I've made a lot of chips on a mills and lathes (manual and CNC) but none that were wood. Without giving out any trade secrets, what kind of cutting tools do you use in your lathes? HSS, carbide, or something like Tantung?
I did a lot of tool grinding on a cutter grinder with a Borazon cup wheel. I liked to do it so much that I would do it during my breaks. If a guy didn't get in too big of a hurry, he could put a mirror finish on a HSS bit. I wasn't much of a fan of sharpening end mills though...
