do you mean the square or round blanks used for lathe tools and boring bits?
use hss tipped tools not solid hss. they don't look tipped but they areboth its mainly for the shaper machine so cant use carbide or inserts as it chips them
ive got some hss tool steel bits just wondered what you can use for best results which arnt poor quality
can't see why you cant use carbide on a shaper, it would depend in the grade that is being used. if you get inserts used for face mills they should be able to handle the interupted cut that causes the chipping of the cutter. for flycutting the bit I normally use is a carbide insert for milling and that was silver soldered to a mild steel blank.