Bonsai tool set

[Cadillactaste]

I don't plan on sharpening my tools. I'll send them away where my husband sends his. Its someone the Lumberyard uses. We drop them off there. The place can sharpen stainless so no biggie on that aspect. I also have by far...few trees compared to most. So my tools won't be as worked over as some. Its a hobby that I plan on keeping in check with how many trees I own. (Or so I say now) lol

Besides it's a gift...so I'll keep them. I doubt they will get as worked over as some more enthusiasts bonsai folk who have more trees to work. I doubt I even use some of the tools in the kit. He got his advice from a friend of mine in the UK who is a bonsai guy. He actually prefers his SS over his other tools. Stainless might not be for everyone...but overall I would think this would hold up over some cheaper quality tools I've seen.

 

[Paulpash]

A good tutorial on sharpening tools is needed methinks, especially concave or knob cutters - they're always a pain to re sharpen!

Vance, what about one of your YouTube specials some time? Or has a good video been done already for bonsai tool sharpening?

 

[Vance Wood]

A good tutorial on sharpening tools is needed methinks, especially concave or knob cutters - they're always a pain to re sharpen!

Vance, what about one of your YouTube specials some time? Or has a good video been done already for bonsai tool sharpening?

I have not thought of doing that it's something I can do to my liking but I am sure it would draw a good deal of criticism from those that would have better technique and information. Some people do not like their tools as sharp as I like mine. My problem is the concave cutters and the like. You can seriously screw those up if they are not sharpened properly.

 

[Paulpash]

I have not thought of doing that it's something I can do to my liking but I am sure it would draw a good deal of criticism from those that would have better technique and information. Some people do not like their tools as sharp as I like mine. My problem is the concave cutters and the like. You can seriously screw those up if they are not sharpened properly.

It really annoys me that the prospect of people being an a**hole would put off someone like yourself making this - I know i'd certainly benefit.

Do you sharpen one side of the scissors - both? How? What sharpening stones are used for the best effect? How can you test if you've done it right ? Do you sharpen down the tool edge?

There are lots of ways you could possibly do it but I suspect many of them are not the best! A video is a great teacher.

 

[jk_lewis]

A little search discovered:

https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/sharpen.htm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VooOU6oKDQ

http://www.inlandbonsai.com/articles/ToolCare/ToolCare.pdf

and there's more . . .

 

[Vance Wood]

It really annoys me that the prospect of people being an a**hole would put off someone like yourself making this - I know i'd certainly benefit.

Do you sharpen one side of the scissors - both? How? What sharpening stones are used for the best effect? How can you test if you've done it right ? Do you sharpen down the tool edge?

There are lots of ways you could possibly do it but I suspect many of them are not the best! A video is a great teacher.

Goes to show you:----No matter what I do it's not right and someone will get pissed off. I guess my problem here is that I am not sure what I do is the right way to do it and I am getting a bit weary of people telling me so.

But as far as scissors are concerned they should only be sharpened on the angled side not the flat side. If you start running the flat side of the blade across a stone you are grinding metal off of that surface; not the thing to do because the functionality of the edge is dependent on the accuracy and relationship with the opposing blade.

The way you sharpen an edge is to think in terms of trying to shave a little off the stone with the edge you are trying to sharpen. If you pull the stone across the blade you wear the blade down but don't actually improve the dedge. I guess I am talking myself into this aren't I???

 

[Skinnygoomba]

It really annoys me that the prospect of people being an a**hole would put off someone like yourself making this - I know i'd certainly benefit.

Do you sharpen one side of the scissors - both? How? What sharpening stones are used for the best effect? How can you test if you've done it right ? Do you sharpen down the tool edge?

There are lots of ways you could possibly do it but I suspect many of them are not the best! A video is a great teacher.

there are many bonsai tools which take an advanced ability to sharpen. For the casual user you are better off having a professional resharpen the tools.

I have hundreds of dollars in sharpening equipment because I sharpen woodworking tools regularly. Buying all that for a once a year tune up on your scissors seems like a waste.

For the advanced user, I would start by mastering knives and single blades tools before moving onto scissors. There is a lot to working a set of scissors that complicates them. I'm with Vance in that I will work the bevel and do not touch the backs except to remove the wire edge, and I'm usually doing that with my finest grit stone so that a bare minimum of material is removed. I have also had to get into tightening the rivet.

Concave cutters and knob cutters require specialty stones and again it is for the advanced sharpener. The method shown in the above video is not a method I would use personally. He does not feel for the bevel and will eventually create a very rounded bevel which will feel sharp and not cut. To repair that will require a complete regrinding of the bevel and complete reworking of the tool by the manufacturer.

 

[Paulpash]

I've seen the video before but he doesn't appear an expert in sharpening - just my impression though.

 

[Poink88]

I've seen the video before but he doesn't appear an expert in sharpening - just my impression though.

Correct impression.

I am with Skinnygoomba. Work with a simple knife then move on. My preference is a single bevel chisel. Once you properly understood how and why the bevel works, you can apply that to multitude of tools...scissors and concave cutters alike. They are just like chisels cutting in tandem.

I also agree with Vance. Scissors are NEVER sharpened in the flat side (inside) unless you have to. It is always the bevel edge you sharpen since making a mistake on the inside will make the edges NOT meet (as Vance said, may be sharp but won't cut)...because there is a space between the edges. The blade is also curved and should apply pressure against each other as you close it...that helps make a good cut throughout the length of the blade. Sharpening the flat side can change this.

Understanding how a chisel cuts will help you understand how concave cutters cut. Try using a chisel (perfectly vertical) against the end of a (horizontal) wood (w/ a 90* cut face/edge), bevel facing the wood edge...observe how it cuts. Now turn the chisel with flat side facing the edge and make another cut. Did you notice the chisel go out and not cut vertically on the 2nd cut? Understand why that is and you will start mastering how most cutting tools work....then properly sharpen or fix as needed.

Good luck!

 

[Poink88]

A good tutorial on sharpening tools is needed methinks, especially concave or knob cutters - they're always a pain to re sharpen!

Vance, what about one of your YouTube specials some time? Or has a good video been done already for bonsai tool sharpening?

BTW, read the part about "typical grinds" here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grind

Most people who sharpen accidentally change the tool's grind w/o knowing it...ergo changing how the tool cuts.

Going back to the scissors...the scissor have simple chisel grind on each blade. If you sharpen the inside (flat side), you will very likely give it a secondary bevel on the INNER SIDE. The 2 edges will not meet because of that and will not shear as expected.

PROPER concave cutters and knob cuttres should be the same...but both flat sides are now outside the cutter and both beveled side inside. I said "proper" since new tools seem to have been re-designed to have a bevel on the outside of the inner blade (note that one blade goes under one by a tiny bit). This is a big step back in the tool design done for ease of manufacture at the expense of the tool working less effectively. To understand what I mean, go back to the chisel cutting example.

 

[nersveen]

I am looking at getting a Stainless steel bonsai kit, found a brand called
Tinyroots said to be made in Japan. Any info will be great on quality wise.

http://www.bonsaioutlet.com/tinyroots-ultimate-package-stainless-steel-tool-kit-trk-07/
Thanks.

Many people have replied to this thread, but most are off-topic. The question was an inquiry about the TINY ROOTS STAINLESS STEEL TOOLSET - it's qualities etc.

I purchased the TINYROOTS 11-piece Stainless Steel tool kit that comes in 2015 which came in a handsome Bamboo briefcase-style box. (I personally don't keep my tools in a briefcase, but it's nice to have. I was impressed that these were "made from the finest, hardened Japanese-grade stainless steel and the price was great also (in 2015 - now it price is nearly equivalent to the average price you'd pay for 11 individual Japanese non-stainless steel tool you'd typically get from a vendor at a bonsai show. So, I paid about $250 for the $11 piece boxed set in 2016.

I wrote out a full review below I'll leave it up to you if you want to read more, but here are the results after owning the 11-piece TINY ROOTS stainless steel toolset.

A) Despited being properly stored in airtight containers 8 out of 11 tools have significant rust, and deeply pitted rust spots.

B) The cutting edges on 9 out of 11 tools, plus the saw are made of such poor quality, and are so deeply scratched all the way across the cutting blades, which as a result are all incredibly dull, and according to my tool man, are NOT EVEN WORTH SHARPENING.

I also have about a half dozen OTHER JAPANESE GRADE STAINLESS STEEL TOOL which I've owned many years longer, and that is stored in the same waterproof container (with several of those moisture absorbing sachets inside the container), and they are ALL SHARP, rust-free, no pits, no deep gouges and they all work flawlessly 5 and 10 years after purchase.

Conclusion: I STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST the purchase of any and all stainless steel bonsai tools made by TINY ROOTS. They are a total loss in just 4 years. My OLD, OLD black steel tool are in far better shape.

I'll post a detailed review of the tools as another entry for those that want more information.

 

[nersveen]

Detailed TINY ROOTS 11-PIECE BOXED STAINLESS STEEL TOOLSET REVIEW

When the boxed set of stainless steel tools came, I was initially VERY IMPRESSED with the machine quality and bright matte grey "high quality, hardened Japanese-grade stainless steel finish. They were all incredibly sharp and they all felt like ultra-high quality precision tools. I couldn't wait to get started using them.

Fast forward 6 years, and I have a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT outlook after using these tools. It is now very clear at this point that all but 2 of these tools are NOT made with "high-quality, hardened, surgical grade stainless steel" as advertised. 9 of the 11 stainless TINY ROOTS tools now have significant have scattered surface rust. Some tools also have scattered deep pitted rust damage spots, despite having been stored every day in a waterproof food storage container with along 4-5 desiccant anti-moisture packs.

I was under the impression that hardened top-grade Japanese stainless steel was A) water and rust-resistant - these are NOTt, and B) that quality hardened stainless bonsai tools were durable and would be extremely HARD and hold their shape and remain shape - no, and no on these tools.

These tools were WELL taken care of, and stored in a sealed container away from moisture. Despite NEVER ONCE being used to cut through wire, all of the scissor cutting blades LOOK like they were used constantly regularly for cutting wire. Each blade had deep pits in the metal-metal - deep, long scratches in each blade blades which as a result are now all jagged and very dull, after just 4 years of moderate use. The blades gouge VERY easily and become jagged quite fast and stainless steel tools generally require professional sharpening. I took the tools to my sharpening guy, and he said "don't bother" they'll cost a lot of time and money to sharpen, and they'll never be right. Throw them out and buy new ones from a reputable manufacturer".

In addition to this tool-set, also own half a dozen other American and Japanese stainless steel tools purchased separately, which are far older and have seen much more work. Yet none of them has ANY rust, and the blades are still relatively sharp ever since I purchased them new, and there are no pitting or deep gouges anywhere on the tool surface. These tools are 10-20 years old, and the stainless steel, while not perfect, is in FAR, FAR, better shape than my 4-year old TINYROOTS stainless steel tools.

A SINGLE PLUS - The cheapest two tools in this kit are the rake and the tweezers - THEY ARE the ONLY 2 out of 11 tools that can be used beyond the 4-year mark after purchase. Whatever type of stainless steel those two instruments are made out of, have no scratches, bends, pits, or rust spots of ANY kind (neither do any of my OTHER stainless steel bonsai tools.


So, in conclusion: Your question is not whether or not you spend about $300 for a nice LOOKING TINYROOTS toolset? The question you SHOULD ask yourself is Do I really want to spend $300 on a rake and pair of tweezers? That's all you have after 4 years.