Cutting threads - need your inputs

you can make a bonnie klein type threading tool - you trade time for $$ - do this:

1. buy proper 60 degree cutters and chuck to hold in lathe spindle
2. buy cross slide (from harbor frieght), or a drill press vise with cross slide
3. make tool to hold your lathe chuck to a piece of all thread with the thread pitch you want.
4. mount allthread into a bracket containing two nuts with a spring between them to remove backlash

now you are done - make threads

Hello Tom,

Bonnie Klein's thread cutting device works best on her small lathe and on lathes with 3/4" x 16 tpi spindles. I purchased my wife one for her Bonnie Klein lathe plus an adapter to work with the 1" x 8 tpi spindle thread of her Oneway 1018. It works very good on the Klein lathe, but not too well with the adapter.

If you are looking for inexpensive, Craft Supplies Ltd. in the UK sells a device that fits into the tool rest banjo that will cut threads. It is a bit fiddly, but it does work.

Another possibility, if you can find one, is the Nova Ornamental Turner, which cuts threads very well. It has been discontinued for several years now, however.

If you really want to get very inexpensive, get a set of thread chasers and learn to use them. I have thread chasers from about 24 tpi to 4-1/2 tpi and can cut threads freehand as the lathe turns. You do need to use good wood or use insets of good wood or plastic to hold the threads. All of my chasers have cost less than one threading jig.

You can also make a thread chaser from a bolt or a threading tap by grinding away 1/2 of the bolt to provide a sharp cutting edge of threads on both sides. This becomes both an inside and outside chaser and works pretty well. This is how I get a thread that I don't have a chaser for. A fellow in Canada came up with this idea and it does work. This is the least expensive threading device.

If you are serious about making threads in wood, I would also recommend that you purchase a copy of my book, "Making Screw Threads in Wood". It was published in 2001 and has been reprinted once. I believe you can get it from Amazon.com, I no longer have any copies for sale.

In my book, I tell how to make a device to cut threads that is fairly simple to make and works similar to the UK threading rig.

Fred Holder

On Thu, 12 Apr 2007 06:51:25 -0400, "Tom Nie" wrote:

Never used one, but there are a number of places that sell thread chasing tools. Those are quite a bit less than $300, IIRC.

Otherwise, there is a plan for cutting spirals with a shopmade jig that involves mounting a router carriage over the work and connecting it to the spindle with a series of pulleys and a cable. With the right size pulleys, I would imagine a guy could do this.

Also, if you check out Lindsay publications, you could take a look at Dave Gingery's "The dividing head and deluxe accessories" (number 6). This has plans to add a set of gears that can be used to cut threads to a Gingery shop-built metal lathe- while it's unlikely to fit your lathe as is, it might be an easier retrofit than you think with a few idler gears added in. That uses a 3/8-16 leadscrew that pushes a compound slide along the ways. I just finished making the compound slide for a Gingery lathe, and it took about 20 hours to build it from mild steel (Aluminum seemed a little dicey to me) by carefully welding each part together slightly oversized to rough shape, and milling them to the final dimensions on a Bridgeport. It was a fair amount of touchy work, but nothing that is out of reach for someone who is willing to hunker down and just do it. If you don't have access to a mill, using Gingery's method of casting aluminum is always an option- and if you make one of those, there's not much stopping you from machining metal on your wood lathe, beyond the mess involved and the limitations imposed by having a belt-driven spindle. It'd have to ride on an improvised saddle with solid ways of some sort if you've got a gap-bed lathe, but it could be done. (Though to be honest, by that point you may as well make the whole metal lathe and have the extra tool devoted to cutting your box threads- the compound slide is the most difficult and time consuming part of the project.)

Cost on that project so far has been under $30, with some careful scrap scrounging.

Of course, that is a lot of work- by the time you factor in labor, if you're inclined to do so, you could have just bought the attachment you mentioned.

Hi Tom

Got one to make here., have to keep this short, on my way out.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

Glad you posted that. You saved me a long search through my bookmarks.

That makes an 8 pitch thread, but I'd guess one of the guys in here could machine up a 1x8 to (some other thread size) adapter to use with any commercially available threaded rod. An ACME thread (flattened root and crest often found on lead screws for metalworking tools) might be especially suited to wooden threads. Might be able to adapt a finger joint router cutter (might not).

Bill

tops (awesome boxes when she's done) >and the usual boxes.

trimmer, Rotozip, maybe even a >Foredom carving setup. Then again, I might be

OK Tom.... not gonna tell you unless that damn shop is finally finished! Yes? No?

Just kidding. ;^)

This is on my "to do list" which means it will get made when I get to it. There have been a lot of iterations of this one, from using a machinist's drill vise from HF to hold the Dremel/laminate trimmer/ router motor, to the one you see here where Al took a spare router motor and mounted it in a wood case.

For me, I was going to get oneof those $15 laminate trimmers they have at HF every other month and just take off the base. That way I could have a completely dedicated tool.

You can see the jig here with pics about half way down the page. There are some good discriptions there that should make this an easy build.

Like usual, the "hard parts" like the threaded rod came from Enco or MSC, but I think many fasterner/bolt companies would have them or could get them. The guys seem to have found 60 degree cutters to be about optimum for this. I have read of many that have made this jig, and a lot have added their own touched like indexers, etc., but all seem to like it a lot. With the rod being the guide, you can buy the thread count you want, making it as coarse or fine as you like. For small boxes some are using as small as 20 tpi with this setup! Cutting with a high speed tool and a sharp cutter seem to negate the need to switch from coarse to fine depending on the type of wood you are turning.

If you were in a club, you could split the cost of the threaded rods as you only need a few inches. Then you guys could cut the rods, make the rod boxes separately, and just change those out as you wanted.

I hope if you make one of these you will let us know how it worked out for you.

Of course, there is Fred's book:

which has been long respected on this subject. OK, now about that shop...

!!!!!

Robert (who wishes he had a nickel for every unfinished project so he could retire now!)

Hi Bill

Jean Michel designed this jig, but he passed away, in 2005 I think it was, he did have more good jigs on his site, it is still up, but I think it is a good idea to download and save those files, as it might not stay up.

Jean Michel is the designer of the jig nailshooter shows pictures from, mark kauder put those up I seem to recall, trying to help someone wanting to build it. As for the thread size, 8 per inch makes a stronger thread, but is really way to coarse for a small turning, the thing is you need a way to install your chuck onto the threaded shaft, so that was the reason Jean used it initially, he was working on a finer thread setup, Bonny Klein used the same thread as her lathe spindle had, I think 5/8"x16. So if you want to cut a different thread you need an adapter that fits your chuck to that "thread per inch" spindle, and you could then cut the thread you wish, however than your material used to cut the thread on is going to play a bigger role, for fine threads you do need a more dense wood or use some other material.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

I forgot all about that one... that's a good design!

LOLLOL!!! Robert that "damn" shop STILL isn't finished :-)

Ceiling ply still leaning against a wall and lights awaiting. The list of sidetracks for a househusband is long including the wife making a cascading fountain of the bathtub upstairs (water's flow is gravity oriented BTW). She might be 16 years younger but her senile moments make me feel REALLY old then.

Finally said the hell with it and started turning on the big lathe regardless of mess. I'm the same mindset as Charlie B - turning is cool. Time passes as if mesmerized. I enjoy the attention to detail and finish on some pieces.

And this thing of "tops", especially as boxes like Ms Klein does, is fascinating. There was a top yesterday on the WoW site using Corian with wood - very striking and the finial was beautiful. Grandkids at the wedding recently were engrossed. My wife is great with pyrography and we want to combine our efforts. Our club president has a tops challenge for tomorrow and it'll be interesting to see how Bonnie's demo affected folks. Might be able to post a link later. Bye TomNie

Agreed on all points. Sorry to hear of the demise of such a talented person. All of his jigs look great and I think he was on to something with this one. Not quite done ... but a very good start. Thanks for the link.

Much grist for thought here. Like the Longworth chuck, it is a good design for a launching point.

As I get time, I think I'm going to toy with a couple ideas that come to mind. I'll post photos when I have some results to show.

I think you'll find that Bonnie has a 7/8-16 thread on her lathe.

Bill

Damnit Tom, don't make me come up there! ;^)

Good to see you posting more. I hope when you get it all put together you do indeed post a link.

Robert

....

Fred, I understand that Teknatool plans to (re) introduce the Ornamental (new and improved). But then the remote for the DVR-XP isn't out, the ..... I wouldn't hold my breath