They say a workman is only as good as his tools and it's true that edge tools that are regularly honed will generally perform better than those that are simply sharpened. Leading supplier of woodcarving and wood turning tools and equipment, The ToolPost (http://www.toolpost.co.uk/) , stocks a wide range of tool honing products, both manual and power systems, that will help any wood craftsman or woman get the very best from their tools.

At the top end of the spectrum there's the Tormek System which combines tool honing with tool sharpening in a wetstone system that works with just about every type of woodcarving and woodturning tool out there as well as bench chisels and plane irons. This premium product is a worthwhile investment for the serious user, however, so for those with less critical needs or for those simply looking for something a little more affordable, The ToolPost has a great choice of Powerstrop and Slipstrop products, as well as the Ashley Iles honing and sharpening system and their very own hand leather honing strops.

Powerstrop, as the name suggests, is a power tool honing system: honing wheels that are mounted onto a power source such as a woodturning lathe, power drill or powered arbor, allowing for excellent honing of carving and edge tools. There are two products in this range available at The ToolPost: the Powerstrop Standard Honing Kit with a single leather wheel, perfect for skew chisels, whittling tools and carving knives, and the Powerstrop Deluxe Honing Kit which comes with an extra inverted vee-shaped leather wheel for the inside of vee tools and areas which are tricky to access. Both kits come with arbors, honing compound as well as clear instructions on how to install and operate the system.  The Ashley Iles system, much favoured by wood carvers, features a dense cotton honing wheel used in combination with a diamond impregnated rubber sharpening wheel to give excellent results.

The Slipstrop from Flexcut and also available at The ToolPost is a hand honing system – a moulded honing block with the ability to match multiple blades which comes with the Flexcut Gold honing compound. This is a great low-cost portable and flexible alternative to power honing systems.

Finally, there is The Toolpost's own range of leather tool honing strops, products that were sourced by The ToolPost after noticing the dearth of basic yet essential hones easily available to wood carvers and woodturners. The 1215-P honing strop is a mounted flat strop with pre-drilled holes to allow it to be screwed on to a workbench or table, perfect for knives and straight-edged tools. The 1210-P is a handle-held strop designed for honing more complicated shapes such as woodcarving tools. These are great value, traditional and highly effective 'back to basic' honing products which are an essential part of any woodworker's toolkit.

Find out further information on all of the tool honing products available from The ToolPost at http://www.toolpost.co.uk/.