Flying Object

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RussFromNH

RussFromNH

Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2011
Messages
149
Location
Southern NH
I unfortunately have been away from turning for a good 4 to 5 months now and I finally had some time to get back in front of my lathe.. I still consider myself a newbie as I have only finished a few pens and bowls. I tried my hand the other day at a 4 inch peppermill body.

I fastened the square blank to the lathe and worked down the corners without any issues having it jammed in on the head and tail of the lathe. I drilled the 1 inch hole through the semi turned blank and remounted it to the lathe using a Barracuda Lathe Chuck that mounted inside the 1 inch hole. I turned on the lathe and touched the blank with the tool and the blank became a missile. I thought I had the blank on tight, so I tried again even tighter with the same results. After the third time I finally gave up before I caught one in the head... The blank still survives, slightly dented, and I am thinking about grabbing my son's football helmet when I try again.

What is the best way to turn larger blanks like these? I would eventually like to make larger peppermills... Also, do they make chucks like the Barracuda that can mount on the head and tail. I think the term is to turn between centers and keep the blank straight?
 
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Russ - A live center with a bullnose attachment would allow you to still turn between centers, even with the 1" hole. I really like the oneway tailcenter, but it's not cheap. There are cheaper ones out there:

Oneway Revolving Center - Woodturners Catalog - Woodworking tools and supplies specializing in woodturning.

Another thing is that rather than trying to grip the interior with expansion chucking, turn a tenon on the exterior and grip it with compression chucking. You should be able to get different size jaws for your chuck to allow you to work with a bigger tenon.

Consider joining your local AAW chapter if one is convenient to you. You will find a lot of experienced turners eager to show you how to handle challenges like this.

Local Chapters - The American Association of Woodturners

Ed
 
I take it you are trying to avoid using the tailstock because of marking from the point. Have you tried a small block of soft wood between the tail stock and the mill body, tail stock cranked in good and tight so the piece stays on the chuck?
 
I make wooden tail stock pieces that fit into my Oneway revolving tailstock and they work great without marring the end. Easy to make, can be made from scraps and last quite a while before they have to be remade. I make them in different shapes and so have quite an assortment to use.
 
RussFromNH said:
I unfortunately have been away from turning for a good 4 to 5 months now and I finally had some time to get back in front of my lathe.. I still consider myself a newbie as I have only finished a few pens and bowls. I tried my hand the other day at a 4 inch peppermill body.

I fastened the square blank to the lathe and worked down the corners without any issues having it jammed in on the head and tail of the lathe. I drilled the 1 inch hole through the semi turned blank and remounted it to the lathe using a Barracuda Lathe Chuck that mounted inside the 1 inch hole. I turned on the lathe and touched the blank with the tool and the blank became a missile. I thought I had the blank on tight, so I tried again even tighter with the same results. After the third time I finally gave up before I caught one in the head... The blank still survives, slightly dented, and I am thinking about grabbing my son's football helmet when I try again.

What is the best way to turn larger blanks like these? I would eventually like to make larger peppermills... Also, do they make chucks like the Barracuda that can mount on the head and tail. I think the term is to turn between centers and keep the blank straight?
Click to expand...
Russ,
This works for me... you may get different mileage.... I only make the crush grind mills and now the little 4" mini pepper mills from PSI/Packardwoods....
I turn my pepper mill blanks round before I drill... I usually put a short tenon on the end that will be top of the mill so it will fit in the Barracuda chuck... I then decide where I'm going to cut the top away and make the part... then drill the top part for the crushgrind top insert... I put the top aside until I've done the body.
My Barrcuda will take about a 3 to 3 1/4" blank, so I can hold the body in the chuck while I drill.... with the crush grind, the directions say to drill the bottom with 1 3/4 forstner about 1/2 to 3/4 deep, then with the 1 9/16 forstner about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 deep....then a thru hole with the 1 1/16 bit and the white piece that turns the shaft will fit inside the hole for stability.... I don't use the 1 1/16 drill bit... I do a thru hole with the 1 9/16 and cut a short tenon in the top to fit down into the hole to stabilize the top. I usually cut the tenon at the same time I'm parting off the top of the mill... it's just my method and not set in stone.
After I drill the body with the two forstners, I then use a jam chuck arrangement to turn the body between centers. I have a tapped piece that I've turned down to the 1 9/16 size to fit inside the top of the body and another turned to 3/4 that fits in the base... I snug up the tailstock to the base to keep the body from slipping and then turn away....
After I finish the body, I put the top piece back on another chuck with a spigot jaw (a stepped jaws that has a 1/2 to 3/4 inch spigot on the end that will fit inside the 15/16 hole drilled in the top.... I also snug up the tail stock and turn the top to a round ball.... I generally allow for the tenon that I cut for the drilling to be turned away and that takes care of the pin hole from the tailstock live center.
This is a pretty fast method for me and I can generally turn a pepper mill from a round blank to a finished and sanded mill in just under an hour....

I do the little mini pretty much the same way... turn the blank round, then hold it with a chuck to drill... it calls for 3 bits and I use all three.... I generally reverse the blank for the odd 21/32 in the top... I don't have that size bit, so I use a 5/8 and sand paper to get the right size for the crank handle.

I've made jam chucks that work with this mill also.
 
Sorry for the delayed reply, I was out of town. Thank you for laying out the process. I think it fills in a lot of gaps that I was missing. I am going to try the blank again one of the these nights to get the dents out of the blank. I will try some of this process.
 
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