Steady rest for madrel?

[JimGo]

Okay, as you can see from the number of posts I've done, I'm still fairly new here. I am also new to wood turning. In fact, I only got to make a whopping two whole rosewood slimline pens before my old lathe died on me (pics are in my album). I bought a new TurnCrafter Pro from PSI last weekend (they have a neat storefront, BTW, if you're ever in the Philly area), and I hope to be able to take it outside and play this weekend (living in an apartment makes woodworking difficult). On my last lathe, I had several different problems, including a LOT of blow-outs in my first set of pen blanks. I think this is due to not scuffing up the brass tubes before I glued them into the blanks, which resulted in bad glue jobs. The poor glue job may be the cause of the other big issue I noticed: there was some chatter on some of the blanks as I turned them.

I am not sure if the chatter is there because the old lathe didn't really let me get the rest up close enough to keep the tool from wiggling, because of the bad glue, or because the mandrel was long enough to experience a bit of whipping. I hope not to have these problems with the new lathe (rest is much shorter, so I can get closer, and the lathe is MUCH better quality), but if I do, I was considering trying a steady rest. Does anyone think there is any advantage to using a steady rest in conjunction with the mandrel, or is that just overkill?

Any feedback is appreciated!

 

[opfoto]

I don't use a steady rest. I use the adjustable mandrel and only have it extended as much as needed.

 

[Fred in NC]

A few tips about chatter:

Sharp tools.
Square the ends of the tubed blanks.
This can cause a bowed mandrel.

Make sure the mandrel is straight.

A bowed mandrel will cause chatter and
out of round barrels. Make sure you:
Don't overtightent the mandrel nut.
Don't overtighten the tailstock.

Steady rest? not with a steel shaft mounted
on the lathe. The above should take care
of your problems.

Hope this helps!

 

[jkirkb94]

Good advice, Fred. [] You said all I was going to say. Kirk[8D]

 

[Gregory Huey]

I agrre with Fred don't over tighten the mandrel nut or the tail stock. Both of these will cause the mandrel to bow. I really don't see where not ruffing the brass would give you chatter. Poor glue joints - Possible. I do scuff mine up no matter what type of glue I am using. SHARP TOOLS, SHARP TOOLS, SHARP TOOLS.

 

[Fred in NC]

One more little note about the brass tubes:

It looks like there is some kind of lubricant used when they make the tubes. Since the tubes come from different sources, some tubes might have more grease on them than others.

A good wipe with alcohol will remove the grease. I don't like using acetone for this because of the possible reaction with brass. I use DNA .... not the genetic stuff, of course!

 

[jwoodwright]

Jim,
You mentioned Blowouts... Do you mean chunks of wood coming off the ends as you turn?

If so, better glue job and a very scary sharp tool. Let the tool cut, just guide it. Any hard, fast cuts will result in damage. Not dealing with too much thickness...

Practice, Practice and more, Practice... Almost all of us have ruined blanks, the expensive ones make you cry...[:I]

You can practice on a 2x4... Get an 8 ft one, cut down the middle, cut into 6 in pieces, this pile will become shavings and experience. Mount between centers and turn, turn, turn... You can make pegs to hold tools and clothes. Make that coat tree...

Take care and have fun...[8D]

 

[KKingery]

Well, I too have to agree with all of the above. When I first started turning, no one told me about not over-tightening the mandrel nut - result, bowed mandrel. I also use the adjustable mandrel available now, and it's great.

 

[JimGo]

Thanks for the great advice! JWoodwright, by blowouts I meant either chunks of wood coming off the ends as I turn, or the wood just shattering as I turned it. It may be that I was pushing too hard. My over-ambitious use of force is likely the result of the several occasions where the brass tubes would just spin freely on the mandrel, which meant that as the tool came in contact with the blank, the blank would stop. I found out that the mandrel was unscrewing from its base, and that the mandrel nut was also coming unscrewed a little, which apparently was allowing everything to start "walking". I think the problem was that the tailstock on my old lathe (a RAND lathe from eBay) only had a single nut to control the tailstock's actual travel (as opposed to the tailstock's position on the lathe). That single nut only retarded forward motion of the tailstock (i.e. its motion toward the headend). There was nothing to keep the tailstock from slowly unscrewing backward, especially once the nut loostened up from the lathe's vibrations. This, in turn, allowed the mandrel and mandrel nut to gradually loosten up. Hopefully all of these problems will be resolved on the new lathe!

How often do you wind up sharpening your tools? For example, if you were making slimline pens, how many pens do you think you would turn before you will need to sharpen your skew and/or gouge? I think my tools are pretty sharp (wouldn't want to run my finger down the blade), but maybe I'm overestimating their sharpness.

 

[Fred in NC]

Jim, the way I look at it, there is a difference between sharpening and touching up a tool.

When I am turning pens I 'touch up' my tools as needed. By touch up I mean a very light grinding to refresh the edge. Some turners use a buffing wheel with a compound to do the same thing. Depending on the wood I am cutting I have to touch up anywhere from once each pen to several pens.

To tell you the truth, I had a great problem sharpening my gouges until I bought a Wolverine jig. There are plans to make a homemade version of this in the net. The jig stays in place while I am turning, so I can go back and just touch up or refine the edge without grinding off a lot of metal.

Besides being sharp, the bevel in the tools has to be ground at a workable angle. The jig helps you keep the correct angle.

The angle at which the tool is applied to the barrel is very important too. The tool rest has to be in the proper position. This is standard whether you are turning a pen or a chair leg.

The way to approach the wood with the tool is ABC:

Anchor the tool to the rest.
Bevel on the wood.
Cut by raising the handle so the edge starts cutting.

Happy turning !

 

[opfoto]

I also have the wolverine jig. I use it much like Fred. Quick touch up before turning a pen. I recently ordered the video (free) from the website. Got it just yesterday. Very helpful. Well worth what I paid for it. []

 

[Ozzie]

Jim, did you drill the holes in the rosewood blanks yourself? Or, did you purchase predrilled blanks? I had a similiar problem with predrilled Rosewood blanks when I started out making slimline pens. I found that some of the blanks had oval shaped holes in them so much so that it was impossible to turn them down to the proper size. I no longer purchase predrilled blanks because of that.

Ozzie

 

[JimGo]

Ahhhh, thanks Ozzie! These are predrilled blanks. Maybe that is the problem.