How To Sharpen Hole Punch Tool?

[HC009]

Hi,

I have a hole punch tool and have hardly used it at all and already, it is loosing it's sharpness. Has anybody found a way of keeping it sharp - could I strop it or should I use something else for making holes?

[Drake42]

Hello,

I have found you can sharpen it similarly to a swivel knife with some jeweler's rouge and cardboard. Just need to make sure you keep turning it between strokes and not change your angle so you don't roll tip.

Cheers

[HC009]

Ok, just found some jeweller's rouge on ebay which is cheap so I will give it a shot. Thank you for your help.

[Drake42]

Any time.

[Sona]

It just depends on its condition. If you just need to strop it, some rouge/polishing paste or sth different would do it. But it is dull, you might take it to a water-/oilstone and sharpen it, before sitting a few hours stropping it to death.
And just a tip: polish the shaft of the tool. It really makes a difference! It will slide better into and out of the leather, because there is much less friction! Well with the shaft I actually don´t mean the handle, more the cone-shaped end of it ;)Just to be sure!

Edited July 9, 2014 by Sona

[Nuttish]

Ditto waterstone and extending the bevel above the thickness of your leather. Tools never come from the factory very sharp. I treat mine like woodworking chisels and eyeball scary sharp edges on a combination 800/6000 Japanese waterstone. You don't have to go that fine — it's just what I have that's not an orange/grey Norton stone. I guess you could make a jig, but this isn't fine woodworking. Eyeballing works just fine.

You will not enjoy removing a much material as you need to using a strop and rouge.

[mlapaglia]

This might help. Its from Leathercraft-Tools-by-Al-Stohlman.

[HC009]

The diagram is brilliant! Thank you.

[mlapaglia]

The entire book is about how to use and sharpen most leather tools. A must have. Tandy has it as a digital download for about 10 bucks

[carver]

I put mine in a cordless drill or my drill press turn at low speeds or you will burn the metal . it its not real dull I hold wood mounted leather strop to the ege if its pretty dull I will use a diamond stone or even a fine file . the trick is to adjust your sharpening media to the correct angle. I find this process allows me use both hands and I can control the angle better than I could trying to use a strop or sharpening stone by hand . Caution against too much pressure and dont go to to fine of a angle or the edge collapses and you have to start over.

[Gump]

To keep your hole punch from going dull, use a piece of scrap leather between your work and the anvil, so that the cutting edge never touches metal. I haven't had to sharpen my hole punch in a lot of years by using this method. Gump