Should we share more tips here that we wrongly presume everybody knows. Yesterday I watched someone messing up a spur center trying to sharpen the point. First hacking it up with a file then by making some oblique off center facets on a grinder. I figured that most everyone knew how to produce a smooth perfectly centered point on a shaft. You just chuck it in a hand drill and spin it at an angle against a spinning grinding wheel. She was surprised and grateful to learn how easy it is to make a properly centered point at any angle of choice.
Please share your tips generously on rcw, maybe offering without being asked. Don't presume they are old hat. I, for one, sure can learn and profit from them. Arch
biggest one I've learned involved skews. I was always hearing about keeping the point away from the wood, or face large painful catches(not to mention glares from any other shop dwellers) so I held it going straight into the wood, but lifted up at an angle on one side (looking dead on /), ths cut well but you better believe it was easy to have a very brutal catch with. I think the best way now is to put the long point over the wood, and rest the bevel on the wood, then tip to lower side down to cut. I got that after watching the RR turning video's. ROUGHING with a skew, I got this idea fro the video, it works very well, it just takes a bit of faith, and a quick push at the begining, you need to be squeezing tight, because for the first split second it is cutting unsupported. you push it into the wood below the part that has edges(on the end, push it in at the part where you no longer see shadow wood, thethe square part that is sort of transperent), then run it along, nice finish, and instant roughing. GRIP for the skew, the best one for control I've found is to squeeze from both sides as RR does, but farther up the shaft, and squeeze the back of the tool into your side with your arm(if possible). or for doing less delicate work, but moving more, an overhand grip, with the knucles pointing towards the dowside, if it catches and slams, it pulls your wrist straight, instead of hurting it(guess how I found that one out) next edition: screw ups I have had(lots and lots) that I could have prevented. for some reason Arch brought snipped-for-privacy@storefull-3174.bay.webtv.net up from the deep depths of Arch's mind
Good on you. That's the way you safely begin a cut with _any_ tool.
A lot of esoteric talk here of grinds and steels and 15 million grit sandpaper, but seldom do we speak of the fundamentals, like keep your toolrest close, stay out of the way when you turn the lathe on, and don't put an unsteadied edge into the work. Often, as in the "chainsaw" thread, we take the fundamentals for granted when we shouldn't.
I think the best way now is to put the long point over the wood, and
Thanks Reyd & George. Keep the tips coming everybody, but not tied to this or any other thread. Perhaps we could occasionally stick one in a thread even if OT. as the price of admission.
One fundamental to which attention should be paid is lining up the cutting area of a tool edge with its support on the rest. Try this once for an unpleasant slam-down: support the middle of a gouge and cut with its wing. :( Arch
yes, but see how I did it before, I followed the suggestions in the books I read; rest on bevel, then lift handle until it cuts, only problem being that it is very unsupported and happy to catch and shred your work. they never said make sure the point is over the wood, so it cannot drag down and in easily.
The turning class I took the teacher was constantly doing his mantra any tool first set the tool on the rest and then rub the bevel. Always toolrest first then rub the bevel. Then bring in the edge till it just starts to cut. Same with a skew and gouge. The other thing was if you are haveing trouble and nothing works, turn off the lathe, you guessed it put the tool on the rest and rub the bevel. Except now turn the spindle by hand and watch the edge to see were it is cutting. Doing it by hand you can see what happens when the wing contacts the wood unsupported and the side is pulled down onto the tool rest.
Great tip on the drive center - I watched me make a mess of one a few years ago, then figured it out about before it was too late!
Here's one I always try to convey to new turners who want to turn bowls:
When roughing the bolw blank, try to make your cuts across the 2 end grain faces per revolution. To do this, start your roughing cuts at the center., making a flat at the point where the drive center or tail stock contacts the wood. Holding your bowl gouge with the flute turned toward the cutting surface, make cuts using the wing of the gouge - pulling the cut from the center out toward the lip. Once you get the bowl's curve started, you can engage the bevel and do a pushing cut from that point to the top edge of the bowl. This will make the roughing go much easier, faster and produce better results.
Saves your elbow, and doesn't tear out the end grain, since you're severing across. Understand a lot of folks like "bowl" gouges, because, after all, it's a bowl, but it's the edge that counts.
Try putting the point of your bowl gouge up in the air, and look at the edge as the wood sees it. Now take a look at
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an awful lot like half of the forged gouge, doesn't it? Differenceis you have a lot more control when the force of turning pushes your gougeinto the unmovable toolrest rather than your grip or hip. You do a pullcut, maintaining the same angle of attack, regardless of gaps in contact.You will get short curled shavings initially, then, as the piece becomesmore circular, you will get twisted shavings from the shear. Your objectiveis to have a clean edge on the inside of the twist, an indication that youare shearing your way out of the piece rather than letting the material rideover the edge where it might pull or catch.Before I get invited to drink the RCW hemlock for recommending it andcorrupting our young turners, let me state that it's merely how I do thingsbased on experience and science, but the deep "U" roughing gouge providesthe nearest equivalent of a skew cut short of a skew on the convex side ofyour bowl _once it's round_ rather than interrupted. With me as a rightie,my good hand maintains angle of attack easily, and my clumsy left merelypulls it along the cut. If you like, and are comfortable with it, it willwork on an interrupted surface as well, but keep the cut lower on the gougerather than higher.
George, I read somewhere that a hot cup of LDD is the antidote for rcw hemlock poisoning. A poor tip, but somebody had to offer it. Thanks for yours. Arch
if you grip really well, and take light cuts.... I got a new one to add, when looking for loud noises coming from the lathe DO NOT get your hair near the piece, I got really lucky because I managed to break the piece before it wound me up good, but if the drive center had got me instead...
for some reason Arch brought snipped-for-privacy@storefull-3178.bay.webtv.net up from the deep depths of Arch's mind
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