Unless otherwise noted, all gravers come pre-shaped with a ground cutting face. Gravers must be sharpened before use. Sharpening can be done manually with a stone or automated with a motorized hone.

Square Gravers have a square face that creates a 90° cutting edge. They're used for removing background material, shading, cutting border lines and star shapes, and for raising and rolling beads for stone setting.

High Speed Steel (HSS) gravers strike a balance between cost and durability. They maintain their hardness (temper) better than standard carbon steel and cost less than carbide.