Easy Rougher - Worth the $$ ?

[James Combs]

I made my own for under $15. 1/2" square steel bar and a spare Byrd Shelix carbide cutter. Works great, though I've only used it on spindle stuff so far, but you can turn a blank into a cylinder in seconds.
I did buy the plastic chip deflector from CSUSA, and it's nice to have. There are several threads about this over on the IAP pen turners website, in the tools and shops forum. The key to rapid stock removal is to have somewhere in the neighborhood of a 25 - 30 degree bevel on the cutter. Most carbide cutters for metal work have a much shallower angle. The cutters for jointer or planer heads are much faster for roughing out purposes. Other folks have used the Grizzly cutter heads with good success.
Dan

What Dan said, except I didn't go for a shield. I get my cutters here, the 11th one down the page, at $2.61 per cutter don't see how you can beat it even as someone mentioned the EW cutters cut a little better(not my experience though, I can't tell the difference).

[Ron Borowicz]

You can also sharpen your cutters...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBgbhG373LE
I also sharpen them on the side of my Tormek grindstone.

[Dok Yager]

Jesse: I haven`t used an "Easy Cutter" however I do have several carbide cutters. I got mine from Harrison Tools "no affiliation" and I have one of his handles and one of Thompsons handles. I like both for different stages. The Thompson handle is counterweighted so it works great for roughing and doesn`t wear you out. Where as the Harrison has a foam around the handle that works well for finishing work. I have the square, round and the star cutters and they are all great pieces.

[charlie knighton]

one of the raffle prizes at the Virginia Woodturning Symposium in September will be Mid size easy hollower #1 thanks to Easy Wood Tools for the donation

http://www.virginiawoodturners.com/

[David C. Roseman]

The Easy Rougher is especially nice on green bowl blanks for hogging off material fast. Here's another source for replacement cutters, for less than $2 each. Work just fine for me. They don't cut quite as cleanly as a fresh EWT cutter, but it's very close. And, hey, it's a roughing tool.

http://www.pmctool.com/product.php?productID=2250

David

[Dale Gillaspy]

Jess, I've had mine since Craig and Donna were a very small company. I think it is a great tool, and great people to work with. My preference is the R4, which has a slight crown. You can still come close to doing very square cuts with it, but the slight crown minimizes corner dig ins when you really don't want them.

[Stan Smith]

The Easy Rougher is especially nice on green bowl blanks for hogging off material fast. Here's another source for replacement cutters, for less than $2 each. Work just fine for me. They don't cut quite as cleanly as a fresh EWT cutter, but it's very close. And, hey, it's a roughing tool.

http://www.pmctool.com/product.php?productID=2250

David

Oops. They are not accepting orders, but is sure was a fantastic price. I paid $16 for just one from another source.

[Stan Smith]

What Dan said, except I didn't go for a shield. I get my cutters here, the 11th one down the page, at $2.61 per cutter don't see how you can beat it even as someone mentioned the EW cutters cut a little better(not my experience though, I can't tell the difference).

This is really great info from James and Dan. I'm going to give it a try for my Harrison SR and pen SR. Wish I would have known about this a couple of weeks ago since I bought a couple of replacements for a considerably higher price. I wish I had the knowledge and setup of to make my own tools. Harrison tools are excellent quality though and I made my own handles since I want shorter than what Harrison's interchangeable handle is. I'm going to order the byrd Shelix cutters for that great price. I will also sharpen my own on a diamond stone since it is so easy to do.

Even though I have the Harrison tools, I still use the Easy Tool rougher and also their smaller starter tools (the detailer and round tools) since they are smaller and good for the very fine work. I like the radius cutters, even for roughing, on spindle or fine work because I have a tendency of not keeping the square cutter exactly flush with the blank at all times and drag the corners. This is because I get sloppy and am not fully concentrating on what I'm doing every second. Yeah, I know......

[John Grace]

I have several of the Easy Wood Tools and they're quite good. Appreciate some will say that traditional tools are better and perhaps they leave a smoother finish that the EWT's, but that said, I've been turning with them for several years and not found anything they cannot do.

Cutter head longevity is a subjective mix of length of use, hardness of the wood, etc. There are several 'after market' providers that supply your cutters at a fraction of what EWT charges. Additionally, recommend you purchase an inexpensive 'diamond hone'. Several quick passes over the hone and you've 'freshened' the edge sufficiently to prolong the cutter.

Hope this helps...thanks, John

[Stan Smith]

@John. I'm not sure why we seem to come up with this "1 is better than the other" stuff. Of course there's personal preference, but that doesn't mean that invalidates tools that we don't use but others do. Just to clarify, I'm not saying that's what you were saying in your post either, John. I recently sold some lathe chisels. Most were for particular uses. I just was no longer using them John has obviously learned to use the Easy Wood tools to his satisfaction and enjoyment. I'm still learning some on both the Easy Tools and Harrison Tools and my main problem has been dragging the square corners. I've now switched to cutters with radius and that has made a big improvement with them for me. I still use my "traditional" tools and I enjoy working with them also. We are really fortunate that we have so many choices, IMO

stan

[Stan Smith]

Sorry I got a little carried away on my last post.

Just want to let everyone know that I got a pack of 10 cutters from here: http://globaltooling.bizhosting.com/...rt-knives.html

They fit my Harrison rougher tools just fine--both the long shaft and the pen shaft. This a great source and fast shipping. Many thanks for the tip.

[allen long]

Any thoughts on the Titan inserts (just above the Byrd inserts) on the website. I am thinking the radiused corners as well as the radiused main edges may help from catching the corners on you turning.


Many Kind Regards . . . Allen

[Stan Smith]

Any thoughts on the Titan inserts (just above the Byrd inserts) on the website. I am thinking the radiused corners as well as the radiused main edges may help from catching the corners on you turning.


Many Kind Regards . . . Allen

No, Allen, I had not even thought of that. I bought on the basis of what others said about their success with them. Actually, they barely fit my Harrison tools, but they work fine. The Easy Tool rougher, that I have, has a smaller cutting head and the cutter is much smaller. I think that I have their pen rougher. I actually like it being smaller for very fine cutting on pens. I think that I have plenty of cutters for some time now. I'll probably try those Titan inserts next time. Thanks for pointing them out, Allen.

[Jerry Toschlog]

I just bought one used here on SMC, I received it just last Sat and used it last Sunday. WOW that sucker took out wood, I did have a few catches but it was my first time using it. I really like it ... WARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a habit that until last Sunday did not even realize.. When I get done with a tool mainly a gouge I pull it through my hand to remove shavings before placing it back into the tool holder. YEP, I instinctly did just that with the easy rougher. Well the carbide blade sticks out farther than the shaft unlike most tools. OUCH!!!!! I Got a few cuts on my left ring and pinky finger.

[Stan Smith]

I only cut myself once, Jerry. I read a post somewhere where this guy took an old paint brush and cut off part of the bristles. He then attached some rare earth magnets and stuck it on his lathe. That's what I did, too, although I just bought a cheapo brush at HF. I have a Jet lathe and stuck the brush on the underside of the frame with just the bristles sticking out. I just wipe the tool on the bristles when needed. No more cuts.