Glenn McCullough
Member
I made this men from a bowling ball my neighbor was selling at a garage sale. I modified the posting end and replaced the cb ring with the same material.
I want to caution people about this very thing. Whether it results in a bowling ball screaming across your shop or a band saw blade snapping and whipping across your arm, cutting a large round object with the weight of a bowling ball can be a very dangerous proposition. Please, please be careful and discuss it with someone who has already done it before.Originally posted by daledut
<br />I hope you didn't hurt yourself cutting the bowling ball.... one launched bowling bowl was enough for me. If I hadn't stopped it with my chest the table saw would have flung it clear across the room [:I]
Originally posted by oobak
<br />Thanks, all of you, for the compliments. First I would like to say that I dont recommend cutting a bowling ball, as I did, but if you do...you cant wear enough protection(ie. face shield,short sleeves, catchers /umpires chest protector, etc.).Be sure your insurance premiums are paid up. Please, please dont tell my wife about this as i will be banned from my shop forever.
The ball I cut up had about 2-1/2-3" of material around the outside and a concrete color "resin" inside. I raised my table saw blade up as far as it would go and held it on either side as I turned it. After I cut it once all around, I put a wedge in the kerf and began to pound it with a sledge hammer. In the north you may want to put it outside to freeze before hammering, this would probably help. I cut mine in summer.
The Baron cb comes in sections so I replaced the black section. I cut a piece of material about an inch square and drilled a hole the size of the I.D. of the black ring i replaced, allowing the large bushings to to fit in nicely. After filling the rest of the mandrel with spacers, I turned a secion from the center, sanded it and polished it, then used my parting tool to separate it from the blank. I then finished the sanding and polishing on the sides by hand.