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card scraper and wide cabinet scraper - how close are these tools?

2K views 12 replies 10 participants last post by  therealSteveN 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I was planing some maple the other day that was giving me some trouble with tear out. I had been rehabing my great grandfathers cabinet scraper and decided to give it a go. admittedly i don't have it tuned up perfectly but I was still less than impressed with the cuts I was getting but i did enjoy the ergonomics of the tool.

after some disappointment I pulled out my new wide card scraper. This piece of hardware is an additional 1" wider than the standard card scrapers you get and proportionately taller as well. the larger size makes it easier to flex into the cut and the additional width gives means you need to take fewer passes to cover the same area. the only downside in comparison to the cabinet scraper is that your thumbs still get a little fatigued.

I know they are fundamentally different tools but honestly for working wood that is giving you tear out is it worth getting the cabinet scraper up and running or will the extra wide card scraper be able to handle the work. I know a standard card scraper might be too much of a pain to do the job of a cabinet scraper but this wide boy is a little easier to use and has some benefits that might just push out the cabinet scraper. What do you all think?

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PS I am so tired of my pictures being uploaded frigin sideways, it seems like no matter what I do lumberjocks just tips them on their side. any advice on that front would also be appreciated
 

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#2 ·
Hi,

I use a cabinet scraper all the time (can't hold card scrapers because of a problem with my hands). In my experience you need to sharpen the blade at 45°, then burnish a very slight hook towards the back (away from the bevel). Put the scraper body on your workpiece and drop the blade in loose with the bevel facing the back. Tighten it down from the front, then apply a small amount of pressure from the rear screw to flex the blade. I find that's enough to give me a fine shaving. Some people like to use a strip of paper to raise the body up when setting the blade to give them a slightly deeper cut - I find that's a bit too thick for the work I do.

Veritas have a nice instruction manual for their cabinet scraper, it's worth a look: here

I hope that helps.

Take care and stay safe,

Grant.
 
#3 ·
No advice on the scrapper question but I assume you are using your phone or tablet for the pictures. What works for me to correct the orientation bug on LJ is after taking the picture, tap edit on the device and make any minor change to the image. I usually select crop and make a tiny little change. This has never failed on my Apple devices. I usually do a preview after uploading the images just in case I forgot to fix one of them before uploading. I seem to recall seeing that there is a trick to avoiding the problem in the first place. Something about which way to hold the phone when taking a picture in landscape. There might be a forum topic out there about it.
 
#5 ·
I think once you've mastered the cabinet scraper, it will become part of your arsenal. There's usually not much to tuning a cabinet scraper except getting the hook right and angle right. If you don't have angle adjustment it's back to all about the hook.
 
#7 ·
I think once you ve mastered the cabinet scraper, it will become part of your arsenal. There s usually not much to tuning a cabinet scraper except getting the hook right and angle right. If you don t have angle adjustment it s back to all about the hook.

- Don W
+1 I have cards that get used in small areas or on small pieces. But I have a couple of different cabinet scrapers that do the heavy lifting. Once you get it tuned properly (which isn't terribly hard just takes some practice) you'll be glad you did. Your thumbs in particular will thank you.
 
#8 ·
The maple doesn't look particularly difficult.
So recommend you spend more time on your plane blades. I think you can get it smooth with a smoother

Good Luck

- Aj2
looks can be deceiving, you might not be able to tell from just looking at it. I am sure most woodworkers have run into a board that looks like it will be much easier to plane than it actually is.
 
#9 ·
I have also been thinking about getting a replacement blade for the cabinet scraper as the one I inherited did not have an easy life. I know that pitting makes a difference in how a bench plane performs but i am wondering if the cabinet scraper will have the same issue, since you are relying on the bur to do the cutting and not necessarily the meeting of the back and bevel to create a sharp edge. It seems like you might be able to compensate for some pitting by adjusting the bur in that area. has anyone done this?
 
#10 ·
You want an even burr all the way across. If your burr is heavier in areas, it defeats the purpose because you'll have scratches where that section went. If the pitting is bad enough you can't roll an even burr, I would definitely look into replacing it.
 
#13 ·
I agree the card scraper is a must know tool. Everything improves once you understand them. Some of the bench scrapers, not so much.

The Maple looks like it has some curl. Curl causes difficulty going straight at it, you get the cah chunks from it. If you are addressing it from a good angle, and still having problems you need one of 2 things.

1) Sharper edges

2) shallower passes.
 
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