Artisan Bowl Gouge

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JimB

JimB

Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2008
Messages
4,688
Location
West Henrietta, NY, USA.
I've started to venture to other things besides pens and have started learning to turn bowls but I haven't bought my own bowl gouge yet. I've been looking around and see all the differnt brands and prices. CSUSA has a line called Artisan and the 3/8 bowl gouge goes for $46. This is much less expensive than a Sorby or Crown.

I was wondering if anyone has any comparisons for the Artisan vs the others. Is this a case of "You get what you pay for"? I know cheaper tools will dull quicker and I don't want to spend all my turning time sharpening.

Until now my only real experience with tools has been my $35 set from Harbor Freight I use for pen turning. I know the bowl gouge will do a lot more work because it is turning a bowl and it will cost more but I don't want to break the bank if I don't need to, but will if it is worth the extra $$$.

I'm also trying to figure out the regular vs fingernail vs irish grind thing if anyone has any guidance on that.

Thanks.
 
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Jim, When it comes to bigger tools, it is usually the case of what you pay for is what you get. This doesn't mean you need the top=of-the-line stuff but I feel that the Artisan brand is just too much trouble to deal with. A tool of M2 or M4 should get you started and you should have success using them.
I know that Rochester has a strong turning group and you may want to go visit the meeting or some of its members to possibly try tools they may have. There is no one end-all tool or grind and everyone has their own opinions, so you really need to find what works for you. If you can't find anyone in the Rochester area you are more than welcome to come an hour and a half to two hours east and visit my shop. Bob I.
 
Jim,

Since I work here at Craft Supplies I wanted to let you know the deal with the Artisan line of tools. Those are in fact Henry Taylor Tools, made EXACTLY the same as their line of tools, with the exception of the polish so it doesn't look quite as shiny. The Artisan tools are M2 high speed steel (we only sell M2 steel or higher in all our tools), the reason we sell them cheaper is because Artisan is our "house brand", Henry Taylor makes them for us with the Artisan name stamped on them and so they offer us a deeper discount, which we then pass on to you.

Many of our instructors here at our workshop use Artisan tools because Henry Taylor makes good tools and these are simply cheaper because they are from us.
Anyway, I just wanted to let you know about the Artisan tools (I would buy them if I were in the market for new tools), if you have any questions about them give our technical department a call (1-800-551-8876) they aren't paid on commission and I promise they won't be pushy.
Also, if you buy ANY tool from us, you have our unconditional money back guarantee, you can use it every day for a month and decide it isn't what you want and then send it back for an exchange or FULL refund, no questions asked.

This probably sounds like a sales pitch, and I guess it is, but what do you expect?! I have seen these tools and sold them to countless people and never heard anything negative about them.

If you have any further questions feel free to email or call me.
 
If you can make your own tool handles, might want to check out P&N Bowl gouges. Think you'll enjoy these more than Artisan tools.

If can make your own handles can buy Henry Taylor for about a $1 or two more than Artisan.
 
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