Here is a pen I made from scrap IPE decking (aka Ironwood).
Nice work Lenny. What lathe are you using?
Any tips on turning Ipe?
Nice pen!
It didn't look anything like desert ironwood, so I Goggled IPE.. One manufacturer has attached the "ironwood" trademark to their product..
Sort of like making a product out of pine and calling it "oak" tm.. *g*
You might order a few blanks from Bill, he stocks native (Arizona) ironwood blanks:
Please remove splinters before emailing
It's an old Rockwell/Delta 46-525 purchased from our local school when they did away with the IA department.
Lenny
Not really Russ, other than the usual ... sharp tools and proper cutting techniques. I've found the hard woods like Ipe turn fairly easily. It's the splated ones that are finicky !! =0 )
Lenny
Yeah, that looks quite different. Much more interesting with the contrast between the sap wood and heartwood.
Lenny
Sounds about like what I have. I was thinking about getting a small pen lathe though because my spindle doesn't run true. It would cost me $50-$75 to fix it and I'd rather put the money in a small portable pen lathe. The one I have is good enough for bigger stuff though.
When you say your spindle doesn't run true what are you referring too? Is it possible you just need to align the tailstock to the headstock? Here is a pic of my ol' lathe ....
No... The mt centers appear to have been spun numerous times and the taper is all buggered up. So in essence you get an out of round turning.
It is possible to get MT reamers so with care it might be possible to sort the problem out.
Yes but they are around $40 and there's no guarantee that it will fix it. That's why I said that I'd rather put the money towards a small pen lathe.
Personally I prefer a small lathe for small turnings anyway, but if your spindle and its threads are running true and the MT's aren't and if your faceplate is true would it be possible to devise a truly axial drive from faceplate to pen blank?
Or in the same way that we true up shopmade eccentric faceplates by scraping the face of an attached piece of hardwood flat & axial could you attach some sort of pen blank driver attached to the eccentric MT beyond its taper?
These might be unworkable overkill solutions of someone who doesn't turn pens, but for turning large pieces it's best that they run true and if the spindle is true there ought to be a cheap & dirty fix?
If I've totally missed the point or I'm as clear as mud, please forgive and hope some kind soul jumps in to correct me. :)
Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter
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