Thread: Carbide insert tooling for aluminium on wood ?

Well not to be discouraged by nobody replying I decided to make a more suitable holder with a long handle. I have zero experience in making wood turning tools, had never made a handle before, made it all up as I went along and made it from what I had laying around. All in all I was pretty happy with how it came out. I used a square milling insert, SEHT1204AFFN-AL K10 which has a 20 degree taper so I could just mount it flat.
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My measure of success was to make a square piece of wood into a round piece of wood, then to make that round piece of wood into a smaller round piece of wood. With my three test pieces it was successful, it certainly had no qualms removing the material and I'm pretty sure my lathe was the limiting factor. Maybe someone local that knows what they are doing wood turning wants to borrow it and give it a spin to give me some more useful feedback ?

Anyway, my test pieces with the tool in the pics, all turning was done with this one tool only. I know very little about wood so sorry if I offend anyone re not knowing what type or if I get it wrong...

Piece of Cypress Pine, rough turned to round
IMG_20200606_165101.jpgIMG_20200606_165106.jpg

IMG_20200606_165113.jpg

Believed to be hardwood post, rough turned to round
IMG_20200606_170441.jpg

And whatever this is from a pallet I pulled apart, I gave this one a light sanding and had a play with trying to make other shapes
IMG_20200606_171103.jpgIMG_20200606_173404.jpg

I'm not a metal guy but I have been asking the same question. I use carbides a lot for my wood turning but only the "flat" ones sold for wood turning. I make my own tool holders and handles. When I decided to try carbides I looked at the vast array of cutters but I didn't know enough to work out the complicated coding for the metal milling inserts so I haven't tried any of them. What aluminium cutters would be nearest to the following wood turning inserts? 10-12mm square, 10-12mm suare/round and 10-12mm round. There is also an elongated diamond shape I use for some detail work. See 10pcs wood carbide insert cutters for wood turning tool woodworking lathe tool Sale - Banggood.com for example.
Looking at your last pic it would appear that the cutter you used is quite aggresive as there is some severe end grain tear out in the cove section. I'd guess that the profile of that particular cutter would be suitable for straight and outside curves but not coves. If you have a similar cutter but round give it a go and see how it handles the coves.
Another possible issue - the "flat" cutters are quite durable and stay sharp for quite a long time. When they do start to get dull they can easily be sharpened by lapping the flat face on fine grit paper. I'm guessing that the cutter you are using is not easy (or is impossible) to sharpen.
I'd be interested in trying some other cutters if you can point me to some like those I have mentioned.
Maybe others have already tried them and can tell us if they do the job and any problems they may have.

I made up some metal working TC tipped wood working turning chisels back in 2008. I just used some old tips from the bin at work and touched them up on the green wheel they had on one of their grinders . Success in using them for turning was mixed. Most were too steeply raked and would too easily grab the wood. I sort of reprofiled a few tips but it would be a lot easier to start out with new tip more suited to wood.

BTW diamond is very good for touching up TC tips. I do this with MW TC tips using a 6" diamond flat wheel I have mounted on the side of my CBN wheel.

TP2.jpg

Masterspoon, welcome to the dark side but one word of warning, it can be addictive. According to Google there is a wood turning club in Toowoomba and I would suggest that you go along. I'm self taught as there is no local club and I'm sure it's a slower process. A bit of instruction from some experienced turners is the best way and you'll soon learn enough to answer many of your questions.
There are also a number of good YouTube videos. Look for stuart batty and robohippy (Reed Gray) for a start
Pretty much any sharp tool will cut wood on a lathe, some safely and others not so. Some will cut more cleanly than others meaning less sanding to finish the work.
The SEHT insert with its positive rake has the potential to self feed causing what is known as a catch. Ananalogy would be breaking a parting tool when it digs in. Can be used but the way the tool is presented to the wood is important.
Stefan Gotteswinter's vids have covered sharpening and then honing carbide inserts with a fine grad lapping compound on a ceramic backing plate. These inserts were near razor sharp by the time he finished. Im sure this process would work on carbide inserts for wood turning.

Originally Posted by BobL

I made up some metal working TC tipped wood working turning chisels back in 2008. I just used some old tips from the bin at work and touched them up on the green wheel they had on one of their grinders . Success in using them for turning was mixed. Most were too steeply raked and would too easily grab the wood. I sort of reprofiled a few tips but it would be a lot easier to start out with new tip more suited to wood.

BTW diamond is very good for touching up TC tips. I do this with MW TC tips using a 6" diamond flat wheel I have mounted on the side of my CBN wheel.

TP2.jpg

Bob, I did the same thing you did, but instead of grinding my carbide edges, I hold the carbide taped with double sided tape to one of my fingers and grind only the flat top. I use 300, 600, 1200 and 3000 grit flat lap discs. It takes about 10 seconds on each grit. The carbide gets warm in that time, so I know it's time to pull away. When I've gone through the grits, the carbide is sharper than what you get from the factory that makes them. When done, the thickness of the carbide is 4-5 thousandths less than before I started sharpening."

Where did you get that side grinding side table? ........... Jerry (in Tucson)USA