Okay wood turners extraordinaires.  I would like to get my own set of turning tools. can you give me feedback on which ones to get first and which brand is medium or quality price level. not looking for top of the line just yet until I get to practice in a bit. I have seen Laguna on here a lot is that one you all would suggest or is there other? i am open to all thought on this. thank you in advance!

Lissa, if you do a lot of turning why would you not buy the best you can afford. If you're serious about turning why not buy your tools once. In my opinion, it is a waste to buy a tool only to turn around and have to upgrade or replace it at a later date. I'll let the experts jump in on recommendations, but Easy Wood, who is one of the sponsors of the forum, has an excellent reputation. They may seem a little pricey, but they would be a lifetime tool.

Lots of things to consider here-

 First of all, turning is easier to learn if the tools are sharp. So, if you consider HSS (high speed steel) tools you also need to think about the need to resharpen them. That means some sort of sharpening system. Better quality tools (types of metal) will stay sharper longer but will still need sharpened, eventually. Typically, lathe tools are sharpened on a bench grinder- slow speeds are better. Some turnes use other methods- belt sanding, special sharpening systems.

 

Another way to go is with carbide tools. These tools have replaceable, long-lasting cutters. No need for a grinder/sharpening system. Some turners will use a diamond honing board to touch up the edges to get longer use of the replacement tips.

 

HSS tools and carbide tool have slightly different use characteristics. I feel carbide tools are easier to learn to use. Both types of tools have their place in your tool arsenal.

 

I started with a starter set of steel tools that came with my lathe. The downfall of that was that I only used a couple of the tools. If you decide on HSS tool, avoid the "set" box and buy just what you need to learn with. A roughing gouge, a spindle gouge and a parting tool will get you started. If you want to turn hollow objects, like bowls, you'll need a bowl gouge as well.

 

Look at Woodcraft  (Woodriver) , Laguna Tools (Pinnacle) and Easy Wood Tools (carbide) for ideas, availability and prices.

 

I'm sure other turners will jump in with their comments, suggestions and ideas. This is a super topic and I'm glad you asked us for opinions!

 

 

Thanks for jumping Lew. Although the choice of what are the best turning tools is "out of my wheelhouse", I still have a strong opinion on buying the best tool you can afford. Hopefully, it will be one of the last ones that you have to buy. With that, said, and not being a turner, I am also interested in what are the best tools for the beginner without blowing a sometimes limited budget, that will continue to do the job as your skills progress. So, yes, this should turn into an informative thread.

1 hour ago, schnewj said:

Lissa, if you do a lot of turning why would you not buy the best you can afford. If you're serious about turning why not buy your tools once. In my opinion, it is a waste to buy a tool only to turn around and have to upgrade or replace it at a later date. I'll let the experts jump in on recommendations, but Easy Wood, who is one of the sponsors of the forum, has an excellent reputation. They may seem a little pricey, but they would be a lifetime tool.

I have little experience with carbide but I do own a couple Easy Wood Tools and the fit and finish on them is first rate. If you do decide to go with carbide tools EWT's are the best.

As for conventional tools, based on my own experience I would not buy the "best" tools to start with for a few reasons. I would agree with Schnewj in pretty much any other situation. I have always believed buy a quality tool is much cheaper in the long run.

 

Here's why I feel differently about buy lathe tools. For starters, there is a steep learning curve to turning. Many think they want to be turners and find out it's just not for them. Secondly, there is also a learning curve to sharpening. I asked the same exact question you are asking. I was told Thompson tools are the best, based on that I bought a 1/2" Thompson bowl gouge. That is a tool that should last an amateur turner several years, I had it ground to a nub in less than a year because I didn't know what I was doing. After that I bought cheaper tools until I figured out sharpening a little. Since then, I have invested in several Thompson tools as they have the "best" steel in them.

More recently I have begun to feel the "best" steel isn't necessarily the best steel for a lathe gouge. I feel I can get a better cut with softer M2 steel than I can with the 10V tools. I do have to sharpen a little more but I would rather spend an 2 extra minutes sharpening over 30 extra minutes sanding.

 

I would recommend NOT buying a set of tools,  often a person will only use one or two out of a set and the rest sit idle.

 

Steve

I can appreciate your thoughts here. I'll stand corrected. I hadn't considered a "learning curve" in my initial response.

 

What type of sharpening method do you use, Steve? Perhaps that should be part of the discussion here, also. If Lissa is going for information  on what tools to buy, the discussion should include the whole package. Sharpening methods should be part of that. You mention different types of tools steels and perhaps it would help to elaborate on that, also, without getting too technical. Pros and cons should help with her decision making.

56 minutes ago, schnewj said:

I can appreciate your thoughts here. I'll stand corrected. I hadn't considered a "learning curve" in my initial response.

 

What type of sharpening method do you use, Steve? Perhaps that should be part of the discussion here, also. If Lissa is going for information  on what tools to buy, the discussion should include the whole package. Sharpening methods should be part of that. You mention different types of tools steels and perhaps it would help to elaborate on that, also, without getting too technical. Pros and cons should help with her decision making.

Let me stress, this is only my opinion, few turners agree with me and most will recommend Thompson gouges. As for sharpening I use the Oneway wolverine system for my gouges, most of the time. There are times I will use a platform. My grinder is variable speed and my workhorse wheel is a 180 grit from Dway tools. It is a steel core wheel and a little more expensive than that cheaper aluminum wheels that are so popular now. Cindy Drozda also sells a quality steel core wheel.

If money were no object I'd upgrade to the Tormek, the jig is much more precise and repeatable and the machine removes a minuscule amount of material when sharpening. The edge from the Tormek is amazing.

 

Steve

@Jim from Easy Wood Tools would be proud of you guys!

I agree, they are great tools, Easy Wood Tools. I know my opinion is worthless since Easy Wood Tools does sponsor our site, anyone reading this is going to think I am coming from a very biased place, but hey, Made in America, by Americans, for the World, excellent fit and finish, on and on and on. I love my EWT's.

Lissa, so happens we got a raffle going on for a great cause, and some full sized EWT's are up for grabs, go here and put in two bucks, you never know, folks win millions off one quick pick lottery ticket!

RAFFLE

4 hours ago, Steve Krumanaker said:

Let me stress, this is only my opinion, few turners agree with me and most will recommend Thompson gouges. As for sharpening I use the Oneway wolverine system for my gouges, most of the time. There are times I will use a platform. My grinder is variable speed and my workhorse wheel is a 180 grit from Dway tools. It is a steel core wheel and a little more expensive than that cheaper aluminum wheels that are so popular now. Cindy Drozda also sells a quality steel core wheel.

If money were no object I'd upgrade to the Tormek, the jig is much more precise and repeatable and the machine removes a minuscule amount of material when sharpening. The edge from the Tormek is amazing.

 

Steve

It doesn't matter if everyone agrees or not. That is what makes a horse race. It is the personal experience that matters, and what worked (works) for you is based on your experience. Others may go a different route and have different results...doesn't mean one is better then the other. The point is, if some others would chime in we can help Lissa, as a group, decide the best route to go based on a collective experience.

 

@Lissa Hall Lissa, perhaps if you tell us what your skill level is and what equipment you have access to it would help the guys narrow it down for you. Also, what types of projects are you interested in doing?

46 minutes ago, John Morris said:

@Jim from Easy Wood Tools would be proud of you guys!

I agree, they are great tools, Easy Wood Tools. I know my opinion is worthless since Easy Wood Tools does sponsor our site, anyone reading this is going to think I am coming from a very biased place, but hey, Made in America, by Americans, for the World, excellent fit and finish, on and on and on. I love my EWT's.

Lissa, so happens we got a raffle going on for a great cause, and some full sized EWT's are up for grabs, go here and put in two bucks, you never know, folks win millions off one quick pick lottery ticket!

RAFFLE

Not true, John. I think that most of us know you well enough that you would not give a biased opinion based upon sponsorship. I would value your opinion, especially, since I know that you are a turner and probably have practical experience with these tools. If you didn't you probably would pass on saying anything.

I'm hoping that some more of the "turners" will join in. The more information the better it is. 

 

I have a personal reason...I'd like to take up turning one day. However, before I do I want as much information as possible to make the best choices. Those choices include, lathe choices, tools, equipment, etc. This is a great place to foster the discussions. There are a lot of folks with a lot of collective knowledge here, and I wouldn't think of going anyplace else for advice. So, speak up guys!

33 minutes ago, schnewj said:

Not true, John. I think that most of us know you well enough that you would not give a biased opinion based upon sponsorship. I would value your opinion, especially, since I know that you are a turner and probably have practical experience with these tools. If you didn't you probably would pass on saying anything.

Well I appreciate that Bill. That's is very nice of you to say. Hey, are you still gonna build some Shaker chairs?

For the most part I agree with a great deal of what has been said however I do have a different take on all this.

     1. I do not recommend carbide tools for the beginner. They need to learn to turn with regular tools and develop skills of making cuts properly. Also carbide is more expensive than a good regular tool.

      2. Sharpening is important but not in the question and if we add too much the posts on one question will go on forever and may not answer the original question so unless asked I will not go there as to methods.

      3. Now to tools I recommend Thompson Tools. Yes they are more than Benjamin's Best and Harbor Freight but will hold an edge better and last longer. But is you want something cheaper go with BB and only buy what you need.

       4. Start with a bowl gouge, parting tool and spindle gouge. Save the skew for after you learn tool control . I do use the skew regularly but many turners do not understand the tool and cannot use it. Also wait on the spindle roughing gouge because a good bowl gouge will do the same work  .

      Once you get ready to buy the tools I do encourage you to ask specifically about sharpening methods and what equipment is best to use.

3 hours ago, John Morris said:

Well I appreciate that Bill. That's is very nice of you to say. Hey, are you still gonna build some Shaker chairs?

Still reading and re-reading the books you recommended. Good material is very hard to find in my area.

 

Um, and wouldn't a lathe come in handy?

35 minutes ago, schnewj said:

Um, and wouldn't a lathe come in handy?

For those chairs yes!!!!! I have also been turning the idea in my head for splitting the pieces from logs, and shaping the chair parts by draw knife and shaves, no lathe needed. It would take on a different look, but it would look pretty cool! I do love turning those parts on the lathe though, they are simple to turn, and fun, and I like fun in woodworking.

I've been holding back replying to this thread.  I think back to the day when I decided to give turning a try and put a piece of wood between the centers on the lathe.  I took some tools and jammed them into the wood and wondered what the %$*&$# is this about.  This is no fun at all.  Well I did keep at it and watched videos on how to turn and eventually had enough AH-HA moments that I was able to put the tool to the wood and "CUT" it rather than scrape it away.  Turning is an art and there is a right and wrong way to go about it.  I would assume that you have a lathe and now need tools to use as your next purchase but you also need a way to sharpen them which is another whole aspect to learning to turn.  Here is what I would like to see happen.

 

I will put together a set of HSS spindle turning tools together and send them down to you free of charge and you can use your tool money and invest in a way to sharpen them.  

What you need to do is find some instruction whether it be through the local adult education program, Woodcraft and other stores offer classes from time to time or maybe one of the turners here on Patriot Woodworkers lives near you and will offer their help.  There are wood turning clubs and maybe there is one near you that would be more than willing to offer their help.  I just don't want you to try it on your own and get discouraged.  Turning is an amazing craft and it almost happened to me after my first go round and I would love to see you enjoy it as much as I do.

 

Send me a PM with your delivery address and I will send the tools.

@Lissa Hall

 

5 hours ago, HandyDan said:

.

 

I will put together a set of HSS spindle turning tools together and send them down to you free of charge and you can use your tool money and invest in a way to sharpen them.  

What you need to do is find some instruction whether it be through the local adult education program, Woodcraft and other stores offer classes from time to time or maybe one of the turners here on Patriot Woodworkers lives near you and will offer their help.  There are wood turning clubs and maybe there is one near you that would be more than willing to offer their help.  I just don't want you to try it on your own and get discouraged.  Turning is an amazing craft and it almost happened to me after my first go round and I would love to see you enjoy it as much as I do.

 

Send me a PM with your delivery address and I will send the tools.

 

 

I've seen this kind of behavior out of you before. It's one of the things that, even though we've never met in person, make me honored to call you friend.

Steve

Edited November 23, 20178 yr by Steve Krumanaker

5 hours ago, HandyDan said:

I will put together a set of HSS spindle turning tools together and send them down to you free of charge and you can use your tool money and invest in a way to sharpen them.  

 

 

That is a great deal right there Lissa, Dan's the man...

Cal

I am a beginner. i have had the lathe for awhile but only my "boys" have had the time to use it. My boys are like adopted young men thru my son who picked stuff up.The problem with having a son is you end up with more lol.  the lathe i have is a large one. from harbour frieght not sure what you need from it.