Hello all,

I'd like to turn thin-wall brass tubing on a lathe and form the original, cylindrical tubing into a slight conical shape for fishing rod ferrules.

I am new to metal working (and this forum) and just recently purchased a 1946 South Bend 9" x 4.5' lathe.

I'd like to make dies for spinning brass tubing into cones. What type of metal should I use to make the dies (if they are even called dies... forgive my ignorance). Basically I want to make a cone shape to form the brass over the die, spinning it very fast to elongate the tubing and make the diameter smaller at one end.

What type of metal should I use to make these dies/forms? I was looking at tool steel but it seems like tool steel is very hard to turn and I think it may be overkill for forming a softer metal such as brass. Is there some other metal I could use that would hold up to higher temperatures, and that will also be easier to turn that tool steel?

Thanks in advance!

Jesse