Sharpening Turning Tools Made Simple Fast and easy strategies for safer, smoother cuts By Nick Cook

any pieces of furniture tools are properly shaped and I generally prefer freehand requireM turned elements, such sharpened. Woodworkers have sharpening. For me, freehand as legs, spindles, columns, and come to expect that store-bought sharpening is akin to riding a pulls. So, learning to turn is a tools require some honing before bike without training wheels. natural (and often necessary) use. The surprising thing is that Once your hands learn that next step for many woodworkers. some new turning tools aren’t sharpening is the same as In addition, there are hundreds sharpened properly. That can of useful and satisfying projects make learning to turn way more from the grinder to the lathe that can be accomplished with frustrating than it should be. canturning, be quick you’ll and find seamless. that shifting little more than a lathe, a small Here, I’ll demonstrate how to And when you can touch up collection of turning tools, and quickly sharpen six of my most- an edge in less time than it a few scraps of wood. That said, used tools so that you can focus would take to set up a jig, you’re the fun can’t start until your more attention on turning. likely to sharpen more often.

Turning Tool Star� ng Set

1 1 3 3 1 3 ⁄2" Round- ⁄8" Diamond ⁄4" Spindle ⁄8" Spindle ⁄2" Bowl ⁄4" Skew nose Parti ng Tool Roughing Gouge Gouge Scraper Gouge

54 Sharpening 6" Slow-Speed Setup Grinder Keeping a few accessories close to your lathe will encourage you to keep an edge on your tools. If you don’t already own these 80-grit Wheel items, it’s time to stock up. Platform Rest Slow-speed grinder Plywood Base (6" or 8" wheel) 3 There are other machines for ⁄4 × 8 × 20" Vari-Grind Jig V-Arm Rest 3" screw (Adjust size to suit sharpening and shaping, but a grinder and rests.) slow-speed grinder is a great Subtop 7 5 1 starting point. If you don’t 1 ⁄8 × 7 ⁄8 × 10 ⁄4" already own one, this machine

Top Rail will set you back $150 to $250. 7 3 5 Tool rests 1 ⁄8 × 2 ⁄4 × 7 ⁄8" You owe it to your tools to invest Tool Holder in decent aftermarket rests, like 3 3 ⁄4 × 3 ⁄4 × 20" the Wolverine sharpening system Holder Support ). The platform 3 1 $89.99 ⁄4 × 2 ⁄4 × 20" and V-rests are easy to adjust and(#125676, rock-solid when locked in place. If your budget allows, consider treating yourself to a $55.99) Brace for spindle and bowl gouges. 7 1 1 ⁄8 × 3 ⁄2 × 8" Vari-Grind jig (#125677, Grinder stand Leg My dad built this stand (at right) 7 1 1 ⁄8 ⁄4 ⁄8 1 1 × 3 × 37 " 8 ⁄2" (Adjust length rock-solid, but still light enough to suit.) tofor move me 30 alongside years ago. whichever I like that it’s lathe I’m using. (Sharpening should require as few steps as 1 possible.) Adjust the legs so that 1 ⁄8" the tool rests are at the same height as your lathe’s tool rest. 1 1 ⁄4 × 2 ⁄2" carriage bolt Grinding wheels Both sides of my grinder are

Foot 7 1 8 2 3 1 ⁄ × 3 ⁄ × 20" wheelsoutfitted remove with 80-grit material Norton quickly ⁄4" and3x wheels. produce I find an edge that thatthese I 1 ⁄2 can use without additional 2 " honing. A 6ʺ wheel runs around $45;Photos: anStan 8ʺ Kaady; wheel Illustration: costs Trevor $55. Johnston June/July 2015 woodcraftmagazine.com 55 A Well-Dressed Wheel Before A� er

Bevels meet precisely at center. Diamond Par� ng Tool With the rest horizontal at the height of the wheel axis, touch the tool against the wheel and slide it sideways to fl a� en and clean the surface. Designed for cutting straight, accurate diameters and for separating a turning from the waste portion Diamond Truing Tool of a blank, a parting tool is a cross between a Grinding wheels require frequent dressing. A cutting tool and a scraper. When the edge is held $17.99), tangent to the workpiece with the bevel rubbing, it’s cutting. When the tip is fed straight into the removeslight pass metal with abuildup, truing tooland (#158522,exposes fresh abrasive. workpiece at or slightly above the centerline, it’s as shown above, flattens the face of the wheel, scraping. Parting tools come in several varieties: Protractor You may start with factory-set tool angles, other parting tools eventually, but the diamond isflat, a good diamond, tool to and start “fluted.” with becauseYou’ll want it’s easyto purchase to $20.99) handy for checking an use. Because the tip is at the thickest part of butangle in ortime, establishing you’ll find a a new metal one. protractor the shaft, a diamond parting tool can take deep (#85O45, cuts without the sides binding in the kerf.

Felt-� pped marker Typically, the factory-established bevels meet 45-60° A marker offers the easiest way to set a tool rest to match an existing angle. Color the edge of the tool and then touch it to the stone. When the grind mark willat a 50°produce angle, a socleaner this tool cut, should but it tends be ready to break to go erases the ink on the center of the bevel, you’re set. downwith just quickly a quick when touch-up. used for (Note: scraping.) A lower To anglesharpen,

Sharpening stones angle matches the wheel. Then, gently push the Skew chisels require honing. An oilstone edgeadjust against the flat the tool wheel. rest so Focus that onthe removing tool’s bevel an $31.99) is an effective and affordable equal amount from both faces so that the point remains centered on the tool. Stop as soon as the $37.99(#149103,) in my pocket for tool-side touch-ups. edge is square and you feel a burr. (I don’t worry solution. I also keep a diamond paddle (#415700, about polishing or honing off the burr. It’ll get knocked off as soon as the tip touches the blank.) Handy Sharpening Accessories

Diamond truing tool

Diamond paddle set Steel protractor Use lines to Press tool Combo oilstone keep tool straight Set rest parallel with into wheel. so bevel wheel. matches Felt-ti pped marker wheel.

56 woodcraftmagazine.com June/July 2015 Before A� er

Smooth face Burr Scraper 70°

touches the middle of the bevel. Test grind images,It’s difficult but ifto you see werea difference to run rest, gently press the scraper’s between the “Before” and “After” tipNow, into with the the wheel tool and flat followon the the of both tools, you’d immediately shape of the edge. With a round noticeyour finger the wire across edge, the or top burr face, scraper, this means swinging on the properly prepared the tool’s handle back and forth. scraper. This burr is what gives When sparks start landing on scrapers the ability to produce the top face of the tool, and you glassy smooth surfaces. Burrs can feel the burr, you’re done. don’t last long, but they can Note: Some turners polish off be reestablished in seconds. the burr on a buf�ing wheel, and Adjust the tool rest so that then use a burnisher to draw the face of the bevel meets the a burr. A drawn burr may be a contour of the wheel. To ensure little tougher, but I don’t think the Pivot to that the angles match, color the performance warrants this extra follow profi le. tip of the tool with a marker and step. I �ind that more frequent touch it against the wheel. Adjust grinding is faster and easier the platform until the wheel than hand-drawing a burr.

Spindle Roughing Gouge Before

A spindle roughing gouge turns grind, focus on holding the gouge Square edge A� er also turn basic shapes, such its end square to the wheel. blanks into cylinders; it can Whenfirmly sparkson the restcome and over keeping the top 40°-55° is for spindles only. It is not of the tool, you should be done. intendedas tapers. for Note bowl that turning. this tool Note: Some turners suggest resting the handle’s butt in a V-arm should catch, the grinder’s rotation rest, but I think this procedure is would jam the tool into the wheel. angleAny is bevel a good angle starting from point.40°-55° unnecessarily time consuming, and In my opinion, freehand grinding works; so the factory-ground potentially dangerous. If the edge is safer and just as accurate. so that the tool bevel rides Adjust the angle of a flat rest the grinder, and with the tool parallelagainst theto the stone. wheel, Now touch turn the on tip of the tool. Lay the tool on the rest, and slowly push the gouge toward the wheel. When the tip contacts the wheel, use one Set rest so bevel hand to keep the tool against the matches wheel. Rotate. table and rotate the gouge until Keep tool you reach the other side, and fl at on rest. then reverse direction. As you

June/July 2015 woodcraftmagazine.com 57 Before A� er

Swept back edge Spindle Gouge 25-30° Spin and li� . The spindle gouge is designed to cut curves, coves, and other and bowls. These shapes are easierdetailed to profilesdo if you on lengthen spindles Lower the ti p and curve the bevel to create on the wheel. Set hand above. Unlike a roughing gouge, on V-rest. a “fingernail grind,” as shown point, with cut-back shoulders resting hand on the V-rest as bevel touches the wheel. As you designedthis profile to has stay a clearlonger, of taperedthe cut. shown above left. (I think this rotate the tool, simultaneously Sharpening a spindle gouge method keeps your hand a safer push it up on the grinding wheel, requires more practice than distance from the wheel.) as shown. Repeat this process on other tools because the tool is With the grinder off, set the one side until sparks come over rolled against the grinding wheel gouge on your resting hand and while simultaneously being slide it forward until the middle Then repeat the procedure on slid up higher on the wheel to section of the bevel touches the the otheredge and side inside of the the bevel. flute. As a grind the wings. Unlike a basic upper half of the wheel, and then gouge, you cannot simply set allow it to tip away from the directions from the middle of the the tool on the rest. To facilitate gouge’sfinal step, cutting rotate edges outward to make in both this two-step process, I set my raise the handle until the full a uniform, continuous bevel. wheel. Now with the grinder on,

Bowl Gouge Before

I grind bowl gouges in the same manner as my spindle then pivot and swing the jig inwheel. each Grind direction, the tip as first,shown and to A� er a higher bevel angle (around create an even grind. (As you gouges; however,in order toI do provide grind can see in the photo, it helps to more mass under the cutting stand to one side the grinder in 75°-80° edge.75°-80°) This gouge can also be order to stay clear of handle.) sharpened freehand, but when establishing a brand-new bevel on a larger gouge, I appreciate help from the Vari-Grind jig. Stop the stop so that the tip projects Rotate. To use the jig, first employ as shown. Adjust the jig’s leg per Set the theabout manufacturer’s 2" from the front instructions, of the jig projecti on. set it in the V-rest and then slide the rest out so that the center of the bevel rests on the center of on, and lower the tool onto the the wheel. Now, turn the grinder 58 woodcraftmagazine.com June/July 2015 Before Hone both bevels. Rotati on 35°-40°

A� er

Reshape both Skew Chisel bevels on sander. Use a pocket-sized stone for touch-ups. The skew chisel is my go-to Using the factory-established tool for most spindle turning. bevel as a guide, rest one hand It can be used not only to on the sander’s table, and then swing the tip against the disc cylinders, V-grooves, beads, or belt, as shown. As you do andshape, long but concave also to curves.finish this, be mindful not to catch Although it’s regarded as the tool’s top corner. To avoid a catch, let the skew’s bottom once mastered, it can produce edge touch the abrasive before pocket. This accessory provides the most difficult tool to use, fully registering the bevel a handy way to touch up an edge against the disc. Repeat this infinished a fraction surfaces of the as time. smooth procedure on the opposite face. as the finest grit sandpaper, After grinding both faces, check severalbefore making times before a finishing needing cut. I a skew must be razor (literally, the bevels, and then make any tofind regrind that I canit. I re-hone an edge hair-shaving)Since it is a finish-surfacesharp. Fortunately, tool, necessary adjustments so that getting a surgical edge isn’t that both bevels are the same length. much harder than sharpening After grinding, you'll need to About Our Author a standard bench chisel. hone the edge. While I’m still Nick Cook is a founding Rather than using a grinder, at the machine, I’ll set up an member of the I prefer shaping the bevels on oilstone. Simply register the American Associati on either a disc or belt sander bevel against the stone, and of Woodturners, and slide the tool back and forth as conducts woodturning Unlike a wheel, these machines shown until you’ve achieved a workshops across the country. outfitted with 80-grit abrasive. mirror surface. A few passes He just completed 1,219 napkin on each side should do the rings from Auburn University’s removemaintain sawdust the flat frombevel. the (Note: trick. These days, I also keep famed Toomer’s Corner Oak. sanderTo avoid and any surrounding chance of fire, area.) a diamond paddle in my apron

Is it Sharp, or Not? If you’ve tried using a turning tell the diff erence requires a tool brand new, or a� empted certain amount of experience, to turn too long without going especially since some woods back to the grinder, then you are harder to turn than others. already know how a dull tool One quick way to determine will pull or tear at your turning, whether a tool is sharp or not is leaving a surface that can be by dragging its edge across your impossible to sand smooth. The thumbnail. If the edge catches trick is knowing when a tool and creates a curl, you’re set. As sharp as my tools are, I sti ll needs a touch-up, before the The best advice I’ve heard make a habit of touching up an damage is done. The ability to is, “When in doubt, sharpen.” edge before making a fi nal cut.

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