Sharpening turning tools

[aggromere]

I hand sharpen my tools using a worksharp I got from rockler. I have had pretty good luck with it but have got the angles on some of skews and gouges pretty goobered up. I also have noticed my oval skews are not perfectly straight on the cutting edge. A few questions.

1. Is there some reference material or does anyone know what angles you would sharpen to for;
A. oval skew
B. Skew Chisel
C. Roughing gouge

I also have a round nose scraper that I have never been able to use. I've seen tips on beveling the top. Does this work?

any help would be appreciated.

I guess I am going to have to break down and get a nice sharpening system with jigss. Any suggestions?

 

[skiprat]

Peter, here are a few links that I think are pretty good.

2 for wood chisels and one for metal

http://www.woodturningvideosplus.com/bevel-angles.html

http://www.sdwt.org/support_docs/techniques&tips/sharpening.pdf

http://shopswarf.orconhosting.net.nz/turntool.html

 

[hunter-27]

good info Skippy,. ty for posting it.

 

[JimB]

Peter - the links posted above are great. Do you belong to a turning club in your area? There is nothing like having someone show you. I had the good fortune to attend a sharpening class done by my local turning club. It was a great hands-on experience.

Also, why can't you use the round nore scraper? Are you aware that scrapers are unlike most other tools as they are used on a slight downward angle.

 

[Crickett]

I never sharpened my turning tools, I didn't know how. So my boyfriend, Pete, would do that for me. After he purchased the Wolverine System I'm sharpening them now.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?c=&cat=1,43072&p=52372

Poor Pete, he's making himself obsolete. :wink:

 

[Fred]

"I hand sharpen my tools using a worksharp I got from rockler. I have had pretty good luck with it but have got the angles on some of skews and gouges pretty goobered up. I also have noticed my oval skews are not perfectly straight on the cutting edge. ..."

This is the main reason many of us use systems that have jigs for every type of cutting tool, consistency in re-tuning the angle and honing the cutting edge to a factory setting is easy and often simple to do.

The use of jigs in lieu of 'hand sharpening' will save expensive tool metal from being ground away needlessly as one tries to hand sharpen. Very experienced hand sharpeners have great success so you will get no argument from me on this issue... but then there is that one little thing called "experience" that they have in their favor.

"I guess I am going to have to break down and get a nice sharpening system with jigss. Any suggestions?"

I highly recommend the Tormek system with jigs to match your tools.

And there goes several months of beer money, but the tools will be soooooo 'scary sharp' and you will save a bunch of time in turning down and finishing projects. YEP, sharp tools save time ... a bunch of it!

To fix your skews you will have to level off the sharp ends and then reset the entire cutting edge. This will take a bit of time on your part, but the end results will be well worth all your efforts and time. A great skew will save finishing time as you can start sanding with several grades finer grit and cut out the much rougher heavy duty papers.

One other thing you could do is to watch for a sharpening demonstration at your local woodworking supply places - Woodcraft, Rockler, etc. - and take your skew to the demo. Get there early on ans ask the presenter to help you recover the edge. I bet they will be glad to use your tool as a demo item to the onlookers ... especially if it is a Tormek demo.

I for one do not like using a grinder to sharpen any of my tools. Now, using one on my lawn mower blades is fine, but not ever on any of my turning tools!

 

[aggromere]

Thanks Fred. I watched a few videos on the internet today. I think I am going to get the less expensive of the tormek systems. If you don't mind asking, what jigs do I need to get to sharpen, gouges, oval skews and skew chisels (really all i use). I think what would happen is sometimes I would get lucky and get it right and the tool would work great, but over time i've kinda messed them up.

Anyone know the place to get the tormek system at the best price?

 

[Fred]

Peter ... when you get to where you are buying the device, look at the individual boxes of each jig. There you will find the proper use for that particular jig.

Or, you can go to Tormek's website and read the description for each jig. Their website is quite informative. Be sure to look over their various "kits" and compare pricing vs your intentions in using the machine.
http://www.tormek.com/en/jigs/index.php

BTW, I have found that the TTS-100 Turning Tool Setter is far superior to the one included with the system. In all aspects I do not believe you will be displeased with any of their products ... pricey yes, but IMHO it is made up in quality of product/support, not to mention the repeatability in getting the edge you want and always being able to keep it. Oh yea, being scary sharp is what it is all about.

 

[Freethinker]

Somewhere ...for the life of me I cannot remember where, possibly someone here linked to it .... I recently saw an ad for a sharpening disc that mounts directly to the spindle of a 1"X8TPI lathe. A piece of sandpaper is hook-and-loop attached to the flat of the disc.

It is made in such a way as to stay on the lathe --for a quick touch up of one's chisels while penturning-- while leaving the MT2 opening clear for the mandrel.

If anyone has seen it or knows what I am talking about, a link would be very appreciated. My wife is going to get me one for Christmas IF I can locate the darned thing....