Does anyone polish their turning tools?

[Ed Morgano]

I recently took a carving class with Mark Strom from North Carolina. One of the first things he did was sharpen and polish all of our carving tools. The difference in the amount of pressure needed to cut and the elimination of tearout was amazing. Since then, I've taken to buffing all of my turning tools and that too has made a big difference in the amount of heat coming off the turnings and the amount of tearout. Also, the tools have been staying sharp about 5 times (a guess) as long.

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[Bill Bolen]

Ed, all of my carving tools are stropped. As soon as the cutting action degrades I strop them again. Quite often that is all that is required to return to smooth easy cutting. The only thing I stop on turning tools is my skew. Tried it on the other tools and while the initial stropping/polishing helped out that sharpness didn't last long for me. I found it quicker to just hit the grinder for a quick touch up. Glad to hear it is working so well for you though!

[Matt Hutchinson]

I just started honing more of my turning tools recently. I like it, and because I made a nice system it doesn't take any longer than hitting the grinder. Of course, its effectiveness is greatly dependent on how the tool is used and the type of wood, but I have been pleased with the results. Probably gonna be sticking with it.

Hutch

[James Combs]

I just started honing more of my turning tools recently. I like it, and because I made a nice system it doesn't take any longer than hitting the grinder. Of course, its effectiveness is greatly dependent on how the tool is used and the type of wood, but I have been pleased with the results. Probably gonna be sticking with it.

Hutch

Hutch you have a nice setup there. Do you have a parts list available and maybe a simple tutorial on how you built it?

Edit: Sorry I spoke(typed) before I thought, don't want to shanghai this thread so Hutch if you answer me please us a PM.

[Michael Mills]

I do hone mine mainly because I already had a Cartex wheel on the grinding table I made. I can hone many times and use the same jig that I use for grinding. I do not polish/strop except for the skew. The strop is a cloth wheel charged with jewelers rogue.
I use the same pillow bearing setup as Matt, by my motor is hung under the table and drives two arbors (four heads).

[Bill Bulloch]

I, too, have a paper wheel (silicon carbide) setup on a grinder. I've used them since 1994 for sharpening knives -- as-a-matter-fact, I bought my first ones when they cost $15.00 a setup. I occasionally use them to sharpen skews, but rarely use them on gouges. If I could find a couple of extra bases for the Wolverine system cheap enough I would use it for gouges.

[Jack Gaskins]

I just started honing more of my turning tools recently. I like it, and because I made a nice system it doesn't take any longer than hitting the grinder. Of course, its effectiveness is greatly dependent on how the tool is used and the type of wood, but I have been pleased with the results. Probably gonna be sticking with it.

Hutch

Hi Hutch. I like your honing station. What are your discs made of. MDF or Leather? Did you buy the pillow blocks and belt from woodcraft?

Jack