Wednesday's Wisdom For Woodturners May 23, 2012

Wednesday already! Finished up the 11 day stretch of substituting yesterday, so maybe there will be shop time in the near future!

Charles Nicholls and I were talking, the other day, about making a mallet. Here are some examples of the "round" type. These are easily produced on the lathe. To me, the round type is easier to use, but that's a personal preference.

The well used one on the left was made from an oak newel post cutoff. It sets by my lathe and is used to drive home the live center. The one on the rite was made from a glue up of walnut and maple. It is used for dovetails, mortising, etc. My hands are rather small, so the smaller diameter handle is more comfortable for long periods of use. Neither one has any finish other than sanding.

While searching for a different subject, this information popped up and it looks like a neat idea for those of you that use multiple buffing compounds on your projects. This is from a portion of a newsletter by "The South Central Penn Turners"-

TURNING TIP
Here is a tip from the IAP forum on making quick and
cheap buffing wheels for the lathe.

Here is a photo of the paint-roller buffer. You can't beat
the price - about $9 for a long nap lambs wool roller at
Home Depot. It works, and it neither as aggressive nor as
hard as the commercial buffers and it is really difficult to
get it overloaded with buffing compounds or wax.

I put down 4 bands - Tripoli, White Diamond, wax, and
leave the tailstock end bare for just polishing.

I turned the end pieces, and made the drive end so it
would work in either a chuck or between

centers. I prefer wood because I can glue them into the roller with a
silicone adhesive so I can't lose them.

Now that the Craft Shows are gearing up, maybe this would be an item that would sell-

This is a pendant turned using a eccentric turning plate. You can see more examples of these turnings and a source for the turning plate at Ruth Niles's site. Ruth also sells a very nice bottle stopper at a great price. I have dealt with Ruth personally and can assure you she has great products and reliable service.

Hope to see some of your turning posted.

Lew Kauffman-
Wood Turners Forum Host

Time traveler. Purveyor of the world's finest custom rolling pins!