Scrapers have one or two cutting burrs on each cutting edge. To sharpen a scraping tool, you must remove the old burrs, square the edge, then raise new burrs. To do this, you need a bench stone and a mill file to condition the edges, and a burnisher to create the burrs.

Before you use a burnisher, rub the surface with paraffin wax. This helps it to glide smoothly over the metal.