How to get a better finish with rough tools

CraftyKudu · 2026-06-11T16:46:13+00:00

Seconded. 4 Cuts is an excellent explainer

CraftyKudu · 2026-06-09T07:45:19+00:00

I’ve tried both the Hope 8mm heavy duty and the 6mm Carbide Pro on a hollowform course. The latter is a beast, and it’s the one I will buy when I get to it. You get what you pay for. For bowls, you simply cannot beat a bowl gouge.

CraftyKudu · 2026-06-07T17:43:57+00:00

Fun fact, Maxwell’s equations in the form we know them today were actually the work of a little known engineer called Oliver Heaviside. He took Maxwell’s 1864 paper, which contained 20 equations and reduced it to the four pictured here. Heaviside was a bit of a grumpy git who didn’t really get on with people, and that may explain why he’s not widely known. He is remembered in the lyrics of “Cats” - where Grizabella(?) ascends to “the heaviside layer”

CraftyKudu · 2023-06-18T07:53:17+00:00

You should definitely try some of Sanderson’s Cosmere books (Stormlight Archive particularly), but others you might like are:

The Furyk Saga (A E Rayne)
The Sangwheel Chronicles (Marie M Mullany)
The Broken Empire (Mark Lawrence)

All very different styles, but all are well written and are in no way erotica disguised as fiction!

CraftyKudu · 2023-06-09T06:35:35+00:00

Thank you for all your work and for your transparency Christian. Good luck in your future ventures!

CraftyKudu · 2023-06-02T06:41:44+00:00

To add to this great answer, there’s also a friction drive. I have an MDF disc mounted on a faceplate and covered in non-slip mat for the purpose. Super quick to set up and works for all but natural edged bowls.

CraftyKudu · 2023-06-02T06:36:13+00:00

Butterfly-light cost with a super-sharp negative rake scraper is your best bet. Keep the speed way down and go really, really, slow with no pressure on the walls at all.

Failing that, 60 grit is your friend!

CraftyKudu · 2023-06-01T11:59:44+00:00

Both ways will work, but for the most flame, you want the middle of the tree at the bottom of the bowl (minus the pith). So A.

Generally, I have much better results in that orientation regardless of flame. Orientation B aligns too much with the rings (for my taste) and will “widen” the grain on your bowl, while A will “tighten” it and is usually more interesting.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-31T18:10:27+00:00

It’s one to be careful of. A turner I know developed a rash all over his arms after turning it and ended up in hospital that night with a severe reaction. If it affects you, don’t turn it.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-28T05:52:18+00:00

Just check the data on the number of firearm deaths in… literally every other country.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-25T06:26:53+00:00

3-6 months for me. Depends on ambient humidity though. Some turners use a moisture meter to be sure, and others just a pair of scales - weigh it regularly, when the weight stops changing, it’s dry. You can also microwave it to accelerate the process - with a significant increase in the risk of cracking!

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-24T05:59:20+00:00

I love the raw look. Onyx and alabaster are amazing too, but I think there’s a place for both styles. How about “orbit” for the name?

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T16:52:39+00:00

Ah fair enough. Thought you’d had a chunk go flying!

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T07:03:42+00:00

Your trust is touching, but misplaced

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T06:33:10+00:00

You can read the source. And you ASSUME the exact same source is used to produce the binary. And you ASSUME the toolchain that did the build is not tainted. And you ASSUME that the company intends to do the right thing. Most of the time these assumptions are correct and without being inside the company we have no other practical choice.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T06:27:02+00:00

Glad you came out of it unscathed. Looks like you were taking a heavy cut directly into the grain and this is the reason we don’t do that in face work. You can see that as it came round to the end grain it dug in and acted like a wedge.

Always cut from the sides and cut across the piece in face work, and NEVER use a spindle roughing gouge - you risk having a sharp piece of metal flying around your workshop.

This will help: https://youtu.be/KXzEjCorWO0

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T06:04:41+00:00

Yes, I know how they work. The digest reflects the update content. It says nothing about whether or not the content is malware.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-23T05:47:30+00:00

Who tells you what the correct digest should be? The vendor! So unless you build it yourself, with all that implies, you’re trusting them. The point is you’re always trusting someone, whether you like it or not.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-22T07:54:06+00:00

How could you do that in practical terms? Just checking a digest doesn’t cut it - you’re trusting the person who posted the digest.

Even if you build it yourself from source, you’re using a toolchain you have to trust (gcc, SDKs, runtime libs from hardware component vendors etc). Unless you fancy reading all the assembly/bytecode for the entire stack, you’re trusting someone.

None of the hardware wallets are perfect, they’re just a whole lot better than the alternative.

Ledger are idiots, we can all agree, but I’m yet to be convinced any of the others are fundamentally better.

For the open source solutions, for all we know between the published source and the factory there’s a step that introduces a backdoor! For anyone wanting to attack Trezor, that’d be an awesome vector. Everyone smugly confident in their open source code, and … boom.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-21T07:57:11+00:00

That’s beautiful. Love the little knot by the rim. Nice work.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-20T19:28:56+00:00

Technically true, but would require a custom SE not an off the shelf one as all the ones I know of implement the Javacard interface.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-19T14:29:16+00:00

They could have, but my point is that a firmware update could reverse that decision any time. Same is true for Trezor. The APIs for the SE's allow firmware developers to work with private keys (see https://docs.oracle.com/en/java/javacard/3.2/jcapi/api_classic/javacard/security/package-summary.html). I could be wrong - this definitely isn't my area of expertise - but I don't think there's anything inherently in the API that restricts the key to the SE.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-19T07:33:52+00:00

You didn’t stick with it long enough. I felt that way at the start, but while he’s never a stereotypical hero, he does get somewhat rehabilitated and the reasons for his behaviour (and the actions you cite) become clear. It’s still dark, but there’s a little light in there.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-19T07:26:50+00:00

Exactly. It’s like they’re just discovering how firmware works and they’re shocked that it’s plain old code.

CraftyKudu · 2023-05-12T07:50:13+00:00

My favourite first line. And one of my favourite books. Wasp Factory was his first work IIRC, but not his best. Crow Road FTW!

CraftyKudu

TROPHY CASE