SpectraPly Bottlestopper Q

[Bezdomni]

I'm having a problem when I drill the hole for the bottle stopper mandrel in a SpectraPly blank. The mandrel seems to thread into the hole OK but almost immediately it starts to spin in the hole, making the blank useless. I've tried drilling smaller (and smaller) holes, tapping and not tapping the holes and changing my turning speeds but the same thing keeps happening, usually as soon as I get even the smallest catch: the mandrel spins inside the hole. Does this happen to anyone else? Is there a solution?

I seem to do OK with solid wood, it's just the SpectraPly that gives me problems. I've noticed that the threads on the mandrel are packed tight when I unscrew the blank, so that makes the equivalent of a smooth-sided mandrel, which can't be good. A few minutes ago I dribbled some thick CA onto the sides of a hole, thinking maybe I could harden it enough for the mandrel to grab and hold but I'm pretty skeptical. We'll see in a little while. There's gotta be a simple answer but I'm just not seeing it.

Can anyone help me with this dumb question?

Chuck

 

[crabcreekind]

Turn the blank between centers then when you have to finish the end put it on the mandrel and go lightly. Or you can drill a hole, put a peice of acrylic in it. Then drill your hole in the acrylic and thread that. that will hold better than the crappy wood they use in spectraply.

 

[Drstrangefart]

Have you tried soaking thin CA into the hole and letting it fully dry before mounting it on the chuck?

 

[boxerman]

I have heard if you put a little water in the hole you drill leave in there for 15 secs or so then dump it out the water will cause the wood to swell for tighter fit for your mandrel.

 

[DestinTurnings]

I had this problems MANY times but now have a solution that has worked for me every time.

I drill the hole just a bit smaller than recommended. If its wood, I put thin CA in the hole and let it soak till dry. I them put the bottle stopper blank in my chuck and the tap in a jacobs chuck on the tailstock. I thread slow and use paste wax as a lubricant cleaning the tap often.

If you do end up with a spinner, try coating the threads with CA, retap it, and when putting it on the mandrel, put a small square of paper towel on the threads as you twist the blank on the mandrel. It will take up the slack and allow you to turn it without spinning.

 

[Bezdomni]

Have you tried soaking thin CA into the hole and letting it fully dry before mounting it on the chuck?

Thank you. Since I started doing this I haven't had a single spinner out of a dozen or so stoppers. Great suggestion.

Chuck