home made steady rest?

home made steady rests? Anyone have a url about homemade steady rests i could browse for ideas i could share with my dauginlaw. who is going to weld one up for me and my mini jet for some 20+rollingpins to made up by christmans season. Tks in advance.

Reply to
Don
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"Don" wrote: (clip) home made steady rests? (clip) my dauginlaw. who is going to weld one up for me (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Don, I have build two steadyrests using welded steel construction. I have e-mailed you detailed description, but I don't want to bore everyone. If anyone else is interested, I will be happy to respond.

Reply to
Leo Lichtman

Hi Don, The pins are probably payment for the steady and not for making the pins? Lots of pies, but no errant husbands in your town this Christmas. :)

Hi Leo, you have offered too many good & helpful ideas and cogent comments not to let us be the judge if your posts are boring. We all have the 'don't read' option, but I doubt it's ever applied to your posts.

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

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Reply to
Arch

I turn a number of rolling pins, and haven't found a steady rest to be needed. For larger hollow forms yes. For long thin spindles, yes. Rule of thumb for spindles, is 10 to 1. A spindle 10 inches long by 1 inch thick will have little or no vibration as it is turned because there is enough mass to support the wood. . Going longer there will be some vibration depending on thinness and pressure. robo hippy

Reply to
robo hippy

"Arch" wrote: (clip) let us be the judge if your posts are boring. (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Okay, Arch--you asked for it. The steady rest is a square frame, welded out of flat stock. The corners are braced with 45 degree gusset plates, so that the opening becomes an octagon. I used FOUR arms, not three, with four roller blade wheels on the ends, contacting the wood.

Here is the really innovative part: The arms are bolted to the gusset plates. They pivot--they do not slide. This works quite well, and it is much easier to build than a set of slotted arms with the required guides to keep them in line.

As the rollers are brought toward the center line of the lathe, they eventually touch each other, leaving a sort of curvilinear square opening at the center. This would limit the use of the steady rest on things like pool cues or walking sticks, where the diameter is very small. So I reverse two diagonally opposite arms on their pivots, so the wheels are rolling in two different planes, and I can go all the way down to zero diameter. (You wouldn't be able to do this on a three-arm steady rest.)

BTW, I agree with Robo Hippy, that a steady rest is probably not needed for doing rolling pins. It a rolling pin is stiff enough to flatten dough, it is certainly stiff enough to turn on the lathe.

An aside: A steady rest can by used in place of a live center at the tailstock end, if you want to turn something like a knob or finial on the end of the work. You can hold something like a drapery rod in a chuck, and turn the opposite end.

Arch, this is a test. If you're still reading this, thanks for your kind remarks.

Reply to
Leo Lichtman

I should of added that these rolling pins are 18-21 inches long on my extended jet midi lathe and the org rest is about 5 inches long lots of movement needed to go back and forth on lathe one 18" long much easier to tunr them ..

Reply to
Don

Hi Don

Do you mean the rest to steady your tool or a rest to steady the wood blank ?? I get the feeling that you meant a tool rest and typed steady rest, or am I wrong ?? If you meant tool rest I have a couple of pictures of a home made tool rest on one of my photo albums, and you can have a look, they are very easy to make, and the Pict's are self explanatory IMO

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Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

D> I should of added that these rolling pins are 18-21 inches long on

Reply to
Leo Van Der Loo

"Leo Van Der Loo" wrote: (clip)I get the feeling that you meant a tool rest and typed steady rest, (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Leo, the other, I'll bet you're right. So, I take it all back.

Reply to
Leo Lichtman

I replied to an earlier thread on a steady rest (which I couldn't find) about there being different hardnesses of wheels. Our club had a demo last week with a Sudal type of tool and a steady rest. The demonstrater (Dean Jordan) has a wheel on each end of each arm; one softer, and one harder, and the arms can be rotated. there are hardness ratings between

50 and 100 (I think). With bigger hollow forms, the softer wheels can allow more vibration. robo hippy
Reply to
robo hippy

Hi there "other" Leo

To late now!!! (to take it all back)

How about a picture Leo, I would like to see how you made yours, there are some questions in my mind about the rigid' that has to be there, I have the steady rest that came with my lathe but it is only able to get around approx. 5"D, I had in mind to use something like 3" angle for the frame, hexagon in shape and sliding rods through a pipe like setup, also would use 4 wheels rather than three, as I look at wood warp the way it does, 4 wheels would work better I imagined, what is your experience with that Leo ?? I had also questions on how I was going to keep the wheels running at 90 degrees to the wood's turning axis in a simple way, you would only have to square your frame and all the wheels would run perpendicular, quick and simple, I like that in a way.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

Leo Lichtman wrote:

Reply to
Leo Van Der Loo

"Leo Van Der Loo" wrote: How about a picture Leo, I would like to see how you made yours,(clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Well, maybe if I talk nicely to my son, I can get him to take a picture or two for us. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I had in mind to use something like 3" angle for the frame, hexagon in shape ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Mine is made of 1/4" x 2" flat steel, welded into a square. As I mentioned, the 45 degree gussets welded into the corners act as mounting surfaces, strengthen the frame, and convert the square opening into an octagon. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ also would use 4 wheels rather than three(clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I think four will definitely work better. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ (clip) as I look at wood warp the way it does, 4 wheels would work better I imagined, what is your experience with that Leo ?? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I have no basis for comparison, since I have never tried a three wheel steady rest.

Your plan to use 3" angle iron was probably based on the need for surfaces on which to mount the arms. But, by using angle iron, you wind up with an opening that is 6" smaller than the outside of your hexagonal frame. By using 1/4" flat stock, you lose only 1/2" from your outside dimension. The flat areas for mounting the arms come from the corners of the square, which were of no use anyway.

Thanks for your interest.

Reply to
Leo Lichtman

yes i meant tool rest! sry about that i have seen articals from those of us that have made a series of TOOL RESTS. and unable to remember the urls. tks everyone for any info and leo your steady rest sounds neat.

Reply to
Don

YES a tool rest ! Don't know what i was thinking of.when i typed steady rest. tks for mis info everyone sry to have run u down the wrong street.

Reply to
Don

Leo L.

If your son is in cooperative mode, include a pic of the Lichtman Reversible Tool Rest. It's handy & useful.

(aside; thank him for sharing his record collection. Some of those old entertainers were my peers (age only) and I saw them perform in Miami)

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

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Reply to
Arch

"Arch" wrote: If your son is in cooperative mode, include a pic of the Lichtman Reversible Tool Rest. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Arch, as you know by now, the picture, showing both the steady rest and the tool rest has been done. I don't have a website, but I will be only too happy to send it to anyone who asks.

Reply to
Leo Lichtman

Hi Leo L

Tried to send a thank you note, but the E-mail bounced, so I'll thank you here for the picture you send me.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

Leo Lichtman wrote:

Reply to
Leo Van Der Loo

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