model g0694 (mfg. since 1/09)
-27-
Selecting Turning
Tools
Lathe tools come in a variety of shapes and sizes,
and usually fall into five major categories.
•
Gouges—mainly used for rough cutting,
detail cutting, and cove profiles. the rough
gouge is a hollow, double-ground tool with
a round nose, and the detail gouge is a hol-
low, double-ground tool with either a round or
pointed nose.
figure 26. example of a gouge.
•
Skew chisel—a very versatile tool that can
be used for planing, squaring, V-cutting,
beading, and parting off. the skew chisel is
flat, double-ground with one side higher than
the other (usually at an angle of 20°–40°).
figure 27. example of a skew chisel.
•
Scrapers—typically used where access for
other tools is limited, such as hollowing oper-
ations. this is a flat, double-ground tool that
comes in a variety of profiles (round nose,
spear point, square nose, etc.) to match
many different contours.
figure 28. example of a round nose scraper.
•
Parting Tools—Used for sizing and cut-
ting off work. this is a flat tool with a sharp
pointed nose that may be single- or double-
ground.
figure 29. example of a parting tool.
•
Specialty Tools—these are the unique,
special function tools to aid in hollowing, bowl
making, cutting profiles, etc. the swan neck
hollowing tool shown on
Page 34 is a good
example of a speciality tool.
