A card scraper or cabinet scraper is a woodworking shaping and finishing tool. It is used to manually remove small amounts of material and excels in tricky grain areas where hand planes would cause tear out. Card scrapers are most suitable for working with hardwoods, and can be used instead of sandpaper. Scraping produces a cleaner surface than sanding; it does not clog the pores of the wood with dust, and does not leave a fuzz of torn fibers. Types Card scrapers are available in a range of shapes and sizes, the most common being a rectangular shape approximately and with a thickness of . Another common configuration is the gooseneck scraper, which has a shape resembling a french curve and is useful for scraping curved surfaces. For scraping convex shapes such as violin fingerboards, small flexible rectangular scrapers are useful. Similarly, a card scraper can be used to manufacture complex mouldings by cutting the negative of the desired moulding into the steel, e.g. through filing or die cutting. A scratch stock is a profiled card scraper that is held in an adjustable stop. Scrapers are normally made from high carbon steel. There are many manufacturers who provide scrapers in a wide variety of styles. Many woodworkers prefer to make their own card scrapers by cutting them from old hand saw blades. Card scrapers are sometimes used in working with ceramics, where they may substitute for the more traditional wooden rib. The scraper is also useful for trimming damp or dry clay. Such a scraper, the nearest one to the camera, is shown in the image at right. Turning the burr The cutting component of a card scraper is the burred edge of the scraper. The burr is a sharp hook of metal which is turned on the edge of the scraper by burnishing with a burnisher or steel rod. A file or sharpening stone is used to joint the edge of the scraper before burnishing. Cabinet makers typically joint the edge square, or at a right angle to the face of the scraper, which allows a fine burr to be turned on both sides. Luthiers often use a beveled edge, which allows a more aggressive burr, but on one side only. There are a number of variations in the process of turning the burr, the choice of which is down to personal preference. However the basic concept is that