Turning Wood with Carbide Tools: Techniques and Projects for Every Skill Level

I purchased this book, Kindle Edition, to learn about wood turning with carbide tools. First I wish I would have purchased the paper version. The way the Figures are numbered and placed within the running commentary, at least in the Kindle Edition, are very confusing. Flow is disrupted and you find yourself rereading in the text what you have previously red beneath, for example, Figure 5. The explanatory Figures can be either before or after the running description within the text. Simply, confusing.That said, the content is excellent. Well worth the money if you are just starting and need to learn everything.At least in the kindle version the images are sharp until you blow them up at which point they become a fuzzy blur. There just isn't enough pixels/inch to maintain high resolution for a clear, larger image. These may be larger and clearer in the book version, I don't know.Not only is there great stuff on turning but a ton of great information on wood quality, properties and what woods to purchase for turning. He explains a lot of buying information and terminology your average Joe simply does not know but will after reading this book all focused on getting the best price and the best wood for your turning projects.Good job Mr. English. In the second edition get better pictures and make sure the Figures flow with your commentary. You could simply leave the writing beneath the images completely out and just refer to them one at a time as you come to them in your running commentary hopefully with the publisher keeping the images "right there" or at least nearby.

John English is a prolific author and, as one would expect, this book is well written, well researched and beautifully illustrated.He covers the characteristics of carbide turning tools, and provides a well annotated list of manufacturers and suppliers. In subsequent chapters he shows the use of carbide tools in spindle work and faceplate work including bowls and hollow forms.Be warned:When you flip through the book you may be unimpressed by the quality of much of the turning - but don't let this put you off; in context they are actually quite remarkable. The author reckons that carbide tools are easy to use and ideal for beginners ("Techniques and Projects for Every Skill Level".) To illustrate his point he has shown some of the beginners' earliest efforts - klutzy by professional standards but truly amazing for first pieces.So - a decent overview and introduction to carbide turning tools with good illustrations and plenty of examples.

I am a 71 year old gramma of 3 and have just started to learn to turn. I have learned a great deal from this book and recommend it to any novice wood turner. I plan to turn pens and other small projects like wine stoppers, letter openers, bowls, etc. It is a perfect guide for me to learn this new and exciting skill with very little difficulty at all. Don't hesitate to purchase this book. It is filled with great information and 'how tos' to get you started with carbide tools. They really ARE a no brainer with just a bit of knowledge in how to turn.

This is a very useful discussion of the carbide tip tools produced by a variety of sources. Not only are the various options listed, but their specific uses and techniques are given with their listings. The book ends with the contact points for the various manufacturers, which should be of great assistance to anyone considering the use of the carbide tip tools in place of the traditional gouges, scrapers and skews. Well worth the money, and well worth the time to read carefully.

You're new to turning. You just got a lathe. You're contemplating going with carbide tools for their relative safety and ease of use, and foregoing learning sharpening and the ins and outs of "traditional" tools. You're even thinking about making your own carbide tools to save some money or complement your initial EWT (or other brand) purchase. Then this book is for you. If you don't fit the above description, you'll probably be disappointed.Carbide-tipped lathe tools have some distinct advantages (especially for beginners) over traditional tools, and the first portion of the book sort of reads like an advertisement for this genre of tools. Though EWT is a major brand of carbide lathe tools and prominently featured in this book, there is a survey of a variety of different manufacturers' tools. I'm very active on online forums, and I had not heard of many of these smaller companies.The information in the first portion of the book helps to differentiate between the different types of carbide lathe tools - subtleties exist between them that were not obvious to me before (e.g. flat-topped round carbide inserts are to be used differently from saucer-shaped round inserts and have different safety considerations). It's a helpful survey for anyone considering purchasing these tools and also anyone considering making their own tools. Many popular online resources are covered, including sources of carbide inserts. I have a much better understanding of the types of cutters available (believe it or not, one carbide insert is not the same as another, which explains the variety of success/failure people report from this general genre of lathe tool). Though you can glean much of this information from the web over time, I appreciated an organized, formal treatment of carbide lathe tools.As for the projects (both examples and step-by-steps), most of them are fairly elementary and are probably not going to be inspirational from an artistic perspective. But they are meant to show what novice turners can accomplish in just their first few lathe sessions with carbide tools. Walking through a simple project in your first few lathe sessions isn't a bad thing. If you've turned much before, you won't find that much of interest here.The book is well-written and well-illustrated. If you're new to turning and have chosen to start with carbide tools, consider this book as part of your turning education. If you're a veteran turner and new to carbide tools, there may be less here for you.

But it is probably is as good as most books written on the subject. Joining a local turning club is more than likely to speed up your learning progress but of you learn well from a book, this should do it.

Not overly impressed with this book. It might be a good first book for a person thinking of buying carbide tools.The section describing the different tool makers is useful.

Having just bought a mini lathe and made myself some carbide turning tools, using a UK supplier of carbide wood turning bits not mentioned in this book, I do find it useful to have a turning book that concentrated on and celebrated carbide tools rather than the standard HSS tools covered in every other book out there. There are some useful tutorials on using the three or so basic profiles to create simple projects, the techniques can then be adapted for more complex tasks. It is very American but useful nevertheless, however increasingly all of the how to books are being overtaken by YouTube tutorials and I would recommend having a look at the many excellent tutorials on using carbide lathet ools on that and other internet sites as well as reading this book.

Good starter introduction for anyone considering using Carbide Tungsten tips for turning. Tools have american focus because most of the best tools available are made in america, but if you look you can find UK suppliers. Have bought some to try on the strength of this book and now know that this is the way forward for me. This book has more than paid for itself in pointing me in the right direction.

Splendid description if the structure and use if these tools. Unfortunately the author has not come across the principal UK producer. Taken as a generic text the book is very useful indeed but the specific examples are purely from the US.

Excellent book siutable both for beginners and experienced woodturners

Good instruction