Sharpening scissors

[gqualls]

I have several pairs of Dr. Slick scissors that are in need of a good sharpening. After thousands of flies they are not as sharp as they used to be. I've contacted the manufacturer and after paying shipping cost and the cost to sharpen each pair I'm better off just buying new scissors. So my questions is do you know someone who can sharpen them correctly and if so do you know the cost. If you can recommend someone I'd appreciate it.

Thank you

Greg

[tedshuck]

Greg,
You can do it yourself. It really isn't very hard to do if you have a steady hand and a sharpening stone. You just need to understand how the scissors were sharpened by the manufacturer. You can determine the sharpening angle by looking at the scissors with a magnifying lens to determine the angle of the bevel on the cutting edge.
Open the scissors as wide as they will go. Hold one of the blades with the bevel down and the face of the blade (the part that rubs with the other blade) facing away from you. Put the bevel down on the sharpening stone so that the bevel is flat on the stone. Pull the blade towards you, rubbing the bevel on the stone. This should form a slight burr on the cutting edge of the blade. If there is no burr, keep doing it until you get a slight burr. Do the same for the other blade. Your scissors are now sharp.

Ted

[James Smith]

Greg, I sent you a PM.

Jim

[gqualls]

Thank you Tedshuck for all the information.
Thank you James for your PM.
I appreciate what both of you have offered.

[Silver Creek]

I have several pairs of Dr. Slick scissors that are in need of a good sharpening. After thousands of flies they are not as sharp as they used to be. I've contacted the manufacturer and after paying shipping cost and the cost to sharpen each pair I'm better off just buying new scissors. So my questions is do you know someone who can sharpen them correctly and if so do you know the cost. If you can recommend someone I'd appreciate it.

Thank you

Greg

This was recently asked on another BB. This is what I wrote:

You will need 600 grit sandpaper, a smooth piece of glass, a black Sharpie marker and aluminum foil.

Do not work on the inside of the blade, scissors are not like a knife they have only 1 bevel or angle per blade, on the outside.

Open the scissors and color the outside beveled edges of the scissor blades with the Sharpie marker. Place the sandpaper grit side up on the piece of glass. The glass insures that the surface of the sandpaper will be absolutely level.

Place the beveled edge of one side of the scissor blade on the sandpaper and stroke the beveled edge AWAY from the sharp edge of the scissor blade. This will form a metal burr on the INSIDE edge of the blade.

As you stroke, check the bevel to make sure that the black ink is being remove evenly along the entire bevel. This ensures you are maintaining the same bevel angle. You will also be able to see any dings on the cutting edge. If there are dings, you will need to remove enough metal to remove the ding.

Then do the other blade. You will then have two blades with a metal burr metal on the inside of the scissor blade from tip to hinge. Do the sharpening under a good light you can see the burr form. You can also feel the burr.

The next step is to bend this metal burr to the outside of the blades. Use finger pressure to keep the blades from touching and close the scissors. Now open the blades and the burrs will hook each other and bend to the outside. Now you can slice the aluminum foil to remove the burr.

I use a different material for sharpening. I use a soft Arkansas whetstone (novaculite) that I lubricate with water. However, you need to reserve one only for scissors. If you use it to sharpen knives, it can get worn unevenly.

NOTE: I would NOT use a sharpening stone that has been used to sharpen knives UNLESS you are very certain the face of the stone is ABSOLUTELY FLAT. Any uneven wear on the face of the stone will cause uneven removal of metal from the cutting edge of the scissors. That is the reason for sharpening on a piece of flat glass.

[gqualls]

Thank you for this response Silver; much appreciated.