...by Leonard Lee. The copy I've been reading has gone back to the library, but it has been put on our to-buy list.
It takes on the topic of sharpening from first principles, with numerous electron microscope photographs of edges, and pages of discussion about what is happening on a microscopic level when a woodworking tool is used on wood, or when a tool is sharpened and honed.
Next comes information on tools and techniques for sharpening, including commercial and homemade jigs (guides/supports). Lee is mindful of the low-budget reader, and gives lower-cost options and recommendations on what to buy first.
In the following chapters, he gives specific and extensive instructions on sharpening every bladed woodworking tool I'd ever heard of, and some that I hadn't. Saws and bits are included. Common household tools like hammers, kitchen knives, pocket knives, scissors, and tweezers are also covered.
Not included: reel mowers--which are really a special case under the Scissors category, and usually need only re-alignment, rather than sharpening--and scythes.
Lee is or was a tool manufacturer, and gives a lot of hints about to recognize, care for, and skillfully use well-made tools, including how to fine-tune their sharpening for the intended purpose.
I'd consider this book for homeschooling curriculum, mainly for high school students who are strong and careful readers. The prose and pacing aren't dumbed down or drawn out. But even the photographs and diagrams are highly educational in themselves.
I found it interesting that much of the book was basically an introduction to metalworking for woodworkers.
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