Popular Post HandyDan Posted December 17, 2017 Popular Post Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 Family Christmas Dinner is coming up soon. Every year I like to make a handmade toy for everyone to amuse themselves with. This year it is string top with launchers. Should be about 40 of them there. Used some spindles from a crib I picked up at the curb on a trash day. Ran three sides through the jointer for a flat to register on for drilling the holes. Got four launchers from each spindle. Had a bunch of 3/8 X 4 inch metal shafts and was able to turn them to a point on each end and cut them in half for the spindles. I cut the shafts to .260 inches 5/8" down on the point ends which made a press fit into the hard maple blanks that I drilled .250 inch holes into. Tight enough fit that I didn't have to glue them. Mounted them in a collet chuck and turned them to shape. Cal, Grandpadave52, p_toad and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lew Posted December 17, 2017 Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 Great gifts! Nice reuse of the spindles. Did you make a jig to keep them oriented as they passed thru the planer?? Dan, a family Christmas dinner of 40 would drive me permanently into the workshop Cal, p_toad and HandyDan 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandyDan Posted December 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 9 minutes ago, lew said: Nice reuse of the spindles. Did you make a jig to keep them oriented as they passed thru the planer?? No I didn't. I flattened one end and then just registered the flat end on the fence and that worked surprisingly well. I did use push sticks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Krumanaker Posted December 17, 2017 Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 Now those are going to be a lot of fun. That kind of top has been on radar for a while. Yours look great! Outstanding job repurposing those spindles as well. Steve HandyDan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stick486 Posted December 17, 2017 Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 lookin' good... how did ya do the colored rings... HandyDan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandyDan Posted December 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 37 minutes ago, Stick486 said: lookin' good... how did ya do the colored rings... Slowed the lathe down and and touched colored markers to them while they were spinning. Cal and p_toad 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stick486 Posted December 17, 2017 Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 felt tips??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandyDan Posted December 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 49 minutes ago, Stick486 said: felt tips??? Yep. Great choice of colors out there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stick486 Posted December 17, 2017 Report Share Posted December 17, 2017 cool.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerald Posted December 18, 2017 Report Share Posted December 18, 2017 Dan you da man. Next time on the tops try very slow (under 60) and do a pull of the marker from center to to top outside. It makes a nice swirl pattern. Love what you do with metal pieces Cal and HandyDan 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpadave52 Posted December 30, 2017 Report Share Posted December 30, 2017 Missed the intro...these are really cool...great find and re-purpose of the crib parts... So what did everyone think of them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandyDan Posted December 30, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2017 45 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said: Missed the intro...these are really cool...great find and re-purpose of the crib parts... So what did everyone think of them? Everyone loved them young and old alike. Day before the party I had some time and made a large one, five inch diameter. It had enough weight to run two and a half minutes. Youngest loved it so I promised I'd make them one sometime after the new year started. Pen and pencil kits and ornaments were a hit too. p_toad, Cal, Grandpadave52 and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpadave52 Posted December 31, 2017 Report Share Posted December 31, 2017 23 hours ago, HandyDan said: Everyone loved them young and old alike. Day before the party I had some time and made a large one, five inch diameter. It had enough weight to run two and a half minutes. Youngest loved it so I promised I'd make them one sometime after the new year started. Pen and pencil kits and ornaments were a hit too. Glad everybody enjoyed them...great gifts...wonder if you drill a series of equally spaced, angled small holes in that 5" one if it would whistle while spinning? Now that would be really cool for the 2-/12/ minute show. Be sure to post some pics of the next 5" one. Forgot about the pen/pencil sets and ornaments too. Both should have made anyone happy to get those as well. Dadio 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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