Sharpening Angles for the Beginner

By Mick Pither

Sharpening can be a very emotive subject and most experienced turners have their own favourite angles, often to the extent that they find it difficult to use other turners tools. Gradually, with the more you turn, you find the angle that suits you for general tool work and, as the tool chest grows, slightly differing angles for specific jobs or woods.

So where does the beginner start? Bearing in mind that at least some of your tools may have been obtained from a variety of sources you will at least need to start with workable angles. No doubt, gradually, as you become more experienced you may work away from these and find what is right for you. I have found that the bevel angles for one tool can be the same for another tool (as in the spindle and bowl gouges) and still work very well. This saves time in adjusting the plate on the grindstone which often causes a reluctance to sharpen or 'touch up' the tool on a regular basis. The following angles described are a very good workable average and an excellent starting place.

Skew Chisels 21°. This bevel angle is the same on both sides of the chisel. The 21° on both sides of the tool give you 42° at the cutting edge. The traditional grind with this tool is a straight cutting edge. Sometimes turners curve the edge to make the cutting of a tight radius easier, but this should be avoided by the uninitiated as it is said to be more difficult to control in general. It is also useful to file off the corners down the length of the skew as this allows the tool to move more smoothly along the rest, and it also stops it cutting into the rest.

Spindle gouges 48°. This is a general-purpose angle and copes with most spindle work.

Bowl Gouges 48°. This works well on most average bowls but on deeper bowls, a wider angle will be required such as 60° otherwise the bevel keeps the gouge's cutting edge away from the wood being cut at the bottom of the bowl. This wider angle gouge can also cut cleaner if side grain on a bowl is roughing up or is being pulled out.

N.B. The angles for these bowl gouges are for 'standard grind' bowl gouges. If a 'fingernail grind' is preferred then the angle needs to be wider, say 64°.

Roughing Gouge 53°. A good angle for this gouge and the same angle works well for a general purpose bowl gouge if you only have one gouge.

Time Savers. A good idea is to write the bevel angle on the tool. Make up some angle guides, again with their angle marked on them. When you set your grindstone plate to a specific angle, sharpen all your tools that are marked at that angle.