Another Bowl Scraper Question

[Noah Barfield]

Hi all,

I'm new to turning and have taken just a few classes at the local Woodcraft. I'm slowly putting together a collection of turning tools for making bowls. So far, I have a bedan and a 1/2 D-way bowl gouge. I'd like to get an extra heavy duty Sorby bowl scraper. However, I'm not sure which one to get. There are left hand ones, right hand ones (inboard / outboard) as well as round nose scrapers.

So, which one would you recommend? I've used a Sorby left hand scraper during class on the inside of the bowls I've made. Would a simple round nose scraper be more versatile (i.e. allow me to scrape both the inside and outside of the bowl)?

Thanks,

Noah

[Jamie Donaldson]

Once you learn to use a bowl gouge you should never need a scraper for the outside of a bowl, as a side ground gouge will make a wonderful shear scraper, leaving a better surface than any scraper could ever hope to leave. Then as you further master the gouge, you will need the scraper less for the inside, meaning you will be doing less heavy sanding as well!

[Bernie Weishapl]

Ditto what Jamie said. I bought a 1 1/2" round nose scraper and used it for a while. As Jamie said once you get the gouge down I don't use a scraper anymore as I use the gouge to shear scrape.

[David E Keller]

I agree with Jamie and Bernie, but there are some woods that I prefer to scrape... Many of the Aussie burls are in that category for me. I never use a dedicated scraper on the outside of a form now, as I prefer to use a bowl gouge for that task. I've got the heavy duty Sorby round nose scraper, but if I had to do it over, I'd probably give some serious thought to one of Doug Thompson's heavy scrapers... I'd rather pay for the steel than the handle.

[Paul Heely]

I guess I'll have to be the lone dissenter. I still use my shear scrapers on the outside at times. Personally, I find that on some shapes I have an easier time getting a nice curve with the shear scraper instead of using the bowl gouge. Normally I go to my gouge first, but my shear scrapers still get used.

Inside a bowl, I can't remember the last time I scraped.

Paul

[Prashun Patel]

I have a couple lighter duty scrapers that I turn to more often for blending bumps. They were both round nosed at first, but I've ended up flattening the nose and just keeping the corners rounded. Works well to 'plane' humps down. But for SMOOTHING, I find a sharp, good gouge better for me.

I bought the Sorby Heavy duty 1" bowl scraper. To be honest, I don't use it much. I will sell it to you if you wish. PM me. I bought it new fm Woodcraft @ $80ish.

[Jim Burr]

I have a huge scraper from Doug with a slight radius, and just ordered a Sorby left handed for deep bowls...just can't seem to get the motion down wih the gouge so on deep stuff the scraper does a good job.

[George Morris]

On the inside of some bowls I use a round nose scraper to get to a area where my bowl gouge can't rub. Buy the thickest you can buy. More mass! Thompson tools are the best! My opinion! G

[Reed Gray]

Of the two tools I would suggest for any bowl turner, one would be a good gouge (1/2 or 5/8 inch) and a good scraper. I like the feel of a 3/8 inch thick, and 1 1/4 inch wide, though 1 inch is fine for most lathes, and if you get more width than that, you can put more steel into the wood than your lathe can handle.

Most of mine are 'inside' scrapers which you called left handed, or I call, 'swept back to the left' scrapers. They are a bit more specialized, but work super for heavy stock removal, and shear cuts on the outside of the bowl. Here, mostly it is rough with the nose, then shear cut with the wing. If I was to get only one scraper, I would get a round nose one. It will do the work of both the inside and outside scrapers.

I did rant a bit on the other scraper post here and go into more detail on how to use them. We have more problems with turning the inside of the bowl as compared to the outside. Mostly it is a lot easier to actually see what is going on with the outside. On the inside, we can't see the profile, and have to guess a lot, or stop and feel for bumps with our fingers. Side walls aren't too much of a problem, it is the transition and bottom of the bowl that are most difficult. The difficult part is keeping it smooth. Especially when just starting, you get more bumps and humps here, and if the only tool you have is a gouge, and your skills aren't great, you get frustrated, and spend way more time with the 80 grit gouge. The scraper, flat on the tool rest can even these up a lot. On the bottom of the bowl, you can get a cleaner cut scraping than you can on the walls because flat grain will cut with less tear out than cutting through end grain and then side grain.

With the gouge, you have to learn to feel bumps. Use fingers first (lathe off, or speed way down), then noting where the bump is, start a very gentle cut into the bump. You will get a tiny shaving at first, then it gets wider, then tapers down to tiny and eventually nothing when removing a bump. You tend to want to keep the same shaving size, and end up changing the tool angle, which only follows the bump. Keep your body steady. When going across the bottom, your body moves straight across. When going through the transition, you have to swing with the curve of the bowl. It takes a while and practice to perfect this. If your bowl isn't perfect, don't worry about it. You can frustrate yourself half to death by trying to make it perfect. Learn to say, this is as good as I can get this one, and move on to another.

robo hippy

[Noah Barfield]

Thank you everyone for your insight and suggestions! I went ahead and ordered the Sorby inside finishing scraper last night (Prashun, I am kicking myself that I didn't wait another day--I just saw your offer to sell me yours this morning). Hopefully someday I'll develop enough skill with the gouge that I won't need the scraper, but for now I'll probably get plenty of use out of it.

Noah

[Jake Helmboldt]

Thank you everyone for your insight and suggestions! I went ahead and ordered the Sorby inside finishing scraper last night (Prashun, I am kicking myself that I didn't wait another day--I just saw your offer to sell me yours this morning). Hopefully someday I'll develop enough skill with the gouge that I won't need the scraper, but for now I'll probably get plenty of use out of it.

Noah

Skill has nothing to do with choosing to use a scraper. Lots of very proficient turners use scrapers, but they have gotten a bum rap. I'm with Paul in that I like to use a sraper on the outside of a bowl (shear scraping). I also use a bowl gouge to shear scrape, but some shapes I find I get a better result and cleaner, more continuous line with the scraper. I find it easier to draw across the surface in an arcing motion. The inside scraper you ordered can be used for shear scraping on the outside as well.

[Scott Hackler]

I feel pretty confident with my gouges, but sometimes my HD Sorby bowl scraper has to come out to play. I really like using it with a fresh burr and I must have the technique down because I can put the smoothest curves on the inside of a bowl...with it. I will admit that it, sometimes, doesn't leave a great finish on the end grain and I have to move down a grit with the sand paper. The only craping I do on the outside is with a 1" skew! Sometimes that skew can be used to smooth out tool marks and smooth out the outside curves. Although I do use the side of my gouges A LOT for a shear scrape. (both outside ....and inside!).

[Reed Gray]

Scott,

You do what to the outside of your bowl with a skew?????

Scrapers are a great tool to use, especially if you really know how to use them.

robo hippy

[Dennis Peacock]

Scott,

You do what to the outside of your bowl with a skew?????

Scrapers are a great tool to use, especially if you really know how to use them.

robo hippy

Scott's not the only one that does or has used a skew on the outside of a bowl. ;) :D
A sharp skew, a light touch, and rub that bevel, and refine until your happy. :)

[Prashun Patel]

+1 on using a skew on the outside. It really works well for me - not for cutting, for finishing.

[Richard Jones]

Scott,

You do what to the outside of your bowl with a skew?????.....

Ha! :)

Rich

[Scott Hackler]

HA! Ok a little clarification is in order. I do NOT use a skew as intended, but rather as a small scraper. Works good for that. The only other use for a skew, I have found, is to make a full length spiral design down the piece when the catch happens!

[Reed Gray]

I was referring to Scott's spelling, "craping" instead of scraping. Was I the only one to catch that one? It would be a negative rake scraper. I still find that I get cleaner cuts with a shear angle.

robo hippy