Bedan use

[Frank F]

What can you do with a bedan, if anything, that you can't do with a skew or beading and parting tool.
If feel I should learn to use this tool, but can't say why.

Thanks.

 

[Richard Findley]

What can you do with a bedan, if anything, that you can't do with a skew or beading and parting tool.
If feel I should learn to use this tool, but can't say why.

Thanks.

The Bedan is a traditional French tool, the Beading and Parting Tool is traditional British. They’re used in the same way, which you prefer will be down to personal preference. I think skews are a very personal tool with different people preferring different versions of the tool.

Richard

 

[Tom Lucas]

Bedan is a traditional scraper. Skew is more of a negative rake scraper. Parting tools are also scrapers; just more narrow. I used a bedan for peeling cuts when the peel width is relative small, say an inch or less. For really wide diameter reduction I use an SRG. The bedan is much easier to sharpen; just raise a new burr. Whereas the skew requires a lot more care to get a really sharp edge. I will use my skew for peeling cuts if it's already in my hand and is in need of a sharpening anyway. Otherwise, I try to keep my skew for when I need a clean cut.

I use a bedan to rough out my tenons. Then add a dovetail using a skew or thin parting tool. The latter mostly, again to save my skew.

 

[Ron Solfest]

10-15yrs ago I heard someone recommend a bedan and ‘had to’ get one. It sits gathering dust, I’ve probably sharpened it twice in the last 5yrs.

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

My Bedan is a great NRS I think it was a language barrier. I would swear at it in Spanish. Later I learned you have to know some French swear words.

 

[Michael Nathal]

I think the bedan cuts better than a parting tool. I use it bevel down, which is the British way. The French use it bevel up, which is more like a skew as I see it.

 

[Sam Fleisher]

I was thinking I wanted one a little bit ago when I was using a parting tool to get a piece of hedge apple close to the final diameter. Extra width would have been nice. I was using a square carbide till the leading side got too chipped. (maybe I was a little bit aggressive)

 

[Richard Coers]

Bedan is a traditional scraper. Skew is more of a negative rake scraper. Parting tools are also scrapers; just more narrow. I used a bedan for peeling cuts when the peel width is relative small, say an inch or less. For really wide diameter reduction I use an SRG. The bedan is much easier to sharpen; just raise a new burr. Whereas the skew requires a lot more care to get a really sharp edge. I will use my skew for peeling cuts if it's already in my hand and is in need of a sharpening anyway. Otherwise, I try to keep my skew for when I need a clean cut.

I use a bedan to rough out my tenons. Then add a dovetail using a skew or thin parting tool. The latter mostly, again to save my skew.

Confused by your description of the bedan and parting tools as scrapers, then you say you use them for peeling cuts. Both tools are shearing cutters when used that way. I never use a burr on either of those tools.

 

[Richard Findley]

Bedan is a traditional scraper. Skew is more of a negative rake scraper. Parting tools are also scrapers; just more narrow. I used a bedan for peeling cuts when the peel width is relative small, say an inch or less. For really wide diameter reduction I use an SRG. The bedan is much easier to sharpen; just raise a new burr. Whereas the skew requires a lot more care to get a really sharp edge. I will use my skew for peeling cuts if it's already in my hand and is in need of a sharpening anyway. Otherwise, I try to keep my skew for when I need a clean cut.

I use a bedan to rough out my tenons. Then add a dovetail using a skew or thin parting tool. The latter mostly, again to save my skew.

These tools are not designed as scrapers (although anything can be a scraper if presented as such) they are designed to be used as bevel rubbing, cutting, spindle turning tools. The advantage of a bedan and a beading and parting tool is that they are a hybrid of a skew and a parting tool, making them incredibly versatile in the right hands.

Richard

 

[john lucas]

Jean francois esceulon uses the bedan mostly as a skew. Watching him use it is eye opening. I used one a lot when I did my different skew test. I don't think I put it in the video because I gave it to someone before I made the video. I found it a little more catchy turning beads probably because I simply had not used it enough.

 

[R Henrickson]

These tools are not designed as scrapers (although anything can be a scraper if presented as such) they are designed to be used as bevel rubbing, cutting, spindle turning tools. The advantage of a bedan and a beading and parting tool is that they are a hybrid of a skew and a parting tool, making them incredibly versatile in the right hands.

Richard

Indeed!! In teaching turning, I have found that parting tools are rarely used in bevel-rubbing mode. Many turners simply stick the point straight into the wood, ignoring the bevel. The result is often severe tear out due to the scraping action. Using the bevel yields nice peeling cuts. The bevel-up bedans (cf Escoulen) are very useful and can provide beautiful cuts.

 

[Bill Boehme]

At the very first woodturning club meeting I attended as a greenhorn in June 2004, the demonstrator used a bedan as his only turning tool. I was thoroughly blown away by his finesse in using the bedan. It was obvious even to my novice eyes that he knew what he was doing. My recollection is that he used the tool both "bevel up" and "bevel down" as he masterfully "sliced and diced" his way through an intricate multi-axes pièce de résistance. I still remember his name, Jean François Escoulen. Seeing his demo inspired me to learn how to use the bedan, but definitely not in the same league as Jean François. I see that John Lucas has also heard of Monsieur Escoulen.

My Bedan is a great NRS …

Oh, the humanity!

 

[Dave Landers]

Jean François Escoulen

FWIW - Jean François Escoulen will be one of our lead demonstrators at the Rocky Mountain Woodturning Symposium in Sept.

 

[john lucas]

I was fortunate enough to spend a few hours with Escoulen driving him from Cookevilke to Arrowmont. John Jordan had him staying at his house and something came up and he couldn't drive him all the way there. He drove him to cookevilke and I was glad to take him. Wish I could have attended his class. I've always loved his work.

 

[Dean Center]

I have 2 theories. One is that the purpose of the bedan is to make the skew look tame by comparison. The other is that maybe the French created the bedan to get back at us Americans for harping on saving their bacon in two wars. In an case, turning with the bedan is like being a relationship with a very attractive woman--beautiful in action, but always on the brink of catastrophe. Which is maybe why the French can do it and we struggle.

 

[Robert Santore]

I had never heard of Escoulen but a quick look turned up this neat video.

View: https://youtu.be/1rJYnpBgJk0?si=lhqFo-9URJePDpoo


There are great views of him turning with a bedan but I wish it lingered on the finished piece a bit more at the end

 

[Bill Boehme]

I have 2 theories. One is that the purpose of the bedan is to make the skew look tame by comparison. The other is that maybe the French created the bedan to get back at us Americans for harping on saving their bacon in two wars. In an case, turning with the bedan is like being a relationship with a very attractive woman--beautiful in action, but always on the brink of catastrophe. Which is maybe why the French can do it and we struggle.

The second theory. Now that you mention it, it's so obvious.

 

[Rick Urban]

A lot of great posts here! Here's my 2 cents worth.

I have come to focus on the notion that most tools with an edge may be presented in multiple ways which results in cutting the wood fibers in one of three ways: Scraping, Peeling, or Slicing. I used to include Shearing as a fourth type of cut, but came to the realization it was simply an extreme case of slicing with the edge at 90 degrees to the wood fibers.