Get Good With A Few or Adequate With Many?

I've been turning for a long time, so those gifting occasions have brought a lot of "must have" tools to my rack. Allows me to chose the one most suitable to me and the task at hand without having to make do with something of the latest alloy or jigged famous-name grind. That said, there are probably a dozen one-trick ponies on the far reaches of the rack that seldom see use. Most are scrapers, because I don't like what they do to my stuff. When I have to, I use 'em, but I would rather cut wood than scrape or sand it.

The tools I reach for most are the large-radius, single-angle grind gouges. Unbeatable for convex surfaces, and with several diameters and thicknesses available to choose from, they also do the final cuts on concave surfaces as well. Bowl gouges do the hogging and reaching until there's enough room to wield a good twister inside.

Not sure I use my skews much more than my straight chisel, the latter doing a great job and planing and beading without having to pay attention to a portion protruding outside the arc of the cut. They aren't even used that much for edging the dovetailed mortise, because the wings of my pointy gouges take care of that and leave a slick surface behind.

This habit of keeping different diameters, grinds and tools is probably why I favor purchase of sets and experimentation with as many varieties as possible rather than blowing the price of six tools on one because it's associated with a celebrity.

As to budget deficits, I'm sure you'll recognize that virtually every bill is opposed by the opposite party, and generally, in public declaration, because it provides "inadequate funding." Sounds like Pogo was right - WE are the enemy of fiscal solvency.

I shudder to think, given the price of Medicare, what a national health plan might do....

I started with a large number of cheap tools, and decided which ones I was actually going to use the most. I got high quality versions of those tools and got really good with them, and remained adequate with the rest.

I don't think it's a "one size fits all" goal here, more like a bell curve - there will be a few tools you're not so good at but have anyway (for the rare times you need it), many tools of medium quality that you're adequate with, and a few really good tools you're really good with.

My list is a little different, I have two sets- one 8pc from Delta, and one cheap 5-pc from Menards. The Deltas are fine for most things, but the cheap ones have their uses too.

I always start with the 7/8 roughing gouge, then move quickly to the (5/8, 3/4?) bowl gouge. These get me the rough shape. If I'm going something with a flat plane, the 1" skew comes out- if it has beads or deep, narrow coves, the 5/16" spindle gouge is invaluable. I use the round and square nose scrapers from time to time, but not too much, and the parting tool very rarely for anything but actually parting off. The little skew never gets used.

The cheap carbon steel ones get used for finishing cuts. Sure, they're cheap- but they get really, really sharp, and they're great for coaxing tiny little wisps of wood out prior to sanding.

Never felt a need to buy any others, at least so far.

after buying lots of tools, all of which I became adequate with most of the time and with most woods, I have made the difficult decision that the best way to go is with a well sharpened and only slightly shaped nail in a wood handle. This is inexpensive, and very available, although if you want a truly hardened blade you have to go with a concrete nail and they are more expensive and slightly less available. I can grind on them with most anything and they are harder than the wood, this is of course a good thing. They drive well into the handle and rarely come loose if driven in adequately. Any old stick works well for a handle. Works great and lasts a long time.

Brian

Don't know that I am either.

My favorite tool at the moment is the skew, but I am not shy about reaching for other tools as the cut indicates. I have a couple of scrapers that get a good workout when turning a bowl and a good-sized gouge used for roughing larger pieces. I haven't figured out how to use one on the I.D. of a bowl yet, but I am finding that the skew is really quite versatile.

Bill

The reason I asked the question is because of James Krenov, one of the furniture making masters (in the company of Sam Maloof and George Nakashima). His approach to cabinet making is to get as close to perfection as possible at a few techniques - and keep it simple and have the wood speak for itself. I figure that if I get all the coves and beads and ogees out on turning maybe I can overcome the urge to do them in furniture.

Roughing gouges and parting tools are pretty easy to use, especially if they're sharp. Scrapers aren't too tough to use either. The rest of the turning tools - well they take a bit of practice and a range of techniques - some not so easy to get. And some seem to operate at the edge of disaster. When I first started turning I must admit the skew scared the hell out of me. The idea of getting that long point and sharp edge anywhere near a spinning piece of wood seemed insane. But after 20 or 30 hours of playing with it, initially clench jawed and white knuckled, it turns out to be able to do far more than is first apparent - and - with a curve in the cutting edge - not that catch prone.

Now if I could just focus on one branch of turning and work at getting a lot better at it rather than being adequate at a range of types of turning . . .

The nice thing about the turning branch of woodworking is that most of the wood can be had for free. And being able to go from a piece of a tree - with the bark still on it - to a finished piece in an hour or less. rather than in days, weeks or months ain't bad either. Still getting used to having the wood moving while working on it.

charlie b