Grooves from round carbide cutter

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Woodchipper

Woodchipper

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Mar 15, 2017
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I watched a video by Mark Dreyer and copied his technique of holding the tool, presented at a 45 degree angle. Still get grooves in the blank. Tried moving the tool fast and slow but got no difference. Obviously have to do some sanding to smooth the surface. Any advice is appreciated.
 
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Are you moving the tool with your hands and arms or with your body? Be honest now!

Hands and arms move unsteadily and not always perpendicularly to the blank. Holding the handle firmly against the side of your body is much more steady and consistent.
Also, make sure the contact point of the tool bit is on center.
 
Mortalis said:
Are you moving the tool with your hands and arms or with your body? Be honest now!

Hands and arms move unsteadily and not always perpendicularly to the blank. Holding the handle firmly against the side of your body is much more steady and consistent.
Also, make sure the contact point of the tool bit is on center.
Click to expand...
What he said ! The key, the hands, the arms and the body move as one unit. To steady the amount of pushing being done the key is to have the tool rest parallel with the blanks and rest your fore finger against the rest. No matter what type rest you have you should adapt a feel for this. I use the Robust tool rests now after I switched from the round bar type. I found the finger groove of these is far better for control for me. https://www.thewoodturningstore.com/lathe-accessories/tool-rests/robust-tool-rests/
 
I'm turning sitting on a stool. Try to move as much as possible without falling off. Handle is up against this ol' body. Rest is parallel to the bed. Lathe speed is maximum about 3K. I did rotate the cutter and that helped a bit with a new edge. Will go down the list in a few minutes. Thanks.
 
One more thing is how soft or flexible the material is and if you are using a mandrel with interior support of the blank (if it is hollow for a kitless pen). Using the tool at an angle can give a very clean cut with a light hand, but can also cut grooves easily with too much pressure, as already mentioned above.
 
Carbine cutter manufactures usually define the square or radius cutters as roughers and the round ones as finishers. Now I have never understood this because the round cutters are more akin to a traditional gouge and the square/radius ones are more like a skew. That's how I use them, I rough cut with the round and finish with the square. Finishing with the square eliminates the hills and valleys you ended up with. My last cuts are achieved with the square cutter using a shearing cut resulting in a finish as smooth as any skew, no sanding required.
 
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