Mention the words "skew chisel," and most woodcarvers and woodturners react strongly; ambivalence is not the usual response. Instead, craftsmen seem to love or hate using the skew chisel. Those who love the tool quickly mention how many cuts a skew chisel can make, how efficiently its razor-sharp cutting edge can dispatch with excess wood, and how a well-executed planing cut leaves the wood in need of very little sanding. Those who despise the skew chisel complain that it takes an inordinate amount of time to learn to use well, is extremely difficult to sharpen, and can ruin a project piece in a split second. To these folks, the benefits of the skew chisel just aren't worth the frustrations...
As we mentioned in a previous blog post about the oval skew chisel, woodcarvers generally have strong opinions about the skew chisel. Some praise it as a tool that’s versatile, efficient, and capable of producing an excellent finish that requires minimal sanding. Carvers who learn to use a skew chisel well use it often for all types of turned projects. Others insist that a skew chisel is so hard to use that it just isn’t worth the effort to learn. They complain that the tool runs back or digs in easily; a split-second dig-in can ruin a piece. These folks argue that a skew chisel isn’t worth much--except perhaps as a can opener. Alan Lacer is a seasoned woodturner and...
A Crown skew chisel doesn’t have anything to do with royalty. The shape of the blade doesn’t resemble a crown. What then is a Crown chisel? Is a Crown skew chisel used like other skew chisels? We’ll answer these questions--and others--in this article. What is a Crown skew chisel? A Crown skew chisel is a skew chisel manufactured in Sheffield, England by Crown Hand Tools. Ltd. Crown is a family-owned company that has spent over 50 years manufacturing traditional wood carving tools. What are the hallmarks of Crown products and processes? Crown Hand Tools are known for the following: Traditional handmade products that have been hand forged, tempered, and ground. Modern production processes such as cryogenics and powder metallurgy. Quality...
The oval skew chisel--along with its cousins the rectangular skew chisel and the round skew chisel--is a workhorse of a tool for wood carvers who turn their pieces on a lathe. Some woodturners swear by the tool and use their oval skew chisel virtually any time they use a lathe. Others try using an oval skew chisel and then swear they'll never use one again. Let's answer frequently-asked questions about the oval skew chisel to find out why this tool causes such a diversity of opinions. First, what are the main types of skew chisels? Skew chisels are classed as rectangular (AKA: traditional or flat), oval, or round. The classification is based on the shape of the profile or cross-section...
