Benjamin's Best question....

[drumpriest]

How are these tools, I would like to pick up a bowl gouge, but I'm in a bit of sticker shock from the Sorby prices. Are these tools any good at the super low price? Is the grind a swept back grind? Should I just grind a new profile onto the tool if I get one?

help help! Thanks

[Uncle Cracker]

Don't have their bowl gouge, but I bit on one of their skews at a WW show, mostly to see if I liked the particular size and configuration before I sprung for a premium brand. I honestly don't care for it... It won't hold an edge. I think pretty much anybody can say "high speed steel", but the proof's in the pudding. I'll stick with the Sorbys and Crowns.

As for the grind, you should pretty much grind the profile you want in any tool. It takes a while the first time, but then you can just maintain it with much less effort.

[Rich P]

I have their 1" roughing and 1/2" bowl. Have not used the bowl as yet. Roughing seemed ok but about on a par with the HF set. Since a Sorby is well beyond what I feel is reasonable to spend, I don't own one and probably won't (unless I win the Lotto). If you want sticker shock, check out the long and strong scrapers from Scorby versus PSI...I got nose bleed just from looking on the web. I mean come on, it's just a flat piece of steel for goodness sakes!

As I understand it, A2 is an agreed spec so if two brands have A2 HSS then they should be roughly the same. Perhaps I am wrong about this.

A while back I ran across a site where the author sent a variety of brands of chisels to a metallurgist to be tested but I can't seem to re-locate it. I do recall that the HF set came out to be A2. I don't remember PSI being tested. Maybe someone else has seen it.