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Tool: Sink Bridge
Manufacturer: Naniwa
MSRP: $65
Editor’s note: This review first appeared in the August 2016 issue of Popular Woodworking.
The stainless steel sink bridge from Naniwa is not a new product – but it’s a welcome new addition to my shop at home. I don’t (yet) have a dedicated sharpening area set up, so until I get around to that, I’m resorting to the laundry sink. The problem is, that sink is quite deep with no flat area around it (or place to put one) on which to set my stones for a session of sharpening.
This sturdy bridge solves the problem. It adjusts to fit any straight-edged sink from 15 3⁄4” to 22″ and keeps a solid grip on my plastic sink’s edges as I sharpen (the only problem is the thin-walled sink – it flexes a little if I get overzealous). The bridge cinches in place stones from 8″to 9 7⁄8” long (with a 3 7⁄8“-wide support surface) with a fixed stop on one end and an adjustable stop on the other. But it’s loose enough that I can easily lift the stones out for flattening.
The bridge comes in three pieces but is intuitive to put together out of the box (good thing, because the directions are in Japanese only).
The bridge is easy to remove from its working position and set aside (or put back in the box) should I need to, say, clean a paintbrush in the sink – but typically I just leave it in place.
The nice thing is, I no longer need to keep a spray bottle handy; I can just turn on the water in a thin stream to wet the stones.
And in case you’re curious, at home I use Shapton’s #1,000, #4,000 and #8,000 “Professional Series” ceramic waterstones, which I flatten after every use with a DMT “Extra Extra Coarse” Dia-Flat lapping plate.
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