Sharpening by Dewitt

My name is Steven DEWITT Rodrigue.

My sharpening skills began in 1978, when I was working for a general contractor. On Fridays, we would meet at the end of a work week, and I would sharpen his Skillsaw blades. (They didn't have carbide tipped blades in those days)

I would soon join the military, spending 3 of my 8 enlisted years as a woodworker. I subscribed to some woodworking magazines, played around with my hand planes and chisels throughout the years, and bought my very first set of Sandvick chisels in 1983.  I taught myself how to keep those chisels sharp by polishing the back side, so the front part of the blade would be very sharp.

Stationed in Germany, I learned allot of old world furniture wood working skills which helped me land my first job out of the service, here in Florida.   My new employer was a bit surprised that I wanted to use up my 30 days of accumulated leave time before starting my new job, however, I worked there for 5 years, learning many new skills as a wood worker and a machine set up/operator.  With those 5 years under my belt, I became a partner in the same business for some 20 odd years.

Towards the end of my wood craftsman career, I found myself working for a high end furniture making company in Saint Augustine. There, for 3 years, I learned many, many, sharpening skills from using all kinds of hand planes, scrapers and chisels.                                                                                                                                                             With all of my accumulated skills, I ventured into a new small business of my own.  I started my sharpening business out of the back of my car with a tent.  I found that there was a real need for my services and I loved being around folks, appreciating what I could do for them and teaching them about the knives they brought to me.  After a successful first year, I found that I could cut down on allot of set up and breakdown time by setting up a permanent trailer to work out of, which I customized to my needs.

Now, my best advertisement is my reputation of being the very best at my sharpening skills.  I teach folks how they can keep their knives sharp at home and I share with them my number one rule when they are sharpening.

"If you don’t have a burr, you don’t have 💩!"  We all have fun learning!