New Tools and Techniques? Video

[Steve Mathews]

I just noticed this Russian video showing turning tools and techniques never seen before. What is that triangular shaped tool he is using that has multiple functions?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWkelCFUAfw

[Grant Wilkinson]

It looks to be a sort of home made skew chisel that the experts will assure you cannot possibly work. ;)

His hook tool looks to be made of the same steel.

I love how he turns the lathe off and on towards the end of the piece.

[Peter Blair]

I've seen other videos where the hook tool is utilized and looks easy. I bought one a few years ago and it remains in my tool holder. Just can't get my head around how to use it. The Skew thing looks very interesting. Wish I knew a blacksmith . . . .

[Reed Gray]

Skill level: Master! Interesting variation on the skew. Almost reminds me of some of the traditional Japanese turning tools, same with the hook tool. I would guess both are home forged tools, probably a softer metal rather than HSS. No idea what the wood is, but would guess a poplar/aspen of some sort, not hard...

robo hippy

[John Hart]

Very cool. Looks like my next tool. Can't wait to try it out

[John K Jordan]

It looks to be a sort of home made skew chisel that the experts will assure you cannot possibly work. ;)

His hook tool looks to be made of the same steel.

Could the hook tool be on the other end of the same bar with the skew? Looks like he's holding the bar for the handle.

The skew is a standard skew but with the edge at a different, perhaps more useful angle (in the right hands) than what we use. Notice how it often cuts with the edge far above the center line, contrary to what we are taught. I never teach that but I admit to doing it often - "wasting" the sharp upper half of the edge always seemed a waste! Of course, no catches allowed. :)

The stability of the skew might be improved with the large round shaft since the support point will be closer to directly under the cutting point on the edge. My favorite skew for small things is a 1/4" round skew which seems more controllable, perhaps for the same reason.

Hook tools used to be all the rage and you can see why. They were readily available for sale and many people made their own by pounding steel like the one shown. I suspect one reason they are not used as much today is they can be difficult to sharpen correctly for the inexperienced. (Just look at the popularity of carbide tools these days with beginners.)

The guy doesn't waste any time turning, does he? Probably couldn't work that fast with dogwood or ebony!

Hey, Peter, ho blacksmith needed, just an acetylene torch (or mapp gas for smaller diameters), a hammer, and an anvil. I've shaped and bent plenty of steel this way.

JKJ

[Marvin Hasenak]

In 1961 I saw a similar looking skew in. Spain, it was in the market place where a man was turning toy tops. Whne I told my shop teacher about it, he decided the class needed to make a field trip to the market. The advantage of being a DOD school for USAF dependents. Field trips were as simple as procuring a USAF bus, and we were denied nothing. Next door to the toymaker was a woodcarver that carved full sized religious statues. They became some of the best stops to go to when we went to town.

The shop teacher sort of copied the skew, but best of my memory he just ground down a 3/8" steel rod, no clue as to what kind of steel or anything. He spent about 2 class periods showing how to grind the rod, and then making a handle for it. Then it was our turn to make one, I had mine for years, probably still do, just don't know where it is.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

I have seen videos of production turners in the Eastern edge of Germany using a long triangular skew. More blade/edge, less shaft. The ones in the German videos looked to be hand forged also.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

I have posted links to the making of nesting dolls a couple of times, I have another one that shows the tools this turner is using, he makes a barrel like vase turning from some softwood (Spruce ?) also two more links that show what/how one can turning with expertise the product in short times, like the one that makes 5 bowls in less than half an hour, anyway have a look and enjoy and wonder why we all need the fancy tools and sharpening systems,--------- or do we ????

Showing his tools, turning a softwood log.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivMn8Pr5uV0&frags=pl%2Cwn

Turning in short time 5 thin wall bowls, maybe Linden wood (related to Basswood)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YM3zICyjBg


This turner turns the nesting dolls with amazing speed and finish, this is Basswood, as it shows in a longer video the harvesting of the logs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhR9ALVd0Js

Making a Russian Hook tool, cuts in two directions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX5JYwHmJho&frags=pl%2Cwn

[Don Jarvie]

What a get video. Reminds me of turners who can make anything using 1 tool.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

What a get video. Reminds me of turners who can make anything using 1 tool.

Well not quite 1 tool, as they use both skew like tools and hook tools, even spindle gouge, but all seem to be home made even by the turners themselves as one video showed.

The use of these tools are shown very well, just takes a whole bunch of practice to get that good :)

[Harold Balzonia]

Turning in short time 5 thin wall bowls, maybe Linden wood (related to Basswood)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YM3zICyjBg



And think of all the money he’s saved on safety equipment.... I wonder where he got those squint goggles?

When you are good, you are good.... amazing skill shown here. Fascinating to see the hook tool used on the back half of the bowl (on the upwards) with no tool rest support, just his hand clamping the tool to the rest....
Thanks for sharing, Leo.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

That spatulated parting tool, looks a lot like a round blade. It must have a sharp edge to true the ends of the stock like it does.

Also, I wonder if that hook tool would even work across the grain. Every where I see them used they are turning a log and into the end grain, so the grain would be fairly concentric. Not like the bowls we tend to turn where the grain is perpendicular to the lathe bed

And if you check one of his later videos, 24 hours later about half of the 20 bowls he shows making, cracked to crap.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

That spatulated parting tool, looks a lot like a round blade. It must have a sharp edge to true the ends of the stock like it does.

Also, I wonder if that hook tool would even work across the grain. Every where I see them used they are turning a log and into the end grain, so the grain would be fairly concentric. Not like the bowls we tend to turn where the grain is perpendicular to the lathe bed

And if you check one of his later videos, 24 hours later about half of the 20 bowls he shows making, cracked to crap.

I don’t know where you looked, (can you show the video link ??) but the pictures/videos (I have seen most of them IMO) that I have seen do not show bowls cracked to crab, as he is a professional turner making a living doing this, split bowls or goblets etc would put him out of business pretty quick, (and he has done this for years to get this good)

401831

Besides being a very capable turner he also is able and does make his own tool, like this type of cutoff tool that he uses all the time,
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I also saw larger plates turned in side grain direction by the same turner and other ones assembled and turned that then were finished with fanciful paintings.
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[Peter Blair]

John I did consider this with my Mapp but am unsure what steel I should try.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

I don’t know where you looked, (can you show the video link ??) but the pictures/videos (I have seen most of them IMO) that I have seen do not show bowls cracked to crab, as he is a professional turner making a living doing this, split bowls or goblets etc would put him out of business pretty quick, (and he has done this for years to get this good)

401831

Besides being a very capable turner he also is able and does make his own tool, like this type of cutoff tool that he uses all the time,


401829


I also saw larger plates turned in side grain direction by the same turner and other ones assembled and turned that then were finished with fanciful paintings.
401823401824401825401826401827401828


He is an amazing turner of that there can be no doubt. It took me a while to find the video with all the cracked bowls. Since I do not understand the Russian, I do not know what he is saying about the cracked bowls but here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fKRDrKxE_g

[daryl moses]

He's good that's for sure. I wish I understood Russian, he seemed pretty upset about the cracked bowls.
He certainly gets his money's worth out of a piece of sandpaper.;)

[Leo Van Der Loo]

He is an amazing turner of that there can be no doubt. It took me a while to find the video with all the cracked bowls. Since I do not understand the Russian, I do not know what he is saying about the cracked bowls but here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fKRDrKxE_g

Ha, yes I seen that video, but must have jumped that part where he shows the split bowls and some lids as well, (that one picture is from that video, but before showing the splits) yes I guess he must have had a bad log with tension in it from growing on a slope or edge of the forest, doesn’t show on the outside of the log, of course the drying speed could very well be part of the problem, probably no time and place to store all the turnings if drying them more slowly, being between a rock and a hard place.

Of course with all the different logs he uses Ash Birch Linden and Maple and others, there is bound to be a problem one in there, the split ones do look like Birch to me, and they are certainly not as stable as Linden.

On the other hand some of those woods are better suited for the products he makes out of them, for me, not being a production turner, but just turn for the love of it, the differences between all the wood is with makes this so enjoyable and fun.

Some of his logs here.
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[Perry Hilbert Jr]

There is a you tube video on the making of those nesting wooden doll figures and it is narrated in English. The turners are almost all women. And they do use the same style tools to turn the various size figure boxes. I suppose with 20 years experience, they can do it in their sleep. The skew has some definite advantages. It has a much wider edge without all the weight of a big bar shaft and it is already round, to roll on the tool rest as he curves it over the cove or bead. he is working on. I like the parting tool too. It cuts very cleanly, instead of tearing like the common parting tools we use. I just might have a couple pieces of tool steel out in the barn.....

[Reed Gray]

I think all of those cracked bowls were turned end grain, with the pith still in them. Much higher cracking rate than side grain...

robo hippy

[Ralph Lindberg]

John I did consider this with my Mapp but am unsure what steel I should try.

If you still have MAPP (vrs MAP) set it aside for special projects, since MAPP is no longer available and MAP doesn't get as hot. Hotter then propane, but....
O2 steel works well, there should be a good "how too" on Alan Lacer's web page on how to make hook tools
I

[John K Jordan]

John I did consider this with my Mapp but am unsure what steel I should try.

Oil-hardening steel (O1 )is pretty easy to work with. This tells about some of the differences: https://www.onlinemetals.com/productguides/toolsteelguide.cfm I've bought a lot of materials from this company but there are lots of suppliers.

You can heat with a torch but you can get better control with a little home-made kiln like this one: https://www.manmadediy.com/4628-make-this-diy-fire-brick-blowtorch-forge It looks like the guy in the video on making the hook tool simply heated in the space between the torch and a brick wall which would help some.

JKJ

[Adam Petersen]

He appears to be turning some form of solidified butter. In all seriousness, I think I'll get one of these and give it a try. You will all know when I do, you'll hear/feel the catch when I try it out.

[Glenn C Roberts]

Anyone know what the magic "stuff" is that is used in the video to help provide greater friction between the jam block (?) and bowl?

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Anyone know what the magic "stuff" is that is used in the video to help provide greater friction between the jam block (?) and bowl?

WATER is what is used