Following your post, I purchased a "cabinet scraper". This scraper is approximately 1/16" thick and is made by Sandvik. Could you tell me how sharp this is supposed to be - should it be as sharp as a knife (with little thickness)or is the metal edge to be sharp? I've tried it on some epoxy runs and it will remove thin strips but it takes quite a bit of work. Thanks.

> John,

> In todays high tech age of power tools and high production requirements,
> where it is nearly possible to insert a piece of lumber into one end of a
> machine and retrieve a completed piece of furniture out of the other end,
> the cabinet scraper is almost obsolete. However, it is still a very
> popular item amongst those artisans that specialize in crafting truly high
> quality and custom furniture.

> The most common cabinet scraper is a rectangular piece of steel about 2
> 1/2" x 5" x 1/6". It excels at smoothing wood surfaces
> (such as burls or any wood that has erratic grain run-out) that would be
> difficult to smooth with any other tool. It is particularly helpful in
> removing surface imperfections such as burn and saw marks (and epoxy
> runs). They are also available with concave or convex edges which are
> handy for smoothing similarly shaped surfaces. It is used by holding it
> between the thumb and fingers, slightly bending the blade, and with both
> hands either pushing or pulling it across the surface of the wood.

> If it has been sharpened correctly, it will cut a super-thin shaving and
> leave a very smooth surface. It should be noted however, that like all
> cutting tools, in order to be effective it must be VERY SHARP. Emphasize
> SHARP. In my opinion, it is a tool that everyone should have in their tool
> chest. Paint scrapers generally have a handle and are meant to do more of
> the rough-out work such as removing gobs of glue sqeeze-out and, like
> cabinet scrapers, can be found in a number of different profiles.

> Joe Greenley