Do You use a skew??

[Harry Goodwin]

Years ago in a pattern shop we avoided skews with scrapers and gouges and diamond points taking up the usual tools. I have now retired and doing some turning and found that the oval skew is a lot easier to learn and a radiused skew will be of help in the beginning. Then the regular skews are a lot easier to handle and I just try to use the middle of the edge to do the work. Harry

[Allen Neighbors]

I use a skew all the time. For a long time it was just something to protect me from bears and lions... (never did have to use it)... but after seeing a short video on some website about using a skew, I went to the shop and made myself use it. After much fear, and too many catches, I can now use it fairly well on pretty straight pieces, but still can't turn a bead with it. I have three. One 1/2", and two 1". One is oval, wish it wasn't. One is worn down to 2.5 inches, wish it wasn't. One, is also getting too short, so I'm going to have to spring for another. It will be a Doug Thompson 1".

[Jude Kingery]

Henry, Mulberry is an unpleasant wood for me to work with, I find it to be like cutting celery on steroids, so generally I avoid it and stick with Mesquite! Oh the skew, I use it some, but the bowl gouge is my favorite by far. Best to you, Jude

[Bernie Weishapl]

I use my skew all the time. It is my favorite tool to use. I couldn't be without them. Get Alan Lacer's "The Skew Chisel." It is excellent and how I learned to use it. It is so cool to make a 3/4" long top with his big skew.

[chip hamblin]

As is said with bears - so it is with skews (sometimes I use the skew, sometimes the skew uses me)

[Andy Hoyt]

Henry C!

Where ya been boy?

[Jon Lanier]

Back when I turned all the time (many moons ago) I used a skew constantly. We didn't have all these new fangled things they have nowadays. I think it can be quite versatile, scraping, beading, shearing and parting. I never understood this fear of the skew.

[Johnathan Bussom]

Yes Brian, I use several of them, I also have that same video by Raffan!

Watch it again, even HE has catches! Sharpness is first, Presentation is second, Ride the bevel and THINK why that catch took place.

I only turn part time as a hobby, pens, birdhouse ornaments, small boxes, wine stoppers etc, but it is the first tool I pick up, yep, I also use it rather than a roughing gouge! It is not the right tool for every cut but once you learn its place it's great!

[John Hart]

I used to have a real fear of my oval skew...until I realized its usefulness. On an outer radius...starting with just the tip touching the wood and getting contact established, the skew can be rolled slowly through the curve. Creates a smooth even curve with virtually no tearout and little sanding required. I rarely slide my skew on the toolrest....rather, I establish contact at the tip or heel and pivot from there.

Also realized that the skew is not a casual tool that you can approach the work all loosey goosey....unlike many of the other tools where you can make sweeping cuts. That's when most of my catches occur....when I relax. The skew is one that you need to focus....and use controlled force. Then it becomes invaluable.

[Donald Barfield]

I just recently started learning to turn and have found after rounding my wood with the roughing gouge the skew is the easiest and most versital tool I have to use. From everything I have read about them being hard to use maybe I am just having beginners luck.

[Dean Thomas]

Two things:
Buy Alan Lacer's The Skew Chisel.
Buy 4 2x4s. Rip them down the middle and use them for practice. When you can get a baby's butt finish, you'll understand the skew. Alan's DVD makes it very easy to do all of this.

It's not that hard. It's just a matter of practice but using the correct techniques.

I'm with Burt & Ken. The skew is about 60% a matter of practice and about 15% physics and about 25% sharpening, in my own experience. My first tries were dreadful. Raffan's video, Bonnie Klein's videos, and some others were helpful. I did not find Lacer's video until after I'd had about 4 hours of small group skew therapy with Alan and got to watch him in person and from many angles. The sharpening thing was truly an "aha" moment for me. I've known about dull tools for decades, but for some really stupid reason never transferred that knowledge to my lathe chisels. Once the bulb went off in the head and I realized that I was working with hammers instead of chisels, I bought a good wheel and started sharpening and honing my lathe tools. SUCH a difference! I actually could get a 180 grit finish directly from the skew and from the gouge both. I was impressed. Then, years later, I got to watch Alan Lacer and have his hands guide my hands until I could recognize the cutting angle, the bevel angle, and the connection between bevel contact and good cuts. I like Stuart Batty's terms--gliding or floating the bevel--better than I do rubbing the bevel. Rubbing implies downward force to me, and it does not need to rub as in burnish. Part of an overly polished piece of wood is not the quality of the cut, but rather the burnishing from really pressing that bevel into the wood. Been there, done that, NOT what we want as turners. Gliding or floating the bevel on the work makes me think of a skim board or boogie board at the shore. The board is following the sand very closely, just molecules of water away from the grit, but still enough to float along or glide along. If you think of the bevel as being a molecule away, it might help keep you from pushing in and burnishing.

One man's tired thoughts...

[Wayne Bitting]

I hated the shew for a long time. Now when doing smaller projects like pens, toppers or peppermills, the small oval shew was my #1. I can start sanding at 400 grit when I use it. As for the bigger projects, I'm not that good with it and it ends up being a scrapper most of the time.

[Steve Ott]

I use the skew often. It makes the prettiest and quickest spirals on a piece.

Steve

[Brian Brown]

Well, the poll results are in, and It looks as if I should make a better effort to learn to use my skew chisels. Raffan sure made it look easy. I sat down and had a serious chat with my skew. After some heavy soul searching (yeah, get the hip waders it's getting deep in here) I thought the problem I am having might be caused by the tool grind. When I first started turning, I took a class at a local tool store, and the instructor used my never touched skew, and reground the tip as a sharpening demo. He changed the profile because as he said, "you'll never cut any thing with that profile". Because of the new rounded bevel (can you call a rounded edge a bevel???) in order to get the cutting edge to contact the wood, I have to lift the handle quite high, at which time the the bevel is no longer in contact with the wood. My thought is that the tool is now in a more "scraperish" presentation, and this is causing my catches. Am I right or wrong here, and do I regrind, or just get a new hobby. These pictures (please forgive my drawing abilities) show the approximate profiles before and after the regrind.

Skew-Grind.jpg

Thanks for your help. I would really like to figure this thing out.

Brian

[Tom Sherman]

Brian, I believe I would go back to the original grind, if it works for Lacer, Raffan and the others it should work for you. Just practice practice practice.