Tool steel

[Max Taylor]

I know tool steel isnt used for turning knives etc, because on a high speed grinder it is too easy to turn the cutting edge blue, thus ruining it for turning. If the knife were sharpened on a wet wheel with no chance of getting too hot, could it then be used? If sharpened this way, would the edge last longer? Or is tool steel just no good all the way around for turning? Inquiring minds want to know. Max :cool2: :cool2: 😱 😎

 

[underdog]

I assume that when you speak of "tool steel" you mean "Carbon Steel" (CS) rather than High Speed Steel (HSS)?

CS is suitable for turning if you don't heat it so much during grinding that you lose the temper, or as you say, turn it blue. It loses it's temper at a much lower temperature than HSS.

The other drawback to CS is that it is not as hard as HSS and loses it's edge sooner. The advantage of CS is that it will take a finer edge and therefore get a bit sharper. Some turners use it on their final cuts to get a better finish. (Therefore needing less sanding. Believe me, less sanding is a good thing, worth pursuing.)

Overall I think the HSS has the biggest advantage in that you can get it pretty darn sharp, and holds its edge longer, and won't lose it's temper easily when grinding. Personally, I don't think I could tell the difference in sharpness from CS to HSS with a really good grind.

 

[LANKFORD]

Tool Steel is a generic term for any steel modified with additives for making the carbon steel suitable for tools. It has many compositions. High Speed Steel is a name given to one specific composition but it is still a "tool steel".

 

[Bill Boehme]

All of the older turning tools were made of carbon steel and they can be sharpened to a slightly keener edge, but carbon steel very quickly loses its sharp edge when turning wood, so on average you will be going back to resharpen it about three times as often as you would with M2 HSS tools. It does not really matter very much that you use a wet grinder except that you would be able to get a more polished edge which certainly would not hurt and it would be a way to safely avoid overheating the steel.

Have you found any carbon steel tools besides the hook tools that we made?

Bill

 

[TurningDog]

Have you found any carbon steel tools besides the hook tools that we made?

Bill

HF sells a set as does ashley isles but those are the only ones i know of off hand.

 

[john lucas]

I still use 3 carbon steel tools frequently. I just have to sharpen them more often. Since it only takes a few seconds to shapen them it's no big deal. I use a 1750 rpm grinder with a very light touch. I think the white wheels work much better for this than the gray which I used for a long time. I almost never blue the edge but do occasionally if I'm not careful. It doesn't ruin the tool like so many people state. You simply have to sharpen it more often until you have ground past the blued area then it will hold an edge longer.
My good friend still uses Buck Brothers tools and has all his life. He was a professional turner in the 60's and 70's and turned thousands of items with these tools. We can learn much from these turners.

 

[MichaelMouse]

I use my carbon steel tools only for the finest and final cuts, not for general-purpose cutting. Hope to preserve them into the future for just that purpose. They're forged tools, so I'm not sure the 3:1 business applies, anyway.

Wet and sawdust in the same room don't thrill me, so I use a setup like John recommends, just no white wheels any more. White wheels and carbon steels are made for each other, but on a slow grinder, they're not critical. A light touch is. Carbon steel also demands a light touch when cutting, since the heat increases with pressure on the tool regardless of whether it's wood or stone that it's pressing against.

Wet wood, where the temperature can't rise above steam, and slower speeds, where even dry wood has more time to cool between succesive swipes will help you keep the edge on your softer tools for a long time.