Are the factory delta chiselworth having?
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Delta factory chisel sets
- Thread starter Ed Jarvis
- Start date
Probably worthless they are only carbon steel therefore they don't hold an edge very long.
It probably depends on the specific product you are looking at. The set of Delta mini turning tools a few years back was actually made by Sorby. Good HSS material and nice little tools.
Regarding carbon steel knives.... Way back I got into automatic turning when I rescued a1930's automatic lathe on the way to the metal scrap recycler.
It used carbon steel knives I made from auto leaf springs. After forming they were heat treated using a torch.. They were very high shear and lasted for hundred (or thousands) of small knob and handle turnings in hard Maple without sharpening.. After running a day's parts they would be honed for another day, never ground. The cutting edge was sharp with a small included angle similar to the cutting edge of a kitchen knife. The knives peeled the wood by passing over the top of the turning. Largest diameters were cut first with the knife shearing down to the smaller diameters. The only reason I can account for how long a carbon steel knife lasted is because of the shear.
The parts usually needed minimal sanding which was done in a 5 gal plastic bucket like a rock tumbler with small squares of wood using sand paper glued to them. If the they needed a finish that was done in a 5 gal metal bucket same as the sanding except the paint or finish material was poured in and as they spun all the finish ended up on the parts. Hard wax could also coat the parts in the same way.
A typical part's length was done with single formed knife in one pass over the workpiece. I grabbed a few shots from a video showing this type tuning.
You can see the part's end as the knife passes over the part.
It used carbon steel knives I made from auto leaf springs. After forming they were heat treated using a torch.. They were very high shear and lasted for hundred (or thousands) of small knob and handle turnings in hard Maple without sharpening.. After running a day's parts they would be honed for another day, never ground. The cutting edge was sharp with a small included angle similar to the cutting edge of a kitchen knife. The knives peeled the wood by passing over the top of the turning. Largest diameters were cut first with the knife shearing down to the smaller diameters. The only reason I can account for how long a carbon steel knife lasted is because of the shear.
The parts usually needed minimal sanding which was done in a 5 gal plastic bucket like a rock tumbler with small squares of wood using sand paper glued to them. If the they needed a finish that was done in a 5 gal metal bucket same as the sanding except the paint or finish material was poured in and as they spun all the finish ended up on the parts. Hard wax could also coat the parts in the same way.
A typical part's length was done with single formed knife in one pass over the workpiece. I grabbed a few shots from a video showing this type tuning.
You can see the part's end as the knife passes over the part.
There are most of a couple sets of old craftsman tools in my garage. They have been wonderful to re grind to different profiles, whether to try a new grind on a skew, to turn into scrapers, practice sharpening techniques, or to modify for a specific purpose.
In the case of skews, I was able to determine which grind I preferred with low/no risk and once that was figured out, was able to buy the "good" tool. Funny though, the craftsman 1/2" skew has not been replaced yet - there is something about it which suits me perfectly.
All of those in my garage were acquired when purchasing an old lathe, or were tools given to me by older club members when I started. I've returned that favor several times, now as well.
In the case of skews, I was able to determine which grind I preferred with low/no risk and once that was figured out, was able to buy the "good" tool. Funny though, the craftsman 1/2" skew has not been replaced yet - there is something about it which suits me perfectly.
All of those in my garage were acquired when purchasing an old lathe, or were tools given to me by older club members when I started. I've returned that favor several times, now as well.
I use mine all the time,
For paper weights
Prying stuff open
Scraping gunk off rough blanks
You get the idea
(Sarc off)
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They are completely usable. I started out 40 years ago with carbon steel chisels I admit, I don't use those old CS tools anymore, and have upgraded to nicer quality tools, such as Thompson or D-Way. But if you can get a set very cheap, or given to you, they're fine until your skills upgrade and/or you can afford higher quality chisels.
Spot on Bob,
My Delta set i got 35 years ago were the only tools i had for my old Delta i also got 35 years ago, they worked! Were all i had till about 8 months ago when i really got the bug. Now they just get used for whatever,
I have some old carbon steel Deltas that I use for spindle turning. I mostly turn bowls, so the old Deltas are ok for me until I wear them down. Then, definitely upgrade time.
Hardened high carbon steel tools are fine if you don't overheat the edge while sharpening. You can sharpen HSS tools with a heavy hand the steel will be fine even if heated by grinding to red hot.
With high carbon steel, even getting the tool edge blue may be enough to soften the steel. Can be hardened again if you know how.
There is much info on the net, such as this, the first one I saw:
www.instructables.com
And people on knife-making forums know all.
When I bought unhardened high carbon tool steel the seller provided instructions for that specific steel - heat evenly to non-magnetic state then cool rapidly by quenching.
JKJ
With high carbon steel, even getting the tool edge blue may be enough to soften the steel. Can be hardened again if you know how.
There is much info on the net, such as this, the first one I saw:
Hardening Carbon Steels
Hardening Carbon Steels: This is the fourth Instructable in my series on heat treating carbon steels. If you read the preceding Instructables: An Introduction To Heat Treating Carbon Steels, Annealing Carbon Steels, and Normalizing Carbon Steels, then you learned that heat …
www.instructables.com
When I bought unhardened high carbon tool steel the seller provided instructions for that specific steel - heat evenly to non-magnetic state then cool rapidly by quenching.
JKJ
The diamond parting tool from my Delta set is my favorite. Also like the 1” skew. Have used all of them over the years.
Is that Delta set the same as the Sears Craftsman set from 20+ years ago? If so, I still use all of them, some are my favorites (especially the diamond parting tool. It's the best thing I've found for hollowing my handbell ornaments - just visually align from above and push into the end grain.
My set with an extra parting tool. I grind the parting tool a bit different from the original.
I mentioned at a demo how much I like that parting too and the next month a gentleman gave me his!
These are all HSS. I think not shown is the continental type spindle roughing gouge.
JKJ
Delta did (does??) make some HSS tools, and I've used a couple. Test the sparks on a grinder and you'll know. If they look like a fireworks show, carbon steel. I doubt they're tempered particularly well, so even HSS may not hold the edge through the whole bar. That's one reason I prefer D-Way for most tools. The tempering is top-notch and covers virtually the entire bar. Dave Schweitzer took no shortcuts when he developed the line, and Jimmie Allen holds true to that approach.