# Are old Craftsman HSS lathe tools any good?



## JohnTC (Mar 1, 2018)

Have seen some old Craftsman lathe tools for sale, but don't know how good they are. Anyone have an opinion on them?


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## holtzdreher (Jul 20, 2016)

Old is very relative. To some old is 10 years to some it is 50 years. My favorite lathe knife is a Craftsman skew that is about 45 yrs old. The spindle gouge with an old Craftsman set will still do the job. You won't find any modern gouge shapes in the old tools and the spear point tool that came in the sets is of limited use at best. They were considered the cat's meow by several thousand wood workers for several decades. Turning has changed a great deal in the past 20 years and tools have changed too. That doesn't mean that tools that have worked for centuries are suddenly no good.


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## Maylar (Sep 3, 2013)

Depending on how old they are, they may be carbon steel rather than HSS. The downside to that is you need to be careful not to blue them when grinding, whereas HSS doesn't care. The upside is that an old carbon steel skew can be honed to an incredible edge. My first turning tools were a carbon steel Buck Bros. set and I still use them 20 years later.


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## Jim Frye (Aug 24, 2016)

I have seven Craftsman HSS turning tools I bought in 2001 and they have been quite serviceable over the years. I don't turn a lot, so they've been good for a beginner. They are stamped HSS on the handles. I sharpen on a low speed wheel and they edge and hone easily. They are a bit light weight, especially in the handles compared to other brands. No issues turning maple. I'd say they are a good value, even at full retail. Since I built my lathe, I wasn't going to spend a ton of money on tools if it didn't work well. It does, but so do the Craftsman tools. They are obviously not high end and a big time turner would buy other tools.


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## JohnTC (Mar 1, 2018)

Thank you all. They are stamped HSS. Am relatively new to turning and have only 4 tools right now and they are Craftsman. Have never used anything else so had nothing to compare them to. Saw a set on ebay and wasn't sure if I should get them or buy something better. The info y'all shared is very helpful. Thank you.


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