Little finger numbness after turning?

[Bruce Pratt]

Ok. I will wade into this, and probably get thumped, but here goes. IMHO, there is no reason why roughing a chain-sawed piece into round should be an exercise in noise and pain. With the right tool presentation, right speed, sharp tool, light cuts, and some patience, it is no more of a problem than rounding small square stock into a cylinder. If one is getting lots of thumping and banging, the cuts are too deep and the tool handle may be too high... even with a roughing gouge, and cutting lots of air, one can "ride the bevel" and get quiet/clean cuts on rough stock.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Bruce, not here to thump ya but have to point out that the out-of-balance chunk of wood you decide to turn has a lot to do with the speed you can turn. Larger pieces require you to really turn the speed down and no matter how you hold the sharp gouge, it wants to pull the tip into the wood, resulting in a challenge to maintain control. Once the wood is somewhat balanced, then you can turn the speed up but even then, mass can be a little intimidating.

Out_of_Balance.jpg

[Bruce Pratt]

Agreed, out of balance requires low speed. I may start some really OOB pieces at 100-150rpm. I tend to hold the handle of the roughing gouge really low. It seems to reduce the tendency to pull into the wood.