Reshaping a 1" skew to Lacer grind

[Jamie Straw]

I want to reshape my inexpensive 1" skew to the Lacer grind, and have watched his video on "how to." Given that my coarsest wheel is 80 grit (and not a cheap one!), does it make sense to use this wheel to reshape tip-straight-at-the-wheel, or should/can I reshape it just by grinding the bevel with the fanning motion, probably over a period of time? Don't want to do anything to the wheel that's detrimental, but perhaps I'm too cautious with it? LMK, thanks!

 

[john lucas]

Just take your time and don't overheat the steel. It should really matter how you do it. 80 grit should be fine but you might need some patience. What I do when I have to remove a lot of steel is plan to do it over a day I'll grind until the tool gets pretty warm and then just lay it down. Go turn something and when I think about again I'll pick it up and grind some more. This way I don't get too tired or bored and the steel never gets very hot.

 

[Bill Boehme]

Just so that you don't waste steel, do it gradually. This makes the transition smoother. and you may discover a mid point where you decide to stop.

 

[robo hippy]

Well, if you are in a hurry, I have a Jet 1 1/2 hp belt sander with a 40 grit belt that will do it in very short order. I use it for shaping scrapers. No real need to hurry though.

robo hippy

 

[Odie]

Jamie.....as long as you have the Wolverine anyway, you might want to consider experimenting with the skew attachment made specifically for it.

The Lacer grind is very easy to produce with this jig, as well as the traditional straight, or the Raffan curved grind. The trick is understanding that the skew can be rotated on it's axis while it's being ground.....at your option, or choice of degree of rotation. The learning curve is very short to produce a perfect skew in any of the popular shapes.

As does Alan Lacer, I also use a diamond hone to create the actual cutting edge.

Your 80gt wheel is fine for producing the initial grind.....I use an 80gt Norton SG wheel myself.

ko

 

[Jamie Straw]

Buy or DIY...

Jamie.....as long as you have the Wolverine anyway, you might want to consider experimenting with the skew attachment made specifically for it.

The Lacer grind is very easy to produce with this jig, as well as the traditional straight, or the Raffan curved grind. The trick is understanding that the skew can be rotated on it's axis while it's being ground.....at your option, or choice of degree of rotation. The learning curve is very short to produce a perfect skew in any of the popular shapes.

As does Alan Lacer, I also use a diamond hone to create the actual cutting edge.

Your 80gt wheel is fine for producing the initial grind.....I use an 80gt Norton SG wheel myself.

ko

Whenever I think about buying one of those skew attachments, it seems I should be able to make one. It looks pretty simple. So far, I've been able to sharpen skews free-hand, and I've watched Lacer's video on shaping and sharpening that grind. If I fail miserably, I might reconsider buying the jig. Would also like to try some curved grinds that are short of the true Lacer shape.

 

[diverjoe]

Oneway skew jig

Jamie, send me a PM. I have the Oneway skew jig that I will send to you.
Joe

 

[Douglas Ladendorf]

Nice Joe!

Jamie, I picked one up at the Symposium this year and have been trying it out. So far I like the relative consistency. Line Odie said it can rotate which is a small learning curve but rather than just relying on the jig too much it's a reminder to hold the tool properly to shape it as you wish. I have done a similar transition from a mostly straight grind to something more like the Lacer grind but I'm working my way there with each grind. I also use a diamond card to hone the edge.

Doug

 

[Jamie Straw]

Nice Joe!

Jamie, I picked one up at the Symposium this year and have been trying it out. So far I like the relative consistency. Line Odie said it can rotate which is a small learning curve but rather than just relying on the jig too much it's a reminder to hold the tool properly to shape it as you wish. I have done a similar transition from a mostly straight grind to something more like the Lacer grind but I'm working my way there with each grind. I also use a diamond card to hone the edge.

Doug

Ditto to the bolded statements. I kinda did the gradual conversion accidentally with one skew, and I liked the way it handled. Which diamond card to you use? Mine is a DMT I bought back in the day, and only used a few times before the hiatus. I read that they don't last as long as the Trend, not sure if mine's getting tired yet or not.

 

[John Torchick]

I got curious and found www.woodturninglearn.net for Alan Lacer. I was curious about Jamie's inquiry and decided to see what it was all about. Most interesting website and very informative on grinding tools. Saved it as a Favorite.

 

[Jamie Straw]

Oneway skew jig arrives...

Jamie, send me a PM. I have the Oneway skew jig that I will send to you.
Joe

It arrived this afternoon, Joe, thanks! I worked on 3 skews before dinner, and though they were more or less acceptable before, they are reallllly nice now! I tested them on a piece of very dry red oak spindle stock (=junk, just for practice), they cut quite nicely. The grind is more consistent across the bevel, and the two bevels are more symmetric than I was able to make them before.

One of the skews I touched up is a 1970's Rockwell 1" HSS skew that came with a 25-degree bevel. Am going to ease that to 30 over a few sharpenings, but I couldn't believe how nice it was to have some weight and body in the skew. I also have a cheap Hurricane 1" skew that came with a 45-degree bevel (sheesh :mad🙂, so I have one I can put a curved profile on (not-quite-Lacer) and one I can keep straight or go whole-hog.