly sharpened blades, accounts for a big chunk of clipper repairs, sharp, well sharpened blades run with less friction and cut at the proper tension, thus putting less strain on the motor and clipper components and prolonging the life of both your machine and blades. The sharpening debate is a bit like the "WD40" debate. There is always someone who knows someone, who has always used WD40 and it is fantastic, best clipper lubricant out. It isn't, it destroys clippers and causes ££££'s worth of damage. People say "I don't buy clipper oil, because it is a rip of by the manufacturers". Manufacturers recommend clipper oil,because it is the best thing to use, but people will still use something else to save a quid. Not that I mind,it helps pay my wages. My advice on this forum has always been to try and give some "free" knowledge, no one has to listen.

 

[TheEngineer]

My Dad was a machine tool fitter and service engineer for BSA machine tools for 40 odd years and has all the gear set up in his shed, lathes, grinding machines etc. He sharpened mine for me and they were fine. But then he is an expert and knows what he was doing.

He also bought a load of hardwood and tongue and grooved my trailer floor, it looks like its been done by a pro.

Exactly,if he was a machine tool fitter, he will understand "steel" and have the knowledge and machinery, lucky to have a proper "old school engineer" in the family.

 

[nuttychestnut]

After this thread I have at least learnt what to questions to ask when getting my blades sharpened. Time to change supplier I think!
Thank you for the advice. Ps regarding the oil, I was recently advised to use proper oil and not an aerosol, best tip ever!

 

[TheEngineer]

No,sadly not. The only way is basically if they have stopped cutting, they are blunt. Simple as that. If you are having to increase tension and they are overheating, that is the other good sign they are going blunt. It always pays to stop when this occurs, as you tend to annoy the horse, but also, the more pressure you put on the blades, sometimes the more material has to come off to sharpen them correctly.

 

[Northern Hare]

No,sadly not. The only way is basically if they have stopped cutting, they are blunt. Simple as that. If you are having to increase tension and they are overheating, that is the other good sign they are going blunt. It always pays to stop when this occurs, as you tend to annoy the horse, but also, the more pressure you put on the blades, sometimes the more material has to come off to sharpen them correctly.

That's very helpful info thanks! Can I just ask, when clipping a TB type horse with clean and dry coat, how many full/hunter clips would you expect a pair of sharpened blades to clip before being re-sharpened?

 

[TheEngineer]

I normally estimate 2 to 3 clips from a sharp set of blades on a clean well groomed horse. Oiled every ten mins with proper oil,but I have seen variations from half a horse (scurvy/greasy coat/not properly groomed and rolling about in a sand school, to 30!!! Yes 30.from one of my old customers years ago who was in the Household Calvary. But when he showed me their horses I knew why. Spotless immaculate coats groomed shampood and looking stunning, clean well maintained clippers and proper oil.