Going from square-to- round question

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ossaguy

ossaguy

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Hi all,

I've just started learning how to drill on the lathe,and I have a question that I hope I can get some insight on.

When I'm turning the 3/4 square to 3/4 round so it will fit in my collet chuck,it bugs me that I have to stop short of turning the headstock end,then stop and flip it around to finish it.This is because the 4-blades drive that came with my lathe is that same size,( I'm guessing 3/4 also,or larger) I've had the gouge get dinged by the drive blades,so I stop short and flip it around to finish it off.

Is that just the way it is,or am I doing it wrong,or do I need a smaller diameter drive? I saw a 1/2 inch one avail from some vendor that I can't recall where exactly.

So I thought I'd ask you experts here for some insight.Hope It's not too dumb of a question.I'm trying to get so it doesn't take me so much time to prepare the blanks,and it would be nice to just turn it down quickly in one step.

Thanks for any help!

Steve
 
Last edited:
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Get a 5/8 spur drive chuck.

ossaguy said:
Hi all,

I've just started learning how to drill on the lathe,and I have a question that I hope I can get some insight on.

When I'm turning the 3/4 square to 3/4 round so it will fit in my collet chuck,it bugs me that I have to stop short of turning the headstock end,then stop and flip it around to finish it.This is because the 4-blades drive that came with my lathe is that same size,( I'm guessing 3/4 also,or larger) I've had the gouge get dinged by the drive blades,so I stop short and flip it around to finish it off.

Is that just the way it is,or am I doing it wrong,or do I need a smaller diameter drive? I saw a 1/2 inch one avail from some vendor that I can't recall where exactly.

So I thought I'd ask you experts here for some insight.Hope It's not too dumb of a question.I'm trying to get so it doesn't take me so much time to prepare the blanks,and it would be nice to just turn it down quickly in one step.

Thanks for any help!

Steve
Click to expand...
 
Just turn the one half down to fit your collet. Put that end in the collet and drill. No reason to turn the whole blank down.
 
The way I was doing it is sawing it in half after turning it round,then drilling from the inside-out,so that required having it round on both ends.The bit I had then was too short to do it in one shot.

Since then, I did got one of those long Colt bits that I haven't tried yet,so I'll try drilling it in one shot,before sawing it in half.( unless someone points out that is in error... ) Otherwise I'll get the smaller drive if that doesn't work.

Thanks for the tips!

Steve
 
ed4copies said:
A 60 degree dead center will work too, if your tools are sharp and your rotation speed is high.
Click to expand...

That's how I do it , dead center in the head stock and live center in the tail stock with very sharp tools and a light touch . Never have to worry about blowing up a blank this way either , if you get a catch the blank just stalls . It just takes practice .
 
Actually using the dead center live center approach has a different outcome as well.
It forces you to learn to PROPERLY turn to keep from stalling, and it also requires that you learn to properly sharpen your tools as well.
 
Here is what I do. I just turn about 1/2 of the blank round, then chuck it up. Instead of cutting the blank on the saw, I drill about 1/2 of the way, then part off enough for one of the tubes. Then I continue drilling the rest.

To avoid blow outs on plastics, on hte second drilling I dont drill all the way though, then reverse the blank in the chuck to part off to length - removing the un-drilled portion.

No saws needed, and I only drill one tube length at a time.

I made a thin parting tool from an old hack saw blade.
 
There are a couple of reasons for turning blanks round first . First is the obvious one of getting an accurately drilled hole in the blank . The second reason is more important then the first . By turning the blank round I can see what the blank looks like inside . With wood but more importantly with acrylic , the outside of the blank gives no indication of what is really inside the blank . I have had many blanks that looked dull and unappealing on the outside but once turned round , transformed into some of the most beautiful pens . I have also had blanks that looked outstanding when square that once the outstanding look was turned away looked downright plain when rounded .
As for taking too much time , I can turn and sand a blank round in under 2 minutes , time very well spent to make a pen that is worth the extra time to put a finish on it .
 
ldb2000 said:
There are a couple of reasons for turning blanks round first . First is the obvious one of getting an accurately drilled hole in the blank . The second reason is more important then the first . By turning the blank round I can see what the blank looks like inside . With wood but more importantly with acrylic , the outside of the blank gives no indication of what is really inside the blank . I have had many blanks that looked dull and unappealing on the outside but once turned round , transformed into some of the most beautiful pens . I have also had blanks that looked outstanding when square that once the outstanding look was turned away looked downright plain when rounded .
As for taking too much time , I can turn and sand a blank round in under 2 minutes , time very well spent to make a pen that is worth the extra time to put a finish on it .
Click to expand...

I think my hole is just as accurate as yours using a square blank, or even a bought round one. So your first reason don't work for me.
I can also without removing the blank turn it to look at .
 
!/2 inch step center lets me round the ends and cut a tenon for the scroll chuck as needed. PSI has a 5/8 inch version cheap.

Agree on the dead center is another good optoin.
 
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