Boring bar holder for wood lathe

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Fred Bruche

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Not trying to find excuses to spend more $ but ... it feels that this novelty could be quite handy for those of us that are attempting to make kitless pens on a wood lathe.


The details about what bars are included are missing but details will probably come out. For those that use boring bars on a metal lather, any chance the bars you are using can also be used with that holder?
 
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FGarbrecht

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They don't give you enough info to know for sure but they look like standard small boring bars. That looks like a great idea for the wood lathe. They would probably give you dimensions if you call or email them. I've bought a bunch of stuff from them and it's all been high quality.
 

Fred Bruche

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They don't give you enough info to know for sure but they look like standard small boring bars. That looks like a great idea for the wood lathe. They would probably give you dimensions if you call or email them. I've bought a bunch of stuff from them and it's all been high quality.

I think that item just came out within the last few days so I'll give them a chance to provide more details, I'm not in a rush. I have several items from their artisan line of product and I am pretty satisfied with the performance.
 

Fred Bruche

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I'd be worried about getting it leveled in the tailstock, so when you move tool side to side, the cutter stays on center.

Thanks a bunch for your input, John!
I'd need to see it action to understand the limitations but I think I understand your concern. I could see that staying on center might be less important for rings since it likely requires less precision than pens.
 

John Eldeen

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Thanks a bunch for your input, John!
I'd need to see it action to understand the limitations but I think I understand your concern. I could see that staying on center might be less important for rings since it likely requires less precision than pens.
Not sure if it was there before but I just checked out the link you posted and there is a video of it in action attached to it now.
 

More4dan

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These boring heads use 1/2" (12mm) diameter boring bars. Looks like a great way to use boring bars on a wood lathe. I can see uses for rings, bangles, candle holders, and pepper grinders. It would create less stress than using a large diameter bit.


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More4dan

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My concern would be the torque twisting the morse taper out of the tail stock.

You may have to use a drawbar (bolt) for heavy cuts.
I have one on order to try out, I'll let folks know how it works. It may take 4-6 weeks to get it but the price was right at $35.



Danny


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Curly

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For most lathes a drawbar won't work in a tailstock. It won't allow you to advance he quill when you turn the hand wheel. When the hand wheel is turned the quill moves towards the headstock so the length changes inside. You can put the boring bar in the headstock and nip up the drawbar and let it spin like it would in a milling machine but you'll need to figure out how to hold the work in the tailstock and you are still left with the issue of that vibrating loose. You are left with holding the boring head against the taper in the tailstock with your hand just like a drill in a chuck. Some people are not comfortable doing that for safety reasons.
 

More4dan

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Good point on the tailstock, hadn't thought that one through.
I was thinking a drawbar or heavy mallet to sit it tight in the tail stock initially. There is also pressure toward the tail when cutting toward the head that should help. I plan to also use this in my metal lathe tail stock to hold an offset center for turning tapers.

I plan to make a boring bar using carbide cutters designed for wood turning to try in the boring head.

Danny


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dogcatcher

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It will work, just hold the boring bar head with the left hand crank with the right hand. DO NOT GET AGRESSIVE, take your time, this is not a race. Want to try a home version, use a drill chuck,, bend a 1/2 bar a little and sharpen it like a chisel, A bent drill bit acts as a boring bore, same principle.
 

darrin1200

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Maybe I'm overthinking it. Light cuts, on small pen diameters, in soft materials, shouldn't be a problem. I was more thinking about the harder materials I am starting to use in my custom work. Such as bronze, stainless and Damascus.
I guess my best bet would be to get one and try it. @More4dan , let me know what you think of the quality in the AliExpress head.
 

MDWine

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Dang it you guys... I never wanted to make a ring until I read this!!

Actually, this thing could come in handy fitting tops to small boxes and ornamental birdhouses and such....
Hey, all I need is an excuse!
 

FGarbrecht

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Dang it you guys... I never wanted to make a ring until I read this!!

Actually, this thing could come in handy fitting tops to small boxes and ornamental birdhouses and such....
Hey, all I need is an excuse!
I made my first ring this Christmas for my son and it was fun and frustrating (took about 5 tries and 5 ring blanks to get it to completion). This gizmo would have been very helpful for the process! You can find some excellent videos on ring making on the Craft Supplies website as well as on YouTube. Go for it 😅
 

MDWine

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. . . Go for it 😅

The last 6 months have been pretty taxing on the family with 2 close family members passing away. Add some window renovation in our house and things are in quite a disarray! My hope is to FINALLY get my shop put back together and learn to turn all over again. I would not be surprised if turning some rings is in my future!
 

pshrynk

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This looks like it would make the problems I had with trying to do rings disappear! Getting the farging things straight has been a major problem and I've wasted a lot of blanks and have temporarily stopped trying.
 

Paul in OKC

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Would be easy (I think) to use on a wood lathe. As far as concern for the cutter staying on center, it will always be on center as you are just 'sliding' the tool out to increase the diameter. You would need to align it up properly to start with, but from there.....My only concern would be how sloppy most tail stock bores are. Guess you would slightly snug the lock screw to prevent wobbly movement.
 

pshrynk

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My phone just informed me that my order has been delivered. Then it snidely told me I had to wait until I got home to play with it and even then I was going to have to sit through the dinner my wife has labored over. Damn smart phones.
 

FGarbrecht

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And, yeah, a metal lathe would be fun to have, but this is going to be much easier to smuggle into the shop. :cool:
I sneaked my metal lathe into the basement, wasn't too hard although my back hurt for a month afterwards. Almost killed myself getting my planer down the steps though.
 

Curly

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Look up boring head instructions and in the images there are some pictures of manuals. Grizzly have manuals for their boring heads that are downloadable that should be very similar to what you have. They are pretty simple. YouTube also have some like this.

 

pshrynk

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It works quite well. It's a bit stiff in action but the thin slices it takes make sizing for rings a breeze. I might try it for some pepper grinders, too.
 
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