Help identifying maker of a bowl gouge

[tool-man]

I pick up a nice bowl gouge recently but there are no markings on it whatsoever. I hope someone out there will recognize the maker of this tool. It is 24" long, gray steel tool shaft 0.643" dia., and black solid steel handle. The tool is not removable from the handle. It weighs 2 lb 3 oz. For comparison my Ellsworth bowl gouge weighs 1 lb 8 oz. and is a couple of inches longer.

 

[low_48]

Looks like a Glaser tool to me. My handle is red, so not sure of what generation that is, but could be a new one called Glaser Hitec.

 

[tool-man]

Thanks low_48;

From your lead info I did some searching for Glaser tools. I think you are correct. My tools (a bowl gouge and a spindle gouge) have no markings, and that apparently was typical for Glaser (Jerry Glaser).

My tool handle shape (round, then small hex area, then round, then finally hex to the end) is also typical of Glaser early tools I have found.

Regarding handle color - I'm quoting from thread on Sawmill Creek: "Memory correct the red was 10% vanadium--blue was 5% vanadium and black was 15% vanadium. Never got a black one darn it. These were all powder steel with vanadium % responsible for wear resistance which is great. Glaser was friends with Bob Stockdale in the old days and was a metalugist? by education. Supposedly Bob convinced him to apply his skills to upgrading tools with high dollar alloys and powder steels. High vanadium and steel cannot be blended by melting and must be formed by grinding to finepowder and impacting it into a mold."

American Woodturner Spring 2006 has a short article on Jerry Glaser http://woodturninglearn.net/articles/Glaser.pdf

The original Glaser tool company has been sold a couple of times and I am pretty sure the tools available from the successor are different from the original.

 

[Bruce markwardt]

It's an original Glaser. I have the same gouge, although mine is pretty much worn out.

 

[flyitfast]

I have a Glaser 3/8' bowl gouge with handle. He put his name on the ferrule. I realize yours hasn't a handle, but that was one of his marks.
gordon

 

[steve worcester]

definitely a Glaser. He used different colored handles to signify the metal type.
I don't know what black means, but if you posted this on the AAW site, someone would know, or email Alan Laser, sort of a historian for Gerry.