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Very informative, John. Thanks for posting.

Nice video..   I noticed your skew is straight.  I have ground mine with a slight curve.   Another tip to the skew is the shaving you get.  The one shown in the video are what you want.  This is a good indicator to know you cut is going right.

Nice Job !!!!   smiley=thumbsup.gif

I use a skew a lot but my cuts are no where near what your's are. What speed do you suggest when using the skew?

I'm a beginner in turning and using the skew.  I've had a little difficulty with this tool in particular.  One thing I notice from this video, it looks like your skew blade stock is rounded on both corners of the heel side of the stock; while the toe side of the stock appears to have both corners of the stock still at right angles.  Is this a custom modification or did you buy this tool that way?  And why aren't all four corners of the blade stock rounded as opposed to just the two heel sides?  It seems like the masters of the skew do a lot of  rotating the blade while cutting with the bevel rubbing, in which case rounded corners on the blade stock would be an advantage while rotating the tool during a cut.  Whereas a skew with hard corners on the stock would be encouraged to dig into the tool rest during any rotation of the tool during a cut.

Customizing the blade stock was something I considered doing on my skew but wanted to find more information before grinding away.  It seems like as I try to attain those smooth planing cuts along a gradual taper, sometimes those sharp corners of the blade stock hang up on the tool rest, resulting in less than desirable finish. 

This line of questioning also applies to the tool rest itself.  It seems to me that if the corners on the tool blade stock are rounded, then it would ride even smoother if the corners on the tool rest were at a radii profile as well. The tool rest in this video looks like it has a radius profile all along the top wherever the tool will actually make contact.  Is that right?  And is this preferable over a rest with just a plane inclined surface?  The rest that came with my lathe is of the latter type, but I'm also contemplating modifying it to attain better quality results while turning.  Would this be a good or bad idea? 

I will also be looking to join a local wood turning group in the future, but in the meantime, this forum is a great wealth of knowledge.   I appreciate all input on this topic, thanks!

Thanks for the informative response Bob!  You da man! 
Follow-up question: Do you prefer the polished hardened round rest type of rest or does the standard rest work fine for all practical purposes?

As for the skew being used with bevel rubbing while spindle turning...gloss smooth burnished finish even on yellow pine requires no sanding.  What beautiful work can be done with this technique.

Bob: Sounds like the standard rest will get the job done just fine, thanks for the tip.  Ride the high point of the rest, and keep the high point of the rest as close to the work as possible, all great tips.  Thank you! 

Now I just wonder if that yellow pine I turned will take a stain after the burnish finish.  That is a great point to keep in mind before getting carried away with that finish. The pine I speak of is being used to build a stool for my shop.  I've been trying to apply a lot of what I've learned from the windsor chair makers to this stool.  From what I've seen of Curtis Buchannan and the likes, they use the skew quite a bit on their chair legs, with a stained or painted finish applied with good looking results.  However, they are using oak on those parts, that might take the finish a little better than other woods when burnish finished with a skew. Then again, a burnished finish is a burnished finish, no matter what wood, and it probably always affects how a stain will saturate the surface.  You bring up a great point, and just another potential pitfall.

I suppose a light sanding to scuff out the high polish, could probably be done before disengaging the turning from the lathe, which might ensure a finish will hold.  But, it just goes to show, you must be a great chess player when building anything... always thinking 3 or 4 steps ahead of yourself. 

I probably won't apply a finish to the shop stool, not much beyond a wax or oil finish anyway.  If all of my work pays off and the stool holds together well, I'll probably end up making some bar stools for the house.  When that happens I'm sure to apply a stain or paint, and by that time I better know the best way to proceed.  Until then, I'll scavenge WR for information on this topic.  Thanks!

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