Hard Wood Handle

Old Salty: The folks at Packard and Craft Supplies USA would be quite happy to take your money for a handle. They, both, sell handles in a variety of sizes. Try these:

and

I always make my own. Edward

Yesterday at a garage sale I bought a

1.5 inch rusty gauge without its wood handle for $1.00. Before I clean this sucker, does any one know where I can buy a wood handle and ring for it.

Gill

Gill, You can easily make your own on the lathe. As for the metal ferrule, get a piece of copper tubing at the hardware store and cut off a length, or use a piece of copper coupling and cut it in half at the center ring. It doesn't have to be fancy. It's only there to keep the wood from splitting when you insert the tang of the gouge. To turn the handle, get yourself a piece of hardwood like Ash, and when mounting the billet between centers put your metal ferrule over the live center. Then turn your handle to shape with the butt of the handle at the headstock end. When turning your tenon at the tailstock end which will receive the metal ferrule you can slide the ferrule back and forth as a "go-no go" gauge. Turn down the diameter until the metal just slides over the tenon. You can now drill your hole for the gouge using a bit through the tailstock if you have a hollow cone for your live center. If you don't have a hollow tailstock you can always begin by drilling the hole in your blank on the drill press and putting the live center into the end of the hole to start.

-Jim Gott- San Jose, CA

So turn several out of a 6 foot piece. It's not like you're never going to need another handle aggain. Now finding one when the need arises is another matter:-) Joe

Jim

No can do. The lathe that I'm using is to make bedposts, columns and pillars and can't turn anything less than 6 feet between centers. So I have to buy a handle.

I know, I know... Buy a wood handle for a gauge to be used on a lathe....

Gill |

Sounds like quite a machine. Could you post a few pictures to ABPW?

Kind of hard to do since I don't own a camera nor do I own a scanner.

Gill