Grinding Wheels

[lighthearted]

What do you recommend? What grit is best for turning tools?

[dlamulle]

What do you recommend? What grit is best for turning tools?

I usually use 48 grit to shape and 60 or 80 to sharpen. Either will work fine just use a light touch and get a fine burr.

Dave

[jHop]

I currently merely have the stock wheels that came on the grinder. (It's not mine; I'm just allowed to borrow it.) I have not replaced the wheels, but I can certainly recommend replacing them as soon as possible. My process currently includes a quick pass with a strip of 800 grit sandpaper, and then a light stropping with jewelers rouge and leather, before returning to the lathe. Keep in mind the lathe is still spinning during this step, so I take no more than three passes with either before stepping back to the turning.

and yes, I'm still looking for a better approach.

(By the way, stropping the gouges is actually easier than it sounds, as I put a twist in when I pull it along the leather. But it's not creating a super sharp tool. Merely a usable one. The quality of the tool may also have something to do with this, as I'm using HF specials...)

[APierce]

I use a 40 or 60 grit for shaping tools and an 80 or 100 for putting a good burr on the tool. Sometimes I will follow this up by using a diamond hones and I polish the tip with some white rogue on some paper wheels that I got as a set. I can get my gouges and skews shaving sharp using the paper wheels and it makes all the difference on the cut quality! P.S. get a slow speed grinder if you can, my 6 inch high speed grinder tends to burn the steel if press to hard; also get quality wheels with a J or K hardness. I like the white AOL wheels made by Norton.