“Being the tightwad that I am, I don’t like paying $15+shipping for
a chisel. I have had excellent results with a good old X-Acto #17
chisel blade,” said Ken Rickman. “The key to getting good results is
to have it sharp! … I lay a sheet of 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper on
a flat surface, and hone the blade, back first to flatten it, then the
bevel. A drop of water or light oil like kerosene helps a lot. With
this technique, I’ve been using the same chisel blade for many
months now, maybe years. Hand sharpening does tend to round
the corners a little, which is good for preventing gouging.”
A good sharpening stone also works.
“If I needed to get into a really tight space,” Ken said, “I’d care-
fully grind away part of the width of the blade with a Dremel
tool, or buy a narrower blade. After shaping, I’d re-sharpen the
