Full Review SKOGGER review

The first photo is the tool itself

The square part of the tool is 14mm or approx. 9/16" and it extends 3 1/2". The piece of wood I received was 9" so the overall length is approx. 12 1/2". You'll need a 1/2" bit to drill the hole in the handle. It comes with everything you see and also includes an allen wrench to change the insert, which is also 14mm square.

I tried it on softwood, hardwood, acrylic and Tru-Stone.


This is the softwood Holly. As you can see it left the surface kind of rough.


This is Amboyna burl. It made short order of it and I was able to get a fairly smooth finish.


This is acrylic and it also came out fairly smooth.
Sorry about the photo. I don't know what happened and when I tried rotating the photo it made it worse.


This is Blue Lapis Tru-Stone, probably the hardest Tru-Stone they make. As you can see I was able to get a fairly smooth finish. Those of you who have turned Blue Lapis know how hard it is. I was curious so I timed how long it took to turn this 5" blank to round and I was amazed, 2 min. 45 sec.. With normal tools it takes me about 20 min. to turn one barrel and I have to sharpen frequently.
I found that tilting the tool about 30 degrees and using it like a skew gave me the best results. Hold it like a scraper and it works like a scraper. Dig in the corner and you can remove stock quickly.

Conclusions......
Keep in mind that I used this tool for all of an hour but it doesn't strike me as a shaping tool. Maybe with some practice but not today.
Where this tool shines is with the harder stuff, softwoods are better handled with a skew. It made quick work of the Amboyna and the acrylic and really ate up the Tru-Stone. If you do alot of Tru-Stone you're going to love it but if all you do is wood then not so much.

Am I glad I bought it? Yes. It's one of those tools that you won't use every day but sure are glad to have when you need it. And the BEST part is............................
You don't have to sharpen it!:wink::biggrin:

Thanks for me too. In my recent pen making finish, my home made chisel is (almost) square ended like that and it gives a nice enough finish to hard wood that finish can be placed over it without sanding.

I am interested in this and will check it out again.

I got my Skogger, I got my Skogger. :biggrin:

I'm not sure if the Canadian post or the US post is using Pony Express, :snail: but it is here now and I will be handle making this afternoon!!

Skogger

Now I'm getting steamed, was not too bad waiting for mine to arrive until I started seeing photos of others and such. I'm starting my complaint letter to the postal service on Monday if mine does not arrive(JUST KIDDING). Thanks for the review Rick. By the way Cav, wouldn't it be great if you say..........lost the screw that holds the blade, then you could keep waiting to use it like I seem to be having to do. =-)

Skogger Review #2

I finally got the handle for my new Skogger made today. I then started playing with it. I also have the Easy Rougher so I was familiar with techniques for using the tool. I did some spindle turning first. I honestly think the Skogger performed better at spindle turning than the Easy Rougher. I don't really know why it should unless Peter used a better carbide cutter. The cutters look very similar. I then turned a pen using the Skogger. I turn pens from start to finish with a skew. After getting the blank to it final (almost) diameter I did my final cut on half of the pen with the Skogger and on the other half with my skew. The two halves were almost equally smooth. The skew cut half was a little smoother but not by much. It was actually hard to tell the difference, but there was just a subtle difference.

I then turned a bowl using only the Skogger. The blank was already bandsawded round. The Skogger did a great job roughing the bowl to round, turning a tenon for chucking and then turning the foot. Shaping the bowl's outside was quicker than with bowl gouges and just as smooth. The endgrain areas showed no tearout. I did apply thinned shellac before making the final cut which helps ease the tearout of the endgrain areas. I was quite pleased with the way the Skogger performed on the outside.

I then reversed the bowl and hollowed out the inside. I again used only the Skogger for the inside. Performance was equally well as it was on the outside. Shaping the inside was more difficult than with bowl gouges. The bottom is flat instead of curved as are the inside walls of the bowl. The Easy Rougher has two cutters with a radius which makes inside curves a bit easier. Maybe Peter could make those available also. I will try attaching the radius cutter from the Easy Rougher to the Skogger to see what happens.

My only complaint about the Skogger was found when turning the inside of the bowl. The handle furnished with the Skogger is a bit short for hollowing bowls. I was able to move the tool rest inside the bowl and that helped a lot. I will probably be making a new handle for my Skogger and I will make the handle longer.

I did not try any plastics. Maybe tomorrow. I may see how it performs on a set of my snake blanks.

I really like the tool and I do not regret purchasing one. Anyone considering the Easy Rougher should just get the Skogger from Peter and maybe consider a longer handle for use with bowls. The pictures shows the bowl and pen I made using this tool. No sanding has been done on the bowl. Sorry, no pictures during turning.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

One more tool to buy . Wayne

wood-of-1kind said:

Thanks Rick for your honest assessment. Feedback and observations such as yours will be used as a benchmark for where this tool is headed.

By the way, that's a nice ash handle that you created there.

Regards,

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Thanks, that was a nice ash piece of wood you sent me!:wink::wink::wink::biggrin:

wood-of-1kind said:

Landon,
not to worry, I have plenty of extra (machine)screws for those that get lost:wink: Delivery can't be too far off now for you.

Cav, I'm relieved that your SKOGGER has finally arrived.

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Oh I figured as much but was trying to make myself feel better about all this Skogger use that I'm not a part of yet.

The 15mm cutter from the Skogger will fit the Easy Rougher. I just moved the cutter from the Skogger to the Easy Rougher and it fits and works just fine. So, those of you who have the Easy Rougher should contact Peter when the need for a new cutter arrives. I'll bet his are cheaper than the $14 or so CSUSA is charging for their replacement.

Peter: The screw you sent will not fit the Easy Rougher(too large). I will try to determine the size of the Easy Rougher's screw and let you know. Here is a picture of my Skoger and the walnut handle. I really like this tool. Thanks Peter.

The Easy Rougher screw is an 8-32.... I really expected it to be metric.

Do a good turn daily
Don



QUOTE=wood-of-1kind;753023]

Don, will the 15mm cutter fit your Easy Rougher? Looking forward to seeing the handle that you have created for your SKOGGER.[/QUOTE]

I GOT IT!!!!!!! Now, just the time to use it........................

wood-of-1kind said:

Thanks Landon for the update.
Finally. Isn't the postal system efficient (NOT!!!):wink:

MICK, you are the only one that snail mail has not reached yet. It can't be too long of a wait ....


-Peter-

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I got the tent pitched by the mailbox.....but dang it got cold last night!

IAP Friends .... when in the Product Review Forum let's try to focus our posts on the actual review of the tool. Once your Skogger arrives .... be certain to add your feedback and input.

Please note that it's not my intent to put a damper on people posting. It's just that when members come to the Product Review Forum we want them to be able to read a series of posts focusing on the value of the tool being reviewed.

Thanks for understanding! :biggrin:

Hey Peter, I noticed you and Don made it a point that the cutter on the SKOGGER was 15mm. I wrote in my review that the cutter was 14mm. I double checked and my cutter is .552". 14mm is .5512 so it's REAL close. Is this OK or do I need a bigger cutter?

rherrell said:

Hey Peter, I noticed you and Don made it a point that the cutter on the SKOGGER was 15mm. I wrote in my review that the cutter was 14mm. I double checked and my cutter is .552". 14mm is .5512 so it's REAL close. Is this OK or do I need a bigger cutter?

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The SKOGGER uses both 14mm and 15mm carbide cutters depending on "model". I had both 14 & 15 models machined. Yours is from the 14mm variety. I've decided to standardise on 15mm on future shipments. Remember to ask for 14mm inserts when you are ready for replacement. I have both in stock to meet future demands.

This is my version (at least the handle) thanks to a fantastic walnut blank.
I have yet to turn anything with it as I just got the handle finished but liked it so much I had to post the picture.
the tool feels very well weighted and balanced. I will turn a few blanks in the next couple of days even though how it does on different materials has already been reported.

For those of you who have anxiously been awaiting your Skogger ...... I'm looking forward to reading your reviews and comments!!

Well, it's officially a tool now. I finally got around to making a handle and trying this baby out, I must say, I think I now have a new friend. This baby makes short, almost effortless work out of rounding up the hardest and meanest stuff I could throw its way. It even made short work of a piece of caribou antler(OMG that stuff is hard) I was making a duck call out of. It does have a slight tendency to catch the antler before it became "kinda roundish" if I put too much pressure to it. After just a short learning curve I have decided the pressure was the problem not the tool. Let it do the work for you(DUH, I'm a slow learner sometimes). Basically I had to just slow down to go faster. All in all I love it. I will be next trying to use it exclusively to make a pen to see if I can go start to finish with the one tool. I will leave the pics to the more photographically gifted. I just wanted to get a quick, honest opinion out there for folks to read. I love it and feel it was money well spent. With more use I imagine it will only become more usefull. Thanks Peter, great tool.

Landon

OK I turned three pocket pens today with the skogger.
First keep in mind I have never turned the pocket pen before or the acrylic I was turning which was woodpro solid Black, Blue and Pink.
My first blank was the Black. I got everything set up. got the little mandrel thing figured out etc and started turning. I had the rest set up at mid point to the Blank (I later figured out I want it just a touch high of center) and had a hard time getting the tool to get a good bite. this was a combination of the blank material and working very close to the drill chuck that holds the mandrel. I toyed with different attack angles etc but still felt I was struggling to much. I switched to my 1/4 inch carbide tipped spindle gouge. I still could not get a good bite in fact I was not doing as well with the gouge as I had been with the skogger. so back to the skogger. after some experimenting with rest height and how I was handling the tool I started getting some pretty good smooth cuts. in finishing the closed end of the blank though I actually turned it to then and the end came off. OK pen one in the trash.

Blank two was the Blue. correcting the length of my blank so I did not turn the end off like before. And having some experience with the skogger under my belt. I was able to actually try some different ideas on this one. I figured out how to get a parting cut with the tool this giving me more room at the head stock. with this advantage I was able to turn the blank down all the way to the bushing and get a very smooth finish.
I was trying to shape the end on this blank with my skew and actually switched back to the skooger and was able to shape a semi bullet shape to the end of the barrel with it. This also happens to be the only pen out of three that I did not manage to mess up.
Pen three was the Pink. now feeling comfortable with the skogger I concentrated on getting smooth even passes taking off as much material as possible. It reminded me very much of watching my metal lathe take off the next pass. I need some more practice with keeping the cuts good and straight but they came out smother than any thing I have ever gotten with any other tool.
The feel of the tool is very silky smooth once you get comfortable with it. It cuts like butter.
One problem with my testing is that the Pocket pen mandrel does not hold with that much friction. I have no dought that I can make even deeper passes with the skogger when I turn a pen on a regular mandrel. I was getting a little over an 8th of an inch turned off per pass. trying to go deeper caused the blank to catch and spin on the mandrel. I never did get a since that the skogger was getting over worked. I don't think my metal lathe would remove this much material and leave as smooth a surface on the blank.
I am very happy with the tool and would by it again in a heart beat. it is a tough little tool that will whittle a blank down to pen size in a hurry and that is what I was looking for. That it makes working with acrylic much easier is a big plus.
by the way that last little pink pen. well it met the same fate as the black one. I gotta figure out how to determine where the drilled out portion of the blank is better and stop wasting blanks.

SKOGGER TIP

Position your tool rest lower that the mid-point on your blank. The SKOGGER should be parallel with the lowest end of your blank. Top rotational force towards the bottom positioned tool is how this tool is designed to be operated. The rotation of the lathe's motor and the sharp carbide insert will do the "work". Do not exert too much pressure by forcing the tool onto the blank. A slight "kiss" from the insert to the blank will provide the smoothest cut. As in life, be "gentle" to the one you love and you will be amazed at what you get in return.:wink:

Peter, I will give that a try. I will add the tool worked smooth and well regrdless of how I had it positioned. but position did make a difference. Once I did get it cutting it pealed off a ribbon of acrylic like a pro. Also I emphasize i was being timid do to the carbide insert coming so close to the spinning drill chuck. I did not want to break the insert before I had a chance to use the tool. leave it to me to figure out how to do something like that. By the way this was three hard acrylic pens I made and the cutter is not dull. I would have had to sharpen steel tools at least three times. I did not notice any sign that the cutter was dulling at all. My shop is a bit of a mess and I have to put in some time moving boxes to get to some of my 100 plus pen kits. But I am anxious to try it out on other materials.

How does it work with the M3 blanks?

Peter, I now have a new favorite tool!! I have used the Skogger on acrylic and wood with no problems. The light touch mantra is very, very true with this tool. I am improving my technique with it and am getting very smooth finishes on wood blanks with it. Even with the light touch, I turn down a blank far faster than I have with my other turning tools.

Not yet, but the Skogger has me thinking about the Easy Rougher for bowl turning!

Christmas List

wood-of-1kind said:

Should handle these fine. What I found is that the "harder" the material,the easier the cut. If it can handle the Tru-stone, M3 should pass the test as well. Hopefully someone who has purchased a SKOGGER and tries it on M3's will chime in for an unbiased review.

Jared, how's your Christmas list coming?:wink:

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My Christmas List is getting very long. I hope I get at least one thing.:biggrin::wink:

its_virgil said:

The 15mm cutter from the Skogger will fit the Easy Rougher. I just moved the cutter from the Skogger to the Easy Rougher and it fits and works just fine. So, those of you who have the Easy Rougher should contact Peter when the need for a new cutter arrives. I'll bet his are cheaper than the $14 or so CSUSA is charging for their replacement.

Peter: The screw you sent will not fit the Easy Rougher(too large). I will try to determine the size of the Easy Rougher's screw and let you know. Here is a picture of my Skoger and the walnut handle. I really like this tool. Thanks Peter.

The Easy Rougher screw is an 8-32.... I really expected it to be metric.

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I am an Easy Rougher owner also, but I do not have a Skogger. However, I am not surprised by the similarities between the two you experienced. They are essentially the same tool, just different sizes. There may be differences in the grade of carbide that was selected that may affect the cut quality/cutter durability trade-off some (and there is always a trade-off), but it sounds like the difference isn't much, if any.

I would like to clarify something that I am picking up from the tone of your post. Similar to the Skogger, the Easy Rougher was developed by a turner who wanted to build a better mouse trap, not some overseas tool company. Craig Jackson used his machinist experience to develop a means to efficiently remove material. I can appreciate the desire to support "one of our own" versus "the big corporation." With that, Craig is similar to Peter. He just has a distribution deal. You can even buy directly from him if you don't want to go through CSUSA. Since this is a Skogger review thread, I won't post a link and will let anyone interested in following through on this locate Craig's website on their own.

I will say from personal experience that Craig is a very gracious person who drove from KY to Springfield, MO for a local penturners get together to do a demo (the SW MO IAP Chapter before such a thing officially existed), and his customer service is excellent. From what I can tell from posts on IAP, Peter sounds like a similar person so you can't go wrong either way. It's great to have so many people who want advance what we do.

Gentlemen, I would appreciate it if we kept this thread on track with your additional input related to reviews of the Skogger.

If someone wants to write a Product Review of the Easy Rougher then they are welcome to do so by starting a new thread entitled "Easy Rougher Product Review".

Also, we all need to cooperate in keeping the Product Review posts related to actual reviews. Comments such as "Gotta get me one of those ......" or "Golly, gee that sure is pretty .... " do not add to the actual review of the product. The Casual Conversation Forum is the place for those kinds of comments.

Think of the Product Review Forum as a reference thread where, months from now, IAP members will come to read reviews of products. Off topic posts clutter things up and make it more difficult for readers to find the information they are looking for.

Posts that are non-review in nature will be deleted from the thread.


Feel free to pm me if you have questions or concerns.
Thank you.

I finally got to use my Skogger on wood that was mounted on a normal pen mandrel. I did change they way I hold my mandrel by adding the Beall Collet chuck to my head stock. I started turning a 1" square piece of African blackwood that would become a Jr. Gent. lots of waste to carve away on this one. IT was huming along jsut fine then suddenly the blank stopped spinning every time I touched it with the Skogger. I stopped everythign and descovered the Collet chuck had loosened up. after getting the chuck good and tight I finishedt urning the blank down to just over bushing diameter. this was redusing the balnk to about half an inch in diameter in about 2 minutes with problems. even when taking heavy cuts the tool did not tear out and left a very smooth cut. I did finish shaping the barrels with my skew and gouge and was very happy to still have a fresh sharp gouge to work with even after 1/2 inch of wood had been cut away. I am very happy with the Skogger as a tool that will get rid of all teh excess material in my way and leave my turning tools to do what they where made to do. A big plus is that the skogger is still not showing any signs of dulling and this si the 4 pen I have roughed out with it. My HSS Steel turning tools would have gone through there 4th resharpening on those same 4 pens. with 4 edages on the cutter I should be able to get at least 20 pens per cutter and actually expect to get many more than that. I'll have to actually wear out at least one edge to have any idea at all.