hard time with wood

[Curtis]

Alright I have been turning for a couple of years, but mostly square stuff to round and making tree limbs smaller. The only useful things I have made are reel seats for fishing rods out of acrylic. The last couple of days I have been working with wood. I been using scraps to make blanks, and after drilling and gluing the brass tube in I turn them down. The first one was 2 pieces 1"x3/8"x5 ½" 1 piece 1"x1/8"x5 ½" glued with the 1/8" piece in the middle. It split at the end of one piece. The second the bushings cut in to the end of the blanks and when turned down to size left chips at the ends. The third was 1"x1"x1/2" squares glued together. After getting them lathed down to about 1/8" bigger than the bushings I turned the speed down on the lathe and with a light hand started to lathe the rest down, the chisel caught and the blank flew apart. I love working with wood, but I stink at it. It's one of those love hate relationships.

 

[bking0217]

That's pretty much how I feel about acrylics.

 

[keithkarl2007]

Hey practise makes perfect. Perhaps your tools aren't sharp enough or your techniques aren't correct. Have you had any lessons? I wasn't great when I started bowl turning so I took a bowl turning course. Boy did that wake me up, I wasn't using the bowl gouges correctly and I had a few bad habits. It was the same with spindle turning, I couldn't for the life of me roll a perfect bead, I'm getting there now but it does take practise. You should take a few scraps and turn them between centres and turn beads, coves you name it. Its good practise to do this every now and then.

 

[JimB]

There are several possible problems. Your tools aren't sharp, your segmenting isn't glued well, your tubes aren't glued in well (is the brealk off all the way down to the tube?), poor technique or something else. Also there is no need to slow down the lathe. I find the faster the rpm the less likely to get a catch. What tool are you using? If a skew, many people have trouble learning that one.

 

[Curtis]

Well I think they are glued together good the tubes are glued in good and my tools are sharp, because the cut like a sharp knife in butter. I tried slowing it down like I do with acrylic to see if that would help. I have not taken any classes or anything it's all self taught. I use a ½" beveled scraper for my final lathing of the blank. Acrylic is easy to me.

 

[RichB]

I have found out if I speed up the lathe it cuts much easier which puts less pressure on the blank and glue joints. I used to cut slower and the end result didn't look to good.

 

[snyiper]

I against all odds I use the skew as a scraper to do the very final finishing....It works for me.