barrel trimmer question

[Djlinder]

I'm new to pen turning and wanted to know if it is possible to put a 7mm barrle trimmer into a drill press to square blanks. Any tips are greatly appreciated plus i don't have a chuck to attach to my lathe.

 

[pensbydesign]

use it on drill press all the time, go slow when you first enter hole to make sure you don't catch the brass.

 

[Culprit]

use it on drill press all the time, go slow when you first enter hole to make sure you don't catch the brass.

I prefer to turn the drill press/lathe off to fit the tube on the barrel trimmer, then turn it on to square it.

 

[Boz]

When I was using a barrel trimmer on a drill press I would always hold the blank with a pair of vice grips. The trimmer will put more torque on the blanks than you can hold onto with your fingers.

 

[Jgrden]

I usually hold them in my hands while using my 19 V Craftsman drill. The issue I have is to keep the blades sharp and there are tutorials on this in our Library.

 

[tim self]

And IF you do hold the blank by hand, be VERY, VERY careful not to let your hand slip. Sharp spinning steel meets flesh = blood and pain.

 

[sbwertz]

I usually hold them in my hands while using my 19 V Craftsman drill. The issue I have is to keep the blades sharp and there are tutorials on this in our Library.

Do you know what folder the tutorial on sharpening barrel trimmers is located in?

 

[panamag8or]

And IF you do hold the blank by hand, be VERY, VERY careful not to let your hand slip. Sharp spinning steel meets flesh = blood and pain.

The corners of acrylic blanks will yield similar results... ouch.

 

[rherrell]

I usually hold them in my hands while using my 19 V Craftsman drill. The issue I have is to keep the blades sharp and there are tutorials on this in our Library.

Do you know what folder the tutorial on sharpening barrel trimmers is located in?

http://www.penmakersguild.com/articles/penmillsharpening1.pdf

 

[switch62]

Yep. I have a small bench drill press. Slip the blank onto the barrel trimmer without contacting the blades. Turn on and hold the blank with both hands, using thumb and index finger. Push up and trim. If the blank starts to catch, just let go.

If your barrel trimmer is sharp then you shouldn't need to push very hard.

I never use my whole hand (in a fist) to hold the blank as the top of your hand can contact the blades or drill press, and the bottom of your hand can contact the shaft poking out of the bottom of the blank. Not good either way.

As for sharpening, I use a fine diamond sharpener on the vertical faces by hand. Push the sharpener flat against the vertical face and sharpen upwards (trimmer blades facing up, no shaft inserted). Never try to sharpen the top faces by hand. It is very hard to get the correct angle on those faces and keep all the blade edges the same height.
(Same as the library article referenced by Rick, :redface: oops)

Tony O

 

[wouldentu2?]

I use a drill and wood vise opened slightly larger than the blank. Across the bottom of the vise is a piece of wood narrower than the blank.

The vise keeps the blank from spinning and the narrow piece of wood supports the end of the blank allowing me to put whatever amount of force needed to shave the wood off.

 

[nava1uni]

I find that cutting the blank close to the needed length means less to trim. I use it by hand most of the time and get less tear out or damage to the barrel.
The Pen Makers Guild on a good tutorial on their website.

 

[Djlinder]

what do you do if the barrle trimmer is catching the brass?

 

[sbwertz]

My barrel trimmer has a 7mm shaft, so I took maple pen blanks, drilled them and glued a tube in them and turned them down to fit my other larger tubed pens. I also use the adaptors on the little sanding tool I bought from rherril to finish the edges on turned blanks.

 

[switch62]

what do you do if the barrle trimmer is catching the brass?

Stop!

The idea is to trim the extra wood/plastic down to the end of the brass tube. If you remove any brass, it should only be the tiniest amount. I stop when I get a shinny edge all the way around the tube edge.

If you trim too much off, your barrels will be too short and the pen may not go together or work properly. That said, the 7mm pens are more forgiving as you have some lee way when pressing in the twist mechanisim.

Tony O

 

[Phillikl]

Will NEVER use just my hand again; think about it, your pushing towards a spinning blade, when you slip (and you will) you will see parts of your fingers that you wish you hadn't! I have a set of channel slide lock pliers or a blue squeeze clamp. I prefer the clamp, it has rubber booties that protect the wood and when it does slip, doesn't chew up your trimmer.

Rarely use the trimmer since I got a bench sander. While the trimmer is convenient, I find it scars the inside of the tube up. A little plumbers putty in the end of the tube before gluing and don't have to worry about cleaning te inside of the tube.

 

[mikespenturningz]

I have been using a sanding disk on my bowl turning faceplate and then my HF center punch as a guide. I like it a lot better than the barrel trimmer. This was shown in a post lately and it works great.

 

[sbwertz]

My barrel trimmer is mounted in a pin vise and used strictly by hand. I have a 1" standing belt sander that I use to take the ends down close to the brass, then finish with the barrel trimmer, turning it strictly by hand, and then with the little sanding tool after it is turned, to do a final cleanup and truing.

 

[Ulises Victoria]

Since the day I saw this video, I don't use a barrel trimmer anymore.

facing the blank - YouTube

This is the perfect trimmer for me.

 

[18111]

Since the day I saw this video, I don't use a barrel trimmer anymore.

facing the blank - YouTube

This is the perfect trimmer for me.

Thanks for the link. That is a neat idea!
I also was looking for the better solution for barrel trimming.
Thank you Ed for the video!