Spinning Drop Spindle

[Chaz]

Just off the lathe for a test fit.

This is a top-whorl drop spindle made from Purpleheart. 12" long.

The shaft was challenging. Starting with a .75" dowel, it was turned down to .3125". I'm not crazy about Purpleheart. Not easy to turn a shaft that narrow - lots of chatter and a tendency to shatter. A sharp skew is needed. Light passes and patience. The results can be rewarding. The blanks I used had great color and I suspect that it will come out again in a few days.

 

[egnald]

Cool! - I had to google and watch a couple of videos to learn what a drop spindle was all about. - Dave

 

[d_bondi]

Very cool. I can't even imagine turning something 12" long down to 0.3125", that is crazy beyond my skill level.

 

[RDHals]

I used to make a bunch of these or something close. Mine were just drop spindles, had a hook on top. My sister had a yarn shop for a while, she sold them. I had never heard of them before either, but they sure did sell well. People said they liked mine because they were balanced. Turning them on the lathe will do that. This one looks great. I used mostly cherry for mine.

 

[Chaz]

Very cool. I can't even imagine turning something 12" long down to 0.3125", that is crazy beyond my skill level.

Practice!

Turning a 5/16" spindle shaft from a 3/4" dowel, isn't easy, but it's doable. It takes patience (lots), understanding how the wood should be worked, the right tools, and practice (lots).

There are 2 tricks:

1. learn to turn to a long shaft with consistent diameter
2. learn to avoid chatter.

I've gotten to the point where I can get to where sanding starts in about 20 minutes and getting faster(I need to turn a lot of these, so speed is important).

I've burned a lot of fails.

And thanks for the kind words.

 

[Chaz]

Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, this was made from 2 pieces of wood.