#3,461 in Tools & Home Improvement
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Reddit mentions of Hurricane Turning Tools, Woodturning Bowl Gouge, High Speed Steel, 3/8 Inches Flute (1/2 Inches Bar Stock)
Sentiment score: 2
Reddit mentions: 2
We found 2 Reddit mentions of Hurricane Turning Tools, Woodturning Bowl Gouge, High Speed Steel, 3/8 Inches Flute (1/2 Inches Bar Stock). Here are the top ones.
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- Bar Diameter: 1/2" | Flute Width: 3/8"
- Flute Length: 6" | Handle Length: 15" | Overall Length: 24"
- Made from High Speed Steel with solid beech handle
- Used to turn the outside and inside of bowls and vessels
- Available separately or in sets
Features:
Specs:
| Height | 2 Inches |
| Length | 21 Inches |
| Number of items | 1 |
| Width | 2 Inches |
That Rikon is a great little machine and it's on sale for $299.00 here ($43 shipping though, but still, it'll save you a little).
We were talking gouges over in /r/woodworking this morning and the harbor freight set actually got a pretty good mention in terms of good steel and edge retention. It's an $80 set, try to get a 20% off coupon & bring the cost down to $64.00.
So we've got ~$90.00 left, and I would use part of that for a bowl gouge because I was looking at the harbor freight sets just now and they don't really include one of those. The Hurricane tools on Amazon seem to be getting good reviews and since your budget will likely allow for just one, I'd recommend this 3/8" one as the most useful all around size.
That leaves you around $50.00 or so.
ETA: I have the Rikon so let me know if you have any more questions about it. The belt changes are easy on it.
While you could attempt to forge your own tools, I'd steer as far away from that as possible. Unlike hand tools, turning chisels can be subjected to an extreme amount of stress in the even of a catch; enough stress that I've personally snapped milled steel tool rests in half, snapped cheap chisels (hello shrapnel!) at the tang, and caused more than a few well mounted pieces of wood to turn into high speed ballistic objects that can maim or even kill.
You are far better off utilizing that craftsman's skill and ability to create amazing pieces on the lathe :)
Check out the wiki on this sub to learn some more about carbide vs traditional tools. I personally prefer traditional, but I own several carbide tools as well and they have many great uses.
As a side, note, there are only three tools you really need for bowls: a bowl gouge, a round-nose scraper, and a parting tool. Those three are more than enough to learn bowl turning. As you want to expand your capabilities and tools, you can continue to add individual tools to your collection.
Make sure you have a way to sharpen your tools. The preferred method is a jig and a grinder (either slow speed bench or wet-grind system), which if you need to buy can set you back another few hundred dollars.