After a couple rookie mistakes with my lathe, I found I had a dull carbide turning tool. The tool itself was inexpensive, only 5 bucks, but it looked so easy to sharpen. And it was! I chucked a diamond sharpening steel - the kitchen type for touching up chef's knives - raised up the tool holder with a fender washer to raise the cutting edge up over the center line of the sharpening steel, and with the steel turning slowly, cranked in the tool until the carbide pad touched the diamond sharpening steel. The edge was sharpened and undercut from the radius of the sharpening steel. Now it is sharper than when it was new! I think I just found a way to extend the life of my turning tools by several-fold.  (Darryl Hayashida)

Do you have any suggestions on what grit to use and any suggestions on sharpening suggestions of the easiest way of sharpening lathe bits and saw blades?  I am sharpening challenged.  (David Ray)

I sharpen my metal lathe tools on a 6" circular sanding disk with 300 grit paper. Make a quick pass at the wheel and immediately dip the warm too in water. Make another pass, repeat.  (Don Greife)

Are you sharpening HSS or carbide bits?  That's a pretty gritty subject...  If they're just HSS, you can sharpen with a 60 or 80 grit grinding wheel.  The lathe bits aren't quite as critical as our plane blades.  If they're carbide, you need to get one of those "green" grinding wheels.  Not sure what grits they come in.  (Mark Wendt)