Stopped by an old hardware store in rural Pennsylvania last month and noticed they still sharpen lawn mower blades by hand

The guy behind the counter has been doing it for 40+ years. Charged me $8 for a set of three blades and I watched him file each one with a old school hand file clamped to the bench. Took maybe 7 minutes each. My mower cuts cleaner than it did with the brand new blade I bought at the big box store last year. Makes me wonder how many little skills like that are just disappearing because nobody thinks to ask. Anyone else got a old timer in their area who still does things the slow way?

1 comments

1 Comment

kelly3382d ago

I found a guy in a tiny shop outside Lancaster who still sharpens chisels and plane blades with water stones and a strop. He charged me $12 for three chisels and spent 20 minutes on each one, showing me how to feel for the burr. I brought him my grandfather's old block plane and it cuts better now than it did when my dad used it in the 70s.