Super lube for gouges

[smallpatch]

OK,

    I given a great tip today, from all places.... a little old lady behind the counter at Woodcraft.

   You know, when you've got to remove LARGE quantities of that highly figured maple on the cheekside of a blank.  Around the cheekpiece, top, front and back.  That rasp is just so hard to get in there without buggering up the wrist etc.??  A gouge wants to dig in, and chip out..... You know what I mean!!
   Well, a 50/50 mix of denatured alcohol, and water sprayed on the wood, and it just peels of shiny, and no chip outs.

Really works great.

[smylee grouch]

Thanks for passing that along for us. I have been told by others that they did simmiler things and always wanted to try it but never had that particular combination to try. Will give it a try.   Smylee

[hortonstn]

thank you for the tip, i'll try it
paul

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Dane, perfect timing I will be doing that work tonight!!

[Jim Kibler]

I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to be a critic again.   Use sharp tools and watch the grain.  Gouges used in the manner you describe are for relatively heavy stock removal.  The stock will not be down to size from the gouge and there should be plenty of wood for further clean up.  Not like you are cutting a finished surface.  The process you describe may help, but with just a very slight bit of care, there really isn't any problem.  Seems wetting the stock would be a bit of a hassle.  Ok, there's my two cents worth.

Jim

[Acer Saccharum]

Who'da thunk it? I'll try it sometime when I'm hogging off large bits of maple. I hate taking of a lot of wood with a rasp. Wears me right out, it does.

There is also nuthing like sharp tools. I must confess I get lazy and don't hone the gouges up like they need to be.    I just sharpen them good once every couple of years, then think they will never go dull.

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

I stone and strop, strop, strop, did I say strop??  I strop about every 5 minutes when using them. They seem to cut well, but it sounds like Jim's cut maple, walnut and cherry like butter....... I took a sharpening class at Woodcraft, read everything here and also sat through a class at Dixon's.......  They do nicely when chasing with a mallet.... nice and smooth etc., but when I an trying to push, they don't seem to cut as well. That goes for my micro chisels as well as the Pfeils..... The biggest challenge is cutting small areas when inletting... When I look at the edges through my loupe they have brilliant edges.

So what make the difference in sharpening for you Jim?  And you say "watch the grain" ..... So help me understand how to do that....on a typical curly maple rifle stock, please.

[whitebear]

My question is, if you spray the outside of the stock then the outside is the only thing that gets wet, how does this help with cutting the dry wood underneath the wetted area?  Does my question make sense or am I all wet?

[Jim Kibler]

I stone and strop, strop, strop, did I say strop??  I strop about every 5 minutes when using them. They seem to cut well, but it sounds like Jim's cut maple, walnut and cherry like butter....... I took a sharpening class at Woodcraft, read everything here and also sat through a class at Dixon's.......  They do nicely when chasing with a mallet.... nice and smooth etc., but when I an trying to push, they don't seem to cut as well. That goes for my micro chisels as well as the Pfeils..... The biggest challenge is cutting small areas when inletting... When I look at the edges through my loupe they have brilliant edges.

So what make the difference in sharpening for you Jim?  And you say "watch the grain" ..... So help me understand how to do that....on a typical curly maple rifle stock, please.

I apalogize if I tend to sound discouraging.  That's not my intent at all.  Most all methods used in gunbuilding boil down to time time tested techniques.  When I see and hear of odd methods and gimics I just can't help but to comment. 

As far as rough shaping a stock with a gouge, it's just a matter of having it reasonably sharp and watching the grain direction.  This means developing sort of a map in your mind as to how the grain runs.  Assumptions are first made based on how the grain typically runs in a stock blank, but then as cutting proceeds you can quickly tell which direction cuts best.  Take light cuts or test cuts to start in order to become confident of the direction.  Once you determine which direction cuts best just go at it with a big gouge and mallet.

This same general process is used for most any edged tool, file or rasp on a stock.  Files and rasps are a little more forgiving of course.  When pushing gouges or chisels by hand it is basically the same as well. 

None of this stuff is easy at first.  It just takes persistance, some thought and the desire to master it.  Hope this helps.

Jim

[smallpatch]

This hogging out portion has always been a hassle for me.  A large gouge, makes quick work of it compared to rasps.  With this piece of very hard, very dry, very highly figured piece of maple, this solution just made it work so much better.

I keep a spray bottle, spray an area, remove a layer, spray again, remove a layer.  Works really well.

Jim, I kind of see where you're coming from.  Sharp tools are a must, and it will cut across the grain well.  But those areas, around the cheekpiece don't always allow following the grain perfectly.  This is just a little help along the way.

Cuts like green wood instead of dry well seasoned.

[Waksupi]

If you are building guns, this is the best tool I have found for tight places.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=6764/Product/HALF_ROUND_VULCANITE_FILE

[tim crowe]

 A similar application when I machined wood panels for solid  figured cherry or maple, wetting the wood prior to running through the shaper left little or no tear out on the panels. My take is the solution wets the surface and allows the cutter or knife to cut cleaner with less tear out or fiction.  I do not use it every time but when working heavy figured wood it is well worth the effort, mileage may very.