Making your own small detail tools?

[Steve LaFara]

Are there any on-line articles or videos that you would reccomend for making small detail turning tools? I quickly found that my HF set make doing a finial difficult.

[Scott Stevens]

There's a couple on David Reed Smith site, like a mini coving tool and detail gouge.
I've used those mini-screwdrivers to shape small tools with, $1 store type.
There's a lot can be done with drill rod, cement nails and tool bit steel by grinding to shape required as well.
Cove tools, beads, thin parting tools mainly, and pen turner tools for small scews and bedan shapes work great too!
Haven't seen any good videos on the subject, but googled up some decent articles with pictures. Not sure about linking here though,...

[John Keeton]

Haven't seen any good videos on the subject, but googled up some decent articles with pictures. Not sure about linking here though,...Scott, you cannot link directly to a forum, but you can post links to articles and pics/videos. In fact, that is encouraged so long as they are relevant to turning.

Steve, for finials, my main tools are 3/8" and 1/4" Thompson detail gouges, and some "vortex" style tools that I made from some spindle gouges that are no longer used - one of which is from the HF set as I recall. They are discussed some here (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?134315-The-Vortex-Tool-my-repurposed-gouges&p=1360152#post1360152). The Thompson tools are perfect for my purposes, and I actually have two of the 1/4" gouges - one of which is ground with a little longer (sharper) nose. All of my detail gouges are swept back some, and are ground a little sharper than the angle recommended by Doug - the 1/4" substantially more. In addition to using the nose, I do a lot of cutting with the right side in a shear/skew type cut. It must be kept VERY sharp for this purpose.

Keep in mind that the greater the grind angle, the more critical these tools are. And, with the pointed vortex tools, at least the manner in which I use them, you MUST present them below center. If you don't, you will learn that lesson very quickly!!!

[Steve LaFara]

Thanks guys! I've got some 1/4" sq HSS metal lathe tool blanks that I want to experiment with and just trying to figure out the best place to start.

[Matt Ranum]

Thats what I used to make my Oland style tool. Mine is not exactly a small scale tool but works great. I mounted it into the end of a 5/8" shaft and its ground like a round nose scraper.

[David DeCristoforo]

I have a 1/8" and a 1/4" gouge. In addition to that I have several detail tools I made. Here is a link to the post (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?150035-Tool-Time-Revisited) on them. Very easy to grind these little guys.

[charlie knighton]

search Alan Lacer web site, he has a vedio for making small tools out of drill rod