March 9, 20215 yr Author Popular Post Finished the top along with the launcher this morning. It’s balanced pretty well and it will spin for a couple of minutes which is good. I’ve turned them before only to find out the wood itself and it’s different densities cause it to be out of balance and they don’t work at all. Paul
March 9, 20215 yr Popular Post 4 hours ago, Masonsailor said: I’ve turned them before only to find out the wood itself and it’s different densities cause it to be out of balance and they don’t work at all. Looks great. Never saw a launcher like that. I had the same problem with balance. I made some out of plastic decking material and they work well. Pieces of wood from the same board glued together with opposing(?) grain work well too. Mine weren't as big.
March 10, 20215 yr Author The nice part of using that kind of launcher is that it doesn’t take a lot of practice for kids to really get them spinning at high speed. Paul
March 10, 20215 yr One very nice top. That is a very unique launcher. Is there a bearing in the top to insert launcher? I sold over 140 snap tops last year and the kids mostly don't care if it wobbles or spins 10 seconds or 100. That said as Dan said lots of things affect a top's performance. Knots make them unbalanced. Now do not forget the point which if sharp will damage easily so I like a very slight roundover. Using wood near the surface will make one side lighter and therefore unbalanced. I like turn my tops endgrain . Even with all that you do not know til you give it a test spin. Lower center of gravity and even handle design (thin will turn faster off the finger) can also affect how the top spins. Here is a design I tried lately is to make the handle longer so you can snap roll the top between your hands and get more rpms. Edited March 10, 20215 yr by Gerald
March 10, 20215 yr Author No bearing. Just a steel polished rod into a hole drilled into the top. Works great for a launcher. When I was a kid my grandfather turned tops for all us kids using that concept. You can really get a lot of spin on them. Paul
March 10, 20215 yr 8 hours ago, Masonsailor said: When I was a kid my grandfather turned tops for all us kids using that concept. Going to have to put it on the things to do list. I bet a little wax in the hole would help too. Edited March 10, 20215 yr by HandyDan
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