woodturning tools- skew/scraper/bedan

[marcros]

This may be a silly question.

I have a skew, and whilst no expert, I can use it for planing cuts, the odd bead etc. I then bought a bedan, and I much prefer the single bevel of this to the double bevelled skew, particularly for planing cuts and for cutting tenons. I also prefer the fact that it is straight, rather than skewed

The bedan is square in section, but the only sizes that I have ever seen is 3/8" and 1/2". This is fine for smaller items, but for things like rolling pins and pepper mills, it is plenty small enough. Skews obviously come in a range of sizes, mainly larger than the bedan.

Is the HSS steel in a scraper the same as for any other turning tool- so could I buy a scraper and grind a 40 degree single bevel on it to? It seems a waste to buy a skew and grind half an inch or more off to get rid of the bevels and skeweyness. Will it matter that the new tool is not square or trapeziod in cross section?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

A couple of my scrapers are reground skews as I had too many. HSS is HSS - grind it how you wish. Don't forget you can buy quite large section carbon steel tools for next to nothing sometimes - these can be ideal for re purposing.

 

[woodpig]

The bedan is square in section, but the only sizes that I have ever seen is 3/8" and 1/2". This is fine for smaller items, but for things like rolling pins and pepper mills, it is plenty small enough. Skews obviously come in a range of sizes, mainly larger than the bedan.

I have a Robert Sorby Bedan and it's certainly not square in section. Ashley Isles also list one and that's not square either.

It is nice for cutting tenons.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Have you looked on the bay and Amazon for hss bar? It's quite cheap.

 

[marcros]

no, that is another option.

I assume that the non squareness is important for tenons, but less so for planing cuts. I have either the crown or the hamlet, and it is not very tapered- comments online suggest it is less than the sorby, but i have not compared them side by side.

 

[Woodmonkey]

The end of the skew is not at 90°, so if you only have a bevel on one side then you can only use it for rolling one half of your bead, if you get my meaning

 

[woodpig]

I've just measured my Sorby Bedan and there's only a 1mm difference on the width.

 

[selectortone]

I made a bedan out of square HSS bar I bought off ebay for a couple of pounds. The steel came from China but I was in no hurry. It works a treat and you get a certain extra satisfaction using tools made from scratch.

Search on ebay for HSS Square Lathe Tool Bit Boring Bar

 

[Robbo3]

Bedans are generally trapezoid in shape, ie the top & bottom faces are parallel & the sides flare out.
One of the first things I tell beginners is to soften the corners of their tools so that they don't catch & dig in as they move along the toolrest. You can't do that with a bedan because a lot of cutting is done with the points. Softening the corners removes the sharp point which takes away a lot of the usefulness of the tool.

Bedans are generally used bevel up but being lazy I sometimes use it bevel down to save altering the height of the toolrest. Just be careful not to cut on or below centre as that's where the tool can dig in.

Continental turners use a large double bevelled 'skew' that is not a skew but ground straight across. Some have only one bevel like a bedan.They angle the tool to the work so that it acts as a skew.

 

[marcros]

Continental turners use a large double bevelled 'skew' that is not a skew but ground straight across. Some have only one bevel like a bedan.They angle the tool to the work so that it acts as a skew.

I find that angling a straight chisel much more instinctive than using a skewed one. Probably lack of practice on my part, but why fight my natural preference when it is only a matter of regrinding once?!

I had looked for continental tools, thinking that something may be used there, but the search terms escaped me. "bedan" seems not to be a widely used or international term!

 

[woodpig]

I'm sure I read somewhere that the Bedan is or was popular in France.

 

[marcros]

i read that too somewhere. but google didnt direct me to any useful shops! I will get a 3/4" scraper and put a bevel on it. nothing ventured,nothing gained and it sounds like it is done (to some degree) on the continent. Worst case, i end up with a scraper that is 1/2" shorter than when I bought it.

Now, everybody hold off buying scrapers on ebay for the next week, to keep the prices down...

 

[Robbo3]

Jean Francois Escoulon is the master of the bedan.

- http://escoulen.com/en/
- http://www.carolinamountainwoodturners.org/articles/448

- http://www.lavieenbois.com/html/bedane_eng.htm

 

[Robbo3]

i read that too somewhere. but google didnt direct me to any useful shops! I will get a 3/4" scraper and put a bevel on it. nothing ventured,nothing gained and it sounds like it is done (to some degree) on the continent. Worst case, i end up with a scraper that is 1/2" shorter than when I bought it.

Now, everybody hold off buying scrapers on ebay for the next week, to keep the prices down...

Ashley Iles 9mm bedan
- http://www.ashleyilestoolstore.co.uk/in ... ucts_id=96