# Traditional bowl gouges



## 44260 (Aug 29, 2013)

I have been turning bowls for about a year now using carbide tools. I want to start using traditional bowl gouges but I have a few questions that I need cleared up. I have a sharpening system set up I just need the white wheel to make it complete.

My main questions are about the gouges themselves. I am finding 2 different grinds, traditional and fingernail. In what applications are these 2 different grinds used? Next is the sizes of the gauges themselves. I know about the different diameters depending on which side of the pond they come from but I am more confused on knowing which size is needed for a project. Is a 3/8 gouge only used for small turnings like boxes? Is a 1/2 used from 4" to 10" turnings? and a 5/8 used for 10" and larger turnings?

I use a Hunter Hercules tool to do all my roughing with and I am looking to start using traditional bowl gouges for shaping my bowls.

I am using a small Midi lathe with a 12" swing and 16" between centers. I only face plate turn (no spindle turning). Any help,advice,opinions good or bad are greatly appreciated.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

A fingernail grind is used for almost everything. A traditional grind is sometimes useful for the bottom of the inside. You could carefully turn a 20 inch bowl with a 3/8 gouge. Since your lathe only has a 12 inch swing just a 3/8 gouge should be fine.


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## bond3737 (Nov 13, 2009)

for your current lathe a 1/2 inch gouge is probably all you would need. I use a 5/8 inch bowl gouge on almost all my pieces but I often go larger than 12 inches. I find that if you are roughing the outside a 5/8" gouge is pretty great for mass removal on any bowl for the outside but in working on the inside for smaller bowls 12 inches or below I switch to a 1/2" which works really well. Not saying a 1/2 inch wont work on roughing the outside it absolutely will and is better for reaching tight places but I prefer the 5/8 just for speed sake. If you wanna learn a gouge a 1/2" is the way to go Itll do everything you want on your set up. Happy turnin, 
Bond


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## 44260 (Aug 29, 2013)

Thank you fellas, looks like a 1/2" is the way I'm going!!!!!


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

If you have enough hp to spin the wood a 5/8 or 3/4 is great. If your lathe is less than 1-1/2 hp a 1/2 is all your lathe can handle.


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

For the most part, the style of the grind doesn't matter except in a few situations where you might need a more blunt nose angle. A nose angle of less than about 50° may be a bit more difficult for a beginner. Eventually, you will have several bowl gouges and possibly a different shape on each one. I think that I have somewhere around a dozen bowl gouges ranging from ⅜" to ¾". The most useful size is ½".

All of mine have some amount of swept back wings ranging to short to really long wings. I can't offer a great reason. Occasionally I will tweak either the angle or the amount of sweep.


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## Quickstep (Apr 10, 2012)

As a guy who is thinking about getting a Hunter Hercules, I'm curious..... What is it that makes you want to switch from the Hercules to the traditional gouge?


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I don't like carbide tools. Sometimes I use a carbide tool to get the blank round, but after that I would much rather have a bowl gouge. The carbide cutters are expensive. They are never as sharp as steel. I like to sharpen my bowl gouge for the last pass to reduce tearout.


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

Quickstep said:


> As a guy who is thinking about getting a Hunter Hercules, I'm curious..... What is it that makes you want to switch from the Hercules to the traditional gouge?


The Hunter Hercules serves a purpose as a great tool working the interior of hollow forms, but it isn't a good substitute for a bowl gouge.


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## 44260 (Aug 29, 2013)

I am a self taught turner and when I started turning I did a lot of research on different tools and talked to more experienced turners on different forums. I decided to start with carbide tools because I understood that there was less of a learning curve in the actual use of the tool and with a traditional gouge I would also have to learn proper sharpening techniques. I felt that at the begining phase of turning that sharpening and the learning curve were just a little much to take on all at one time. I feel that I am now ready to learn the use of the traditional gouge and sharpening techniques so that I can make my own decision on which tool I like best.

There is ABSOLUTELY nothing wrong with the Hunter Hercules tool I think it is a great tool!!!!!! I just want to broaden my horizons and experience different tools.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I just started turning last fall. I bought traditional tools, and carbide. From day one I didn't like the carbide tools.


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## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

I always recommend to new turners to try and search out a turning club in your area. Besides making new friends, you will get a lot of help in learning how to use the various tools, how to sharpen, safety while turning, etc. Clubs can really shorten up the learning curve. There's nothing like hands on instruction.
Mike Hawkins


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## Quickstep (Apr 10, 2012)

I started out with a mix. I struggled to use the traditional tools and found that the Easy Wood tools were, well, easy. I later learned that the Easy Wood tools are really scrapers. The Hunter tools are different (I think) in that they are really making a shearing cut. That combined with a longevity of a carbide cutter really piqued my interest. I'm guessing that you guys are saying that the Hunter doesn't have as keen an edge as a freshly sharpened traditional tool?


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## john lucas (Sep 18, 2007)

The Herculese is a unique tool. First of all it has a 27 degree cutting edge. So it's sharper than bowl gouges which are usually sharpened at 40 to about 60 degrees. It holds that keen edge for a very lon time. 
You can use it in a push cut just like a bowl gouge so its a great tool to learn to use a bowl gouge in a push cut. If you go to www.youtube.com and type in john60lucas/hercules it will bring up my video Then you can see how I use that tool. 
I do love my bowl gouges and urge you to learn to sharpen and use one. There are cuts you can't do with the Hercules However you don't have to sharpen the Hercules a d you can practice the push cut which is the cut most used with the bowl gouge


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

From what I have seen, most beginners use nearly every tool like a scraper. Occasionally that is the right thing to do, but most of the time tools should be used to cut and slice. If you use the Hunter tool the same way that you have used the EWT scrapers then you are still scraping. Find a club if possible and get the benefit of somebody showing you how to use tools.


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