Sorby Hollowmaster

[Andy Hoyt]

A friend stopped by this afternoon to show off his new hollowing tool - the Sorby RS230KT - which I believe means it's the biggest of the three they make. We both tried it on some end grain and cross grain on some of that hickory I got last month. Was not enjoyable. Not much in the way shavings mostly just dust.

Made sure it was sharp and re-read the comments made when John Hart got his. Tried the aggressive and non aggressive mounting. Raised tool rest and lowered tool rest. Even watched the Sorby video on the website, but I think they were turning butter. No improvement.

I suggested that we grind the cutting tip angle a bit steeper, but my buddy was reluctant to do so.

So for those of you with experience on this beast - any suggestions?

[Gary Max]

Andy do not give up---I use mine all the time---you just have to get the feel of it. Trust me it's worth the trouble.

[Keith Burns]

Andy, the only thing I use mine for is a big scrapper:eek:

[Curtis O. Seebeck]

Andy,

I jsut got one on Saturday and used it this weekend for the first time. Mine worked great, right out of the package. I used it to hollow my first large vase and it worked great. The only thing I did different then the directions show is to mount the cutter to the right of the screw when looking down from the top. I got this idea from a post made by Carol some time back. That made a lot of difference from the position they show in the directions. You will also notice that the Sorby video has it this way, even though the directions show it to the left for some reason.

[Jim Becker]

Andy...end grain only for the most part. Sharpen the cutters by using a diamond hone on the top...don't go to the grinder except once in a blue moon. Orienting the tip to the wood and not trying to take too much of a cut is also important. My major complaint about these tools is the fact you have to hold them...which is why Keven G now owns mine and I use a captive system. (Jamison) My arms just can't deal with holding hollowing tools for any length of time when the workpiece is bigger than a couple inches or so.

[Raymond Overman]

Andy,

I have to agree with you. I'm not a fan of the Sorby hollowmaster. It doesn't center the cutting edge in line with the handle and requires a lot more pressure to get a cut. The scraper for a final sweep may be useful to clean up tool marks but like you, I can't get shavings off the cutter.

I'm very pleased with the large John Jordan hollowing tool for making nice shavings and I have a homemade boring bar that I use all the time. I also have a homemade scraper that I can clean things up with if needed.

[John Hart]

Well...everything you described Andy sure reminds me of my first couple of go-arounds with it. I felt like it needed sharpening or a pitch change, but after I changed the the angle of address by raising the rest, it seemed to plow through just fine. Plowing probably isn't the right word since it seems sensitive to having shavings in the way. When I was first having some success, I was constantly changing angles, going from lousy cutting to super-aggressive cutting and found myself having some catch problems, but then I backed off to lighter cuts and it seemed to mellow out. I'm still learning though. Sounds like Curtis has a much shorter learning curve. I'm kinda slow.:o

[Chris Barton]

Hi Andy,

I to must confess possesion of a Sorby HM. My experiences have been largely like yours. Mine seems to chew wood more than cut it. The scraper is better but, I can't say I have mastered this tool.

[Curt Fuller]

The most frustrating tool I own! Sometimes it seems to cut very well, other times I have the same problems everyone has mentioned. It scares the h*** out of me when I use it on a small opening. If it catches inside there, you have to duck and run for cover. On larger openings I have better luck but can usually get the same results using a round nose scraper that's easier to control. I think mine will rust away before I wear it out.

[Andy Hoyt]

Thanks all. We can relate to just about each comment made. My buddy isn't too happy, but I am. Because now I can waste my money on something else. I like what I'm reading in Pat Jeddy's thread a whole lot more.