Cutting gauge in Red Beech

[IanW]

This is a wood I didn't know existed until recently, but it sounded interesting. Another Forumite satisfied my curiosity by sending me a sample, and some has been duly turned into a cutting gauge:

321191 321192

It is quite a nice wood to work with, & finished easily. It's not as dense or hard as I would normally choose for gauges, but it's about as hard as northern hemisphere Beech, so should be durable enough in this role. It came from a fairly young tree, I think so wood from older trees may be a bit more dense....

Cheers,

[Ironwood]

You do beautiful work Ian, thats a great looking gauge. The timber looks nice too.

[planemaker]

Wonderful work Ian. Very professional presentation.

Stewie;

[Berlin]

Lovely, Ian. From a local tree or over the pond? I did a bit of hiking on the South Island earlier this year and those beech forests are breath taking. I don't know if I could cut one down but I'd happily use that gauge!

[derekcohen]

Stunning wood, Ian. And the gauge is not bad as well! :U

The screw looks like a lamination (as I make). Or did you knurl it? Yes, No?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[planemaker]

Stunning wood, Ian. And the gauge is not bad as well! :U

The screw looks like a lamination (as I make). Or did you knurl it? Yes, No?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi Derek. if your ever in need of some brass knurled adjusters I have plenty available. They are threaded 12-20. The same thread used on earlier Stanley hand plane totes. I also have the correct tap & die you could borrow to install them. I will add a photo soon.


Stewie;

[derekcohen]

Hi Stewie

That is an incredibly generous offer!

Regards from Perth

Derek

[planemaker]

Hi Stewie

That is an incredibly generous offer!

Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi Derek. I will post the photo's with some measurements that may assist. I also have 12 inch lengths of 13/64" drill rod which is the correct size to use with the 12-20 die.

Stewie;

[IanW]

Lovely, Ian. From a local tree or over the pond? I did a bit of hiking on the South Island earlier this year and those beech forests are breath taking. I don't know if I could cut one down but I'd happily use that gauge!

Matt, this is the problem with common names. This tree (Dillenia alata) isn't even remotely related to either northern hemisphere beech (Fagus spp) or southern hemisphere 'beech' (Nothofagus spp.). It's a small rainforest dweller on the coastal plain from about Cardwell north, and across the top end where conditions are suitable.

While I would also not want to chop down a healthy tree in any sort of conservation area, there is no guilt attached in this case. Yasi was the vandal..... :U

Cheers,

[IanW]

......The screw looks like a lamination (as I make). Or did you knurl it? Yes, No?...

Thumbscrew turned from brass rod, Derek, and knurled with my (very basic) knurling tool.

I was struggling with the knurling process & getting erratic results, until I found a few paragraphs on the process in my metalwork book. My only formal metal-work training was the tin-plate pounding we did in primary school (we made a panikin, if I recall correctly). There wasn't even a wood lathe at our school. Some time ago, I stumbled across a very cheap (American) book, which appears to be the text for a first-year fitters' course, or something similar, and it has been a big help with things like grinding & setting-up cutters, for e.g.. There are some things that just don't translate intuitively from wood-turning to metal-turning, I've discovered... :;

I bought my lathe after thinking about it for years & years. I couldn't decide on what I really needed, but in the end, I'm very happy with the machine I settled on. It's not something a 'serious' metalworker would get excited about, and it is limited in what it can do, but it does all I ask of it, and takes up very little precious workshop space. Having the freedom to make appropriate parts for all sorts of projects, rather than having to rely on the limited range you can buy, or what I can put together from bits the way I used to do, is worth the outlay. Which is not meant to disparage the ingenuity you've displayed in making your own thumbscrews - I would never have thought of using bits of hose-fittings! :U

Cheers,

[planemaker]

Hi Derek. I will post the photo's with some measurements that may assist. I also have 12 inch lengths of 13/64" drill rod which is the correct size to use with the 12-20 die.

Stewie;

Hi Derek. As mentioned. The threaded shanks are 26mm in length; have a 5.37mm outside thread dia; above shank projection height is 8.8mm; and the knurled head has a dia. of 12.78mm.

Stewie;

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/knurled%20brass%20adjusters/DSC_0359_zpsf235ff08.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/knurled%20brass%20adjusters/DSC_0359_zpsf235ff08.jpg.html)

[tdrumnut]

Another stunner Ian.

[derekcohen]

Stewie, they look excellent! What do you plan to use them for?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[planemaker]

Stewie, they look excellent! What do you plan to use them for?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi Derek. Around 10 years ago when I 1st started out making traditional bench planes I used 1/4" brass lever caps with a brass knurled adjuster to lock the 2 piece iron assembly in place. That was on the 1st 1/2 dozen planes I built. Now I only do traditional wooden wedge & abutments with my bench plane builds. As such there is not the same demand to keep what I have in stock.

Stewie;

[IanW]

Literally. :U

I cut up the butt of an old log that had been sitting in a pile of rubbish since we bought the place. I noticed it was very dark, & easier to cut than the Ironbark in the rest of the pile, but didn't give it any more thought 'til I split a bit. Then I saw it was a piece of wattle, with an obvious fine fiddleback figure all the way through! There were quite a few deep fissures, due to its having dried in the round, but I salvaged several pieces that appeared to be sound. I'm glad I did - it's a magnificent piece of wood. Wish I'd discovered it years ago, might have saved all of it.

Anyway, at least I got several useable chunks, and one of them had these sitting inside them: 321804 321805

I tried photographing them with lights at different angles, but can't reproduce the depth and lustre of this wood - it's much better than the pics show. I have no idea of which particular wattle it is, there are at least 4, possibly 5, different species on the property, & it could be any one of them. They all grow to about 300mm diameter max, & then die, or fall over in a breeze, at which point they promptly become turning blanks for chair parts. This is by far the most attractive one I've come across to date. Hope there's more waiting to be found! :U

Cheers,

[Ironwood]

Looks like nice stuff Ian, worth saving thats for sure.

I have heaps of those short-lived Wattles on my property as well, I have salvaged some spectacular timber out of a few of them.