A Course in Woodturning
by Milton and Wohlers; 1919

Scraping Tools

The round nose, square nose, spear point, right skew and left skew are scraping tools, used chiefly in pattern work and sometimes in face-plate work. They are sharpened on one side only, and the bevel is about twice the thickness of the chisel at the point where sharpened. These tools should be slightly hollow ground to facilitate the whetting. Scraping tools become dull quite easily as their edges are in contact with the wood almost at right angles. After sharpening, the edges of these tools may be turned with a burnisher or the broad side of a skew chisel in the same manner that the edge of a cabinet scraper is turned though not nearly to so great a degree. This will help to keep the tool sharp for, as the edge wears off, the tool sharpens itself to a certain extent. The chisel is of harder material than a cabinet scraper so that it will not stand a great amount of turning over on the edge. Small pieces will be broken out, unless a flat surface is rubbed against the edge at a more acute angle than was used in the whetting. If a narrow burnisher is used, pieces are more likely to be broken out from the sharp edge and thus make the tool useless.