Questions tagged [lathe]
Lathes spin wood for the purpose of shaping the wood. Techniques, features, safety etc.
43 questions
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numbering on jaws of a lathe chuck
Jaws for a Nova lathe chuck are numbered 1 through 4. Why is that? Is it important to always put them in that order? Is it important to put #1 where the previous #1 was etc.? If it is important to ...
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Sanding with lathe turning
When sanding with the lathe turning, should speed be increased as finer grit is used?
What speeds should be used for sanding according to grit being used?
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How does a traditional bow-lathe work?
I'm interested in building a traditional bow-lathe, specifically of the type still used in parts of North Africa, a few videos of which can be found on YouTube.
The problem is that I can't really ...
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Drilling conical holes into Wood (Lathe)
I need to drill conical holes that are narrow at the deep and and wider at the top into cylindrical bars. The measurements need to be very precise. I was thinking of using a narrow drill for the ...
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How to make LARGE wooden dowels?
I have a midi lathe, a router and a few other odd's and sods with regards to machines.
I need to make some hardwood dowels and they should be 38mm in diameter ( for some wooden screws).
What way is ...
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Use of carpet tape for turning a bowl
I'm learning to use an inherited wood lathe, and would like to turn a basic bowl. I have a couple of face plates but no three-jaw chuck (and no funds to buy one right now). I have read you can use ...
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Identification of vintage wood lathe tail stock with 1/2-20 threaded arbor
I have inherited a wood lathe (Spiegel "Precision Bilt" Model 87B630). The tail stock uses an 0.81" (assuming this is 13/16") diameter keyed shaft, and the live center screws into ...
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Do link type V-Belts work in variable speed mechanism?
I bought an old Delta wood lathe that has a variable speed feature. The variable speed works by varying the spacing between two sheaves that changes the net diameter of the pulley and thus the speed ...
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I made a pepper mill. The top is not concentric with the bottom. How do I correct this?
The mill is rough turned to 2 3/8 inch diameter. I drilled the hole for the body first, then parted the top and drilled the top for the shaft. When I put the top tenon into the bottom hole there is no ...
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Metal lathe tool post on a wood lathe
I’ve been wanting to try and use a chisel holder tool post like on a metal lathe on a wood lathe for a while now, I’ve looked a bit online but didn’t find any tool holders that are made for wood ...
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Lathes and cutting machines: sharpness versus hardness
As a primary school student I took woodworking classes and recall the teacher sharpening the gouges and chisels that we used on the lathe. I use the word sharpening but that is, perhaps an assumption. ...
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Wood Lathe Safety Drive Center: Correct Usage?
I'm just starting to learn how to use the skew chisel in spindle turning and after watching one of Alan Lacer's videos I decided to invest in a safety drive center, shown below:
He had his students ...
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how do you transfer diameter from caliper to cylinder?
I'm trying to transfer a caliper diameter to the end face of a cylinder on my wood lathe. How do I determine that the caliper is centered in order for that diameter to be transferred?
For example I ...
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Is the MT2 Arbor for a Drill Chuck milled incorrectly?
I'm not necessarily new to woodworking, but new to lathes. I've borrowed a Rikon 70-100 lathe from a friend. It has a MT2 receiver in the tail stock, and currently has a live center on the tail stock....
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Making a wood vase hold water [duplicate]
I want to make a vase on the lathe, and I also want it to hold water. I don;t know what finish to use because I don't know what would last. I know water on bare wood like that would cause warping or ...
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Is it possible to make a combination tool?
I've seen add-ons for turning a dremel rotary tool into a router or drill press, though I question the soundness of its use for large woodworking projects.
Would it be feasible to construct a rig to ...
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How to use this type of chuck without grooves/teeth?
This chuck here is the chuck I have with my lathe. It doesn't have any teeth or grooves to bite the wood. Just smooth surfaces.
Does anyone know how to use it?
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Does a 3/4x16tpi for a 5/8 plain spindle adapter exist?
It may be bad form to ask for a product recommendation here, but it's tough to do web searches for these things. Apologies if this question is out-of-line.
I just picked-up a 3-jaw 3-3/8" lathe chuck ...
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What is this lathe tool that helps me copy a turned object?
I want to be able to make very accurate 'copy' of a lathe turned project such as legs on my lathe. I seen this tool on YouTube and have no idea what this is called but looks very useful. But the flaw ...
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Are any big shop tools manufactured in the USA? [closed]
Where a tool (or any product) is manufactured can be a bit broad, so hopefully this isn't off-topic, but are any of the big woodshop tools (table saw, jointer, band saw, etc) made in the US? Let's not ...
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Lathe Semi-Automation
I don't know enough to even google.
Basically, you see those cnc laths; the cutter on those. What are those called?
My goal is to craft or purchase a cutter that can be held in place at set ...
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Any experience/advice re treadle lathes?
Traditional spring lathes predate motorized ones (or even flywheel designs) and aren't expensive or hard to build. They have their limitations, and if course since they're powered by the operator ...
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What is this turning process on the woodworking Wikipedia page?
I was looking for a simple way to describe woodworking and I found myself glancing the wiki page for it. The pictures on the side were intriguing. Particularly one showing one (two?) gentlemen turning ...
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How heavy a piece of wood can my lathe handle?
I have the Jet 1642 EVS. One of the nice features that I bought it for is offbed turning, the head stock moves and I can turn bowls and platters greater than the 16" diameter bed limit.
However, I ...
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How can I change speeds on my old lathe?
I recently purchased a Shopmaster L-500 lathe. It has been restored to its original condition, unfortunately it did not include a manual. This particular lathe has a 4-stepped pulley in the headstock ...
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What features and accessories should I look for in purchasing a used lathe
My shop is mostly complete, but one gap is a wood lathe. I have lived without one, but I could use some custom turnings from time to time and have avoided turning bowls etc. although I would like to ...
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What does a torn fiber look like compared to a cut fiber?
I've read many references to tear out and want to understand this better. In paragraph five of this answer to a tear out question, Bowlturner says:
"Sharper gouges are more likely to cut the fibers ...
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What is a morse taper?
I've read references to a morse taper on WW.
What is a morse taper? How does it work?
Are there are other similar competing attachment types that a woodworker should know about?
- 1,875
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What type of lathe do I need for duplicating parts
I've worked with a lathe maybe a few dozen times, making things like wooden salad bowls, goblets, baseball bats, and some other relatively simple items.
I'm looking to buy a lathe, and one of the ...
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How can I tell if wood turning (lathe) chisels are sharp?
I have a set of large wood chisels given to me by a person that has never used them and doesn't know their history.
I attempted to turn a small test bowl with them, but had tear-out type issues.
How ...
- 1,875
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Best way to drill a concentric hole with a lathe
I'm new to turning and recently decided to make some pepper mills. Starting with squareish stock I roughed the pieces to round and then started drilling several concentric holes of different sizes ...
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How do you use a 2D template with a lathe?
I was watching another Roy Underhill video where he showed us making a Shaker round stand. He explains the original table was built by the Shakers and how he has been wanting to replicate one. He ...
- 20.3k
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What is the difference between a dead center and a live center?
I am getting way ahead myself and looking at plans and examples of treadle lathes. One in particular was talking about his dead centre and how it was not as good as a live centre for his treadle lathe ...
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What are the specifications for "Morse Taper" sizes?
I'm not sure what Morse Taper size my lathe centers use: MT#1, MT#2 or MT#3. Does anyone have a description of what the sizes are (lengths, diameters, etc) for the different MT sizes?
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Filling pores on a turned bowl while remaining foodsafe/organic?
I recently received some really helpful answers to a previous question I had that exposed a big gap in my understanding of turning.
This answer mentions "filling the pores" of a walnut bowl as a ...
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How do I know when my lathe speed is wrong or could be better?
I'm about a year into learning to turn on an inexpensive mini-lathe. I mostly turn small lidded boxes or bowls. With both boxes and bowls, I like them big, so I'm often within an inch or two of the ...
- 1,053
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What do I need to know for basic lathe safety?
I am a complete beginner to turning, I have a set of tools arriving in a week or so, and want to make sure I'm not going to make a mistake and injure myself.
What are basic safety precautions when ...
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How can I fabricate a wooden cone?
I need to make a wooden cone that is slightly smaller than the smallest traffic cone available commercially. My guess is that it will definitely require a table router. Is that correct and are there ...
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What could cause a lathe to have low torque and only develop approximately half its rated RPM?
My Jet 1642 lathe is only developing about 500 RPM instead of the 1200 it should in low range. It also has significantly less torque, making it difficult to turn anything even with a light touch &...
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How do you prevent a turned workpiece from exploding while you're working on it on the lathe?
I've seen some scary videos and "after" photos where someone was turning something on a lathe and the workpiece just exploded. How do I avoid this?
For example, in one exploding bowl video the turner ...
rob♦
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When do you use a chuck vs. a faceplate on a lathe?
I'm interested in learning to turn and recently bought an old Delta/Rockwell lathe that came with some basic accessories.
I get the impression that a chuck and faceplate both serve the same purpose, ...
rob♦
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Is this table saw lathe jig safe?
I recently saw a video on how to build a jig for turning stock on a table saw. It seemed unsafe to me, as the motorized jig was advancing stock sideways into the rotating saw blade.
This seems like a ...
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How can you stabilize green wood after turning it on a lathe?
I've turned a few things green on a lathe and I expected them to to do odd things, and they warped and/or cracked.
But what useful techniques are out there that this could be minimized or even ...
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