"Ecnerwal" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Bill Noble" wrote:

carbide is
amazing, but it's designed for very high pressures and feed rates that
are
just not sensible in wood - but if you guys like it - great....

Bill, you seem to think we do what most of us don't - hardly anyone is
using carbide for Oland tools - we virtually all use HSS metalcutting
lathe tool bits, with the occasional foray into colbalt HSS. Carbide is
only of vary limited use in this application, and does not get used much
because of that - it does not get as sharp, it's more brittle, etc. You
might be able to bull through some low-grade rough cuts with it where it
not getting as dull as fast (after starting out duller than the HSS) was
of use, but sharp wins 99% of the time, so sharpening a HSS bit as
needed is the more common approach. Heck, I have a few plain carbon
tools that are useful because I can get them (or think I can) a tiny bit
sharper than HSS, and for the time that lasts, they can do things I need
done, better than HSS.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

aaah, I guess I misunderstood the discussion - somehow I understood that
carbide was used because it was "cutting through nails" - maybe I misread.
Anyway, I happen to agree with you RE tool steel - the softer steels
(specifically carbon steel) will take a finer edge - you can probably prove
this to yourself with a microscope, but you can certainly ell it making a
finsh cut - so just like you, I keep a few carbon steel tools around for
when I just can't get a decent finsh cut with the fancy alloy stuff.