How often should you sharpen woodturning tools?

Touch up your tools before every project and during a project whenever the cut quality degrades — you'll feel increased resistance and see torn fibers instead of clean shavings. For bowl turning, most turners visit the grinder every 10-15 minutes of active cutting. For pen turning, sharpen before every other pen. A properly set up grinder with a jig makes each touch-up take about 30 seconds.

What angle should a bowl gouge be sharpened to?

The standard is a 40-degree bevel with a swept-back fingernail (thumbnail) profile. Mike Mahoney detailed this grind in Fine Woodworking #187 (2006) — the 40-degree angle is measured from the axis of the gouge to the bevel face. Some turners prefer 45 degrees for heavier cuts or 35 degrees for lighter finishing cuts, but 40 degrees is the most versatile starting point.

Do you need a slow-speed grinder for sharpening turning tools?

No — any bench grinder works for HSS turning tools. HSS retains its hardness at temperatures up to 1,000°F, so the risk of burning the edge with a standard 3,450 RPM grinder is minimal if you use light pressure and keep the tool moving. That said, slow-speed (1,725 RPM) grinders are more forgiving for beginners and give you more control. The wheel grit (80-120) matters more than the speed.

What is the best sharpening system for woodturning?

For most turners, a bench grinder (6" or 8") with a Wolverine jig system ($150-250 total) is the best starting setup. The Wolverine's Vari-Grind attachment handles bowl gouge fingernail grinds repeatably, and the flat platform handles roughing gouges, skews, and scrapers. The premium upgrade path is adding CBN (cubic boron nitride) wheels ($100-200 each), which never need dressing and run cooler.

Should you hone woodturning tools after grinding?

For most turning tools, honing after grinding is optional — the grinder edge is sharp enough for turning. The main exception is the skew chisel, which benefits significantly from honing on a diamond paddle or leather strop. Bowl gouges and spindle gouges work fine straight off the grinder. Some advanced turners hone scrapers with a burnisher to raise a more aggressive burr.

What grit grinding wheel is best for sharpening turning tools?

80 to 120 grit aluminum oxide wheels are the standard for sharpening. 80 grit removes material faster and is better for reshaping a damaged edge. 120 grit leaves a finer edge for touch-ups. A 60 grit wheel is useful for major regrinding but too aggressive for routine sharpening. If upgrading to CBN wheels, 180 grit CBN is roughly equivalent to 80 grit aluminum oxide in finish quality.

ToolsAugust 16, 2021

Sharpening Woodturning Tools

One of the most frequently asked questions from new turners is, "How often will I have to sharpen?"

Very often. A regular sharpening schedule quickly becomes routine to a turner. You'll probably want to touch up your tools before at least every other pen. I rarely start turning a bowl without a trip to the grinder. Even those new tools you just bought will probably need sharpening before they are fully ready for use.

As Ian Kirby wrote in Fine Woodworking #29 (1981), "once a tool has been properly ground, sharpening it takes only about a minute." The key word is properly — the initial grind establishes the correct bevel angle, and subsequent touch-ups simply restore the edge. Get the geometry right once, and maintenance sharpening becomes fast and automatic.

About this guide — I'm Vince, founder of WoodturningOnline. I sharpen at the grinder before nearly every turning session. This guide covers the methods I use daily — from basic platform grinding to the Wolverine jig system — based on years of trial and error.

Sharpening Methods for Spindle Tools

Spindle Tools	Link	Sharpening Method
Spindle Gouge	PSI Woodworking Spindle Gouge	Normally sharpened with fingernail grinding jig. The point is 45 degrees with swept-back wings.
Roughing Gouge	Hurricane Roughing Gouge	Simple straight grind usually with a platform. Angle usually 45 degrees.
Skews	Narex Skew Chisels	Two types: Straight and curved. Usually a platform, usually done by hand. Jigs available. This tool benefits from honing.
Parting Tools	Thin Kerf Parting Tool	Flat square grinds. Included angle (total) from 70 degrees to 50 degrees. Bedans can be 45 degrees.

Sharpening Methods for Bowl Tools

Bowl Tools	Link	Sharpening Method
Bowl Gouge	PSI Woodworking Bowl Gouge	Traditional grind is very straight and best used for cutting straight across bottoms. Platform ground straight across. Swept-back wings are best used for shaping sides. Sharpened with fingernail jigs. Ellsworth has a proprietary sharpening jig.
Bowl Scrapers	PSI Woodworking Scraper	Platform ground to 10-15 degrees off vertical (shallow). A hardened HSS or Carbide burnisher is often used to enhance the burr and raise it even higher for a more aggressive cut.
Nose Scrapers	See when to use a nose scraper	Round-nose profile, platform ground. Used for smoothing curves and removing tool marks inside bowls.

Other Tools

There are also specialty dedicated hollowing tools. For them, the sharpening method varies depending on the shape of the cutting tip. Some require special holding jigs. Some are disposable.

Sharpening System or Not?

WEN 10-Inch Two-Direction Sharpening System

Sharpening systems are a matter of personal preference and budget. There is no "right" way to sharpen your tools (but there are plenty of "wrong" ways). As long as your system is capable of quickly putting a fine edge on your tool it will work. Many turners use a standard bench grinder with aluminum oxide wheels (or better). Others prefer more esoteric systems such as the Jet or Tormek. Such high-end systems work very well if you have the budget or already own one. If this is the case you may want to look into special attachments for turning tools.

Bench grinders are one of the more common methods of sharpening, and the least expensive (other than sandpaper or hand stones - both of which can be made to work but are extremely slow and therefore less practicable). Grinders generally come in three flavors: high-speed (3450 RPMs), low-speed (1725 RPMs), and variable-speed. Regardless of what anyone tells you, it doesn't matter what speed grinder you use for sharpening HSS tools. Any of the above will work just fine.

Another grinder choice you'll be faced with is wheel size. 8" grinders are often touted as putting less of a concave on the tool bevel than a 6" grinder. I always laugh when I hear this. Again, it doesn't really matter. The wood is not going to know the difference. The best argument for 8" wheels is that it offers widths up to 1" giving you a bit more sharpening surface to work with. 6" wheels are generally 3/4" wide. Again, the difference is a matter of convenience and personal preference. Either will work just fine.

DEWALT 8-Inch Bench Grinder

As mentioned above, aluminum oxide wheels (or better) are well suited for sharpening HSS steel. Wheel color is not important. Wheels between 80 to 120 grit are generally considered good for sharpening. 60 grit wheels (or lower) are best for reshaping but could also be used for sharpening with a light enough touch.

For more information on sharpening various tools, see Jerry Hall's excellent guide here.

The 40-Degree Thumbnail Grind

For bowl and spindle gouges, the most widely-used profile is the thumbnail (fingernail) grind. Mike Mahoney detailed the technique in Fine Woodworking #187 (2006): the goal is a consistent 40-degree bevel along the entire curved end of the gouge — from the nose to the swept-back wings.

Mahoney's freehand method uses a simple template held against the grinder platform to verify the 40-degree angle. The process:

Set the grinder platform so the gouge contacts the wheel at approximately 40 degrees
Start at the nose of the gouge, with the flute pointing straight up
Roll the gouge smoothly to one side while simultaneously swinging the handle away from the wheel
The two motions — roll and swing — happen together and produce the swept-back wing profile
Return to center, then repeat for the other side
Check the bevel with your template; it should be a consistent 40 degrees all the way around

This is the single most important sharpening skill for a woodturner to master. Once you can reliably grind this profile, your bowl gouge will cut cleanly in every orientation — shearing cuts on the outside, pull cuts on the interior, and finishing cuts on the bottom.

Avoiding Heat Damage

Joel Moskowitz addressed the most common sharpening fear — burning the edge — in Fine Woodworking #198 (2008). His "cool grinding" technique has two secrets:

Use a friable (soft-bond) wheel that constantly exposes fresh abrasive. A friable aluminum oxide wheel runs cooler than a hard-bond wheel because it doesn't glaze over.
Dress the edge of the wheel with a slight crown (higher in the center than at the edges). This concentrates the grinding action at a narrow contact line, reducing heat buildup.

With these two adjustments, you can grind freehand without water cooling and without worrying about drawing the temper from your HSS tools. Light pressure and steady movement do the rest.

Sharpening Systems Compared

Tim Albers tested seven sharpening systems for Fine Woodworking #182 (2006), evaluating each on plane irons, chisels, turning tools, and carving tools. Systems reviewed:

System	Type	Best For
Tormek SuperGrind 2006	Water-cooled wheel	Precision grinding, no heat risk
Scheppach TiGer 2000	Water-cooled wheel	Similar to Tormek, good value
Wolverine jig + bench grinder	Dry, jig-guided	Most popular among turners — fast, repeatable
CBN wheel + bench grinder	Dry, high-speed	Premium upgrade — never needs dressing, runs cool
Lap-Sharp LS-200	Horizontal platter	Carving tools, small gouges

For most woodturners, a slow-speed (1,725 RPM) bench grinder with a Wolverine jig system is the best starting setup. The Wolverine's Vari-Grind attachment handles the fingernail grind on bowl gouges, and the platform handles straight grinds on roughing gouges and skews. Total cost: $150–250 for grinder + jig.

The premium upgrade is replacing the aluminum oxide wheels with CBN (cubic boron nitride) wheels. CBN wheels never need dressing, stay perfectly flat, run cooler than aluminum oxide, and last essentially forever. They cost $100–200 per wheel but eliminate the ongoing cost of replacement wheels.

What the Community Uses

The sharpening setup question comes up constantly on r/turning, and the answer is remarkably consistent: an 8" slow-speed grinder with a Wolverine jig system is the gold standard. The Rikon slow-speed grinder (~$150) paired with the Oneway Wolverine base and Vari-Grind jig is the most commonly recommended combination.

Many turners eventually upgrade to CBN (cubic boron nitride) wheels, which never need dressing and can't burn the steel. Wood Turner Wonders and several other suppliers sell these wheels. The community consensus: aluminum oxide wheels work fine to start, but CBN is worth the upgrade once you're sharpening regularly.

Wet grinders (Tormek and clones) are not recommended as a primary sharpening system for turning tools. They work well for flat chisels and plane irons, but the slow material removal makes them impractical when you need to reshape a gouge grind — a common requirement in woodturning.

The bowl gouge is unanimously considered the hardest tool to sharpen. Multiple turners report spending as much time learning to sharpen their bowl gouge as learning to use it. A jig is essential — freehand grinding of a swept-back (Ellsworth) grind is, as one member put it, "possible but impractical."

Frequently Asked Questions

Written by Vince

Vince is a woodturner and the founder of WoodturningOnline. He writes tool reviews, buying guides, and turning tutorials to help woodturners at every level make informed decisions about their craft and equipment.