Video- Rolling a bead

[John Torchick]

I was looking at the AAW videos and found one to be interesting. I clicked on "Rolling a Bead Using a Skew" by Richard Findley. However, what I saw was not a skew but what looked like a parting tool. Am I misunderstanding a different terminology in Great Britain? It was a good video, just need clarification here.

 

[john lucas]

Many people use what is called a beading tool that basically is a skew but with a very narrow width. More like what we call a hand chisel in flat woodworking. I have one I made but mine is wider and looks more like a hand chisel. I also have a bedan which is probably similar to what Richard it using.

 

[John Torchick]

Thanks, John. The profile looked like the point of a 1/4 inch parting tool like I have. It had a half-diamond shape on the end with the bevel at a right angle to the sides. Checked my Woodcraft catalogue for reference for the beading tool and the Bedan tool. I'll go back and watch the video again- it was good- and stop the video when the end of the tool is visible.

 

[RichColvin]

It looks it was a bedan that had been ground with two bevels.

 

[John Torchick]

Rich, inclined to agree with you. The overall side profile looked like a parting tool but the depth is smaller than my parting tool. Don't have a Bedan tool but will try this on a test piece with my parting tool.

 

[john lucas]

the advantage of having a shallow grind that is flat across the top is this. The shallow grind (25 degrees vs 45 degrees) means you don't have to swing the handle as far right or left to do the sides of beads. The straight across grind means you can use either corner of the tool to roll the bead. With an angle skew you are almost always using the Heel of the grind to roll the bead. Curtiss Buchannan does the skew a little differently. When I turn a bead or at least when I learned. I would start at the top cutting just a little above the heel and then roll the tool handle over while moving the tool either right or left depending on the side I'm doing, and then lift the handle. So there is a role, rotate and lift. Curtis never has to lift the handle to get to the bottom of the bead. He starts the cut about 1/3 of the way up from the heel and then simple pushes the tool around the bead. I've been trying this and it works really well. He also uses a tool similar to what your describing at about 5 minutes in this video and then finishes using the regular skew.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elir9RzW_iA

 

[Owen Lowe]

It’s called a beading and parting tool. Pretty commonly seen in catalogs. Here’s a pic from Craft Supplies catalog for a Henry Taylor version that comes in 1/4” and 3/8” sizes.


A bedan is similar except with only one ground bevel instead of two opposing bevels. (Photo below from Google, searching for bedan & Avisera.) Also is more vertically rectangular than a beading/parting tool.

 

[Hy Tran]

I would add that if you look at a Bedan end-on, it is frequently slightly trapezoidal. The heel is a bit narrower than the toe. This gives you some clearance for using a Bedan as a parting tool or as scraping tool.

 

[John Torchick]

Thanks to all for the info and mini-tutorials. I think I'll just go to Woodcraft, buy the beads and glue them on.

 

[Owen Lowe]

I would add that if you look at a Bedan end-on, it is frequently slightly trapezoidal. The heel is a bit narrower than the toe. This gives you some clearance for using a Bedan as a parting tool or as scraping tool.

Yes and that depends on the maker. I don’t recall whether it’s Eli Avisera or Jean Francois Escoulen who insists on parallel sides for his bedan and teaching how to use one — I’m leaning toward Escoulen since he’s kinda the master of the bedan.

 

[Richard Findley]

I was looking at the AAW videos and found one to be interesting. I clicked on "Rolling a Bead Using a Skew" by Richard Findley. However, what I saw was not a skew but what looked like a parting tool. Am I misunderstanding a different terminology in Great Britain? It was a good video, just need clarification here.

Hi John

Glad you enjoyed the video (and glad someone actually watched it!!) It was taken at the AAW in Atlanta. I was going to use a Skew to avoid confusion but the one provided was not very sharp. The tool I used is the tool I favour which is a 3/8 Beading and parting tool. It’s essentially a square Skew and a traditional British tool that is a kind of hybrid between a Skew and a parting tool. The Bedan is the traditional French version of the same, just having a single bevel.

If you take a look at my Instagram account (@richard_findley) I often show it in use in videos. This one shows it in action quite well:

https://instagram.com/p/BaY9zPAgHl5/

Hope this helps

Richard

 

[John Torchick]

Richard, many thanks for your reply and the clarification of the tool used in the video. You realize that I will need to get one now. Looked at the Instagram link.
Cheers.

 

[John Torchick]

Bring this up- I just received three pieces of HSS from Amazon. They are 8x8x200 mm each. I want to grind one to a Bedan and one to the Richard Finley's profile in the video. So much wood, so little time. Haven't figured out what to do with the third piece of steel. Suggestions?

 

[robo hippy]

Richard, I am pretty sure I have watched this a couple of times, thanks to John Lucas. Not mentioned in the video, there is perfect tension/compression on the spindle between the headstock and tailstock. Just enough so you don't get whip. Also, perfect on the bevel rub pressure, "the bevel should rub the wood, but the wood should not know it." I have a long way to go...

robo hippy