Sharpening: Halloween Helper

Here is a quickie for people struggling to picture the shape needed for a spindle gouge and in some cases a bowl gouge with swept back wings. It is also the shape I sometimes use for an Oland tool, especially for bowls.

Some people call the shape a lady's finger nail. The other day I saw a perfect example in a local dollar store. The Halloween stuff was up for display and among all the clown paint and fake blood there were some packages of ridiculously long fake nails. They looked the perfect shape for a spindle gouge at 60*

Not a bad sharpening aid for the price. Sure, some folks might look at you funny when they see long, red, plastic nails by the grinder, but the cuts should be good.

Have a nice Halloween and may all your tools be sharp.