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+--- Thread: Lincoln and the axe (/showthread.php?tid=272)
Lincoln and the axe - Ken S - 02-09-2018
"Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spent four hours sharpening the axe."
This quote, and many versions of it, are often attributed to Abraham Lincoln. (Not all scholars agree.) While it extols the virtues of good preparation and using sharp tools, Lincoln must not have been much of a sharpener. We often praise a job for the amount of work and time which went into it. If that was really the case, the hours I spent freehand sharpening a chisel with my venerable oilstones would be far more praiseworthy than Grepper's quick once over kally treatment with a 150 belt and a leather belt, no matter what the BESS numbers indicated. Sadly, Mr. Oilstones (or Mr. Water-Stones) will often be perceived as a more skillful and dedicated sharpener than Mr. Grepper, who must be taking cheap short cuts instead of taking the time to "do the job right". His cutting a fishline does not seem nearly as impressive as operatically slicing a piece of paper.
I recently needed to have my garage refrigerator repaired. As a friendly old telephone troubleshooter, I enjoy talking with repair people. The repairman diagnosed the trouble before he got out of his truck. Ohio winter+frig in unheated garage = no heater unit installed. He deftly installed the unit in five minutes. Some people would have thought he didn't do much; I was impressed with his skill. Problem solved.
I appreciate the skill Grepper has shown and shared. He correctly analyzed the kind of sharp (toothy) edge needed to do the task properly, and found a direct and efficient way to achieve that edge. And to measure it. While I admire President Lincoln as a great man, I would prefer to have Mr. Grepper do my sharpening.
Ken
ps Grepper's new knife sharpening jig ain't too shabby, either.
RE: Lincoln and the axe - Mike Brubacher - 02-14-2018
You know Ken that George Washington had an axe and used that axe to chop down cherry trees and all scholars agree on that because young George admitted to willfully committing the act. If he'd spent more time tossing silver dollars across the Potomac he might not have received this blemish on his juvenile record. Which brings me to Grepper because he is presidential material as well. He's single handedly united us all behind toothy edges and has shown great leadership in doing so. I say Grepper in 2020!