aluminium turning

Well, I turn some aluminum things out of just rod stock on the wood lathe. Things like spinning top tips, custom pen/pencil parts, miniature goblets, etc. I don't have a website for those things though.

What do you want to know?

- Andrew

techniques -

try googling 'metal spinning'

Do you use standard "wood turning tools" or the carbide metal lathe type? I have also been thinking about turning some alum rod. Is "metal spinning" and "turning" the same thing? I had heard that spinning use thin sheets of metal pushed around rather than turn cut.

Yes, I use regular HSS turning tools. Mainly scrapers and the skew. If you use the scrapers, you'll need to do shear scraping as just sticking it against the aluminum "flat" will just chatter and vibrate. I also use some files at times.

Metal spinning is something completely different from what I do with aluminum. You can do metal spinning on a regular woodworking lathe (and I suppose it would be considered "turning" as well) and you are right about what you've heard. You use thin circular sheets of metal and push it around a prebuild form often made of wood. I'd love to try it some day too. I'm sure a web searh on it will reveal some good information.

- Andrew

No I use 1/8" and 1/4" HSS bits set in 3/4" mild steel bars. I have used standard HSS turning tools but their use is quite limited do to the chatter created by them. Metal sinning is not the same as metal turning. You're right, a metal spinner turns a flat piece into a complex shape while removing very little or no material.

I have turned both aluminum and brass free hand using techniques akin to scraping on a wood lathe. The tools are called gravers, and actually cut as opposed to scraping.

If you have questions fire away :-)

See

Quite interesting. Thanks!

- Andrew