In this paper, we presents the results of investigations studied the cutting ability and grindability of selected high-speed steels. We analysed the effect of the austenitization temperature on the grain size, the amount of retained austenite and percentage of retained austenite in HS3-1-1 steel. Furthermore, the investigations concerned on the efficiency of the keyway broaches during the whole period of operation were carried out. It was found that the value of average roughness parameter increases together with increases in the grinding depth. The investigations also show the influence of tempering conditions on the volume of carbide phases in HS3-1-1 steel.