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Manufacturers of turning tools have been using M2 High Speed Steel (HSS) for their
gouges and chisels for several years. Some steels also offer longer edge-
Crown Hand Tools have recently introduced a range of 'Pro-
The Two Tested
I tested the 237PM 13mm (1/2") Spindle Gouge and the 242PM (1/2") Bowl Gouge. The spindle gouge is made from 13mm (1/2") diameter bar, but the bowl gouge is formed from 16mm (5/8") diameter bar.
Gouge size terminology varies with supplier and can be based on flute width or bar diameter. In North America the tools would be referred to by the bar diameter and not the width of the flute.
The PRO-
They have a satin finish, are a little different in shape to previous Crown handles and are comfortable to hold.
The spindle gouge was the right profile for me, so only needed some fine finishing and honing. Here I used a Tormek whetstone grinder and a diamond hone.
The bowl gouge had high wings, which I don't like, so some heavier reshaping was needed here. Using a dry grinder I quickly took back the wings. Despite rapid hefty grinding, I did not get any burning on the tool edge, which creates a better edge more quickly and easily.
The Real Test
The profile then got a fine finishing on the Tormek using the SVD 180 jig. The tools
took no longer to sharpen than conventional HSS tools, putting paid to one presumption. Then
it was on to the real test -
Early trials with the bowl gouge were encouraging. I achieved a very clean cut with
my well-
To give the gouge a good workout I used it to final finish a 405mm (16") diameter heavy oak bowl that had been roughed out when wet using a King Arthurs Tools chainsaw cutter on an angle grinder.
With the gouge freshly honed, the challenge was to see if I could finish the job
without going back to the diamond hone, let alone the grinder. Again I was impressed. The
tool kept its edge longer, and needed only a slight tough-
Spindle Gouge
The spindle gouge performed equally well on a between-
I think the best feature of the Crown PRO-
Test Report on the New 'Pro-
Crown Hand Tools Ltd.by Terry Porter