Thread: Driving me nuts

Arry

If your tools are not sharp you will end up with disasters. You have the jig from Carbatec. Put a photo of it up on here. I think it will be the same at the one I have. You need a white wheel for sharpening on the grinder. Set the angle of the jig so that it almost touches the wheel. Cover the back of your blade with a permanent marker ink (this will show you what parts of the blade have been sharpened as it will come off againt the grinder). Turn on the grinder and rest the tool on the jig. Then thun it to one side (left, for example) and move it to the wheel. Rotate to the right until you have reached the other side and that should be it. A bit like rolling a fingerprint. When you are doing this hold the handle of the tool in one hand and put a finger of the other hand towards the top of the blade so the tool does not lift from the jig.

Alternatively, invest in a Woodchuck Pen Pro and forget about sharpening.

Cheers everyone

The jig I have is this one:

Carba-Tec® Chisel Grinding Jig : CARBA-TEC

I asked about the white wheel but a guy at Carbatec said not to worry with the HSS Steel they use these days.

I dip it in water constantly, should that be ok?

i dont use playdough i use a spud instead . i just push the tube in same way i used to 4oo year ago when i was a kid with the spud gun ( bout half inch or so ) then once the tube is in the blank i just push the spud out with an old pen refill and let it drop in my little bin , save having to deal with it after the glue has dried , also wipes the exess glue from inside the blank as it comes out .

johno

[QUOTE=Arry;1533374]Thanks for all of the advice guys, I am confused on a few points.....

Firstly what I have been doing

- Drill Blank
- Sand tube
- cover tube with thick CA
- insert and twist into Blank
- leave for at least an hour and then put onto lathe and turn

I think my tools are not very sharp.. I bought a jig from Carbatec to use on my bench grinder but I just cannot get the hang of shapening.
A white stone is best for sharpening HSS. To practice sharpening I suggest that you leave on the Grey stone and find some mild steel flat bar and try to copy the angle of the chisel you are using, it might even pay to make up a template to be able to setup
quickly and as a reference. There are commercial ones available, Rasor I think is one.
Google it might help, there might even be one in the library??? There is nothing better than practice, and more practice.

Does anyone have any good tips or videos to watch,

I have a DVD on turning by Richard Raffan and he does it so easily but I am struggling with sharpening.

So should I use a roughing guage or skew chisel?
I would be inclined to use a Skew with the bevel rubbing as a smoother cut can be achieved. A roughing gouge is exactly that a roughing tool to shape something into a cylinder.
I am also confused on these points that have been mentioned

- putting playdough in the ends, what does this do?
It seals the end to stop glue getting inside the tube.
- soaking the hole in CA? why do this, how long to soak, how long to dry?
Soaking the hole in the blank with thin CA, seals the inside to prevent it soaking up the glue from the tube causing your problem, a bit like an undercoat for paint. It doesn't take long to dry. 5mins approx. Soak the ends of the blanks also as this helps with trimming the blanks.
- applying CA to the entire outside of the blank?
Seals and joins the small pieces that may have minute cracks in it. Heat may contribute to the minute cracks, it doesn't take much heat, even heavy sanding can cause this problem.
- can anyone post a video of themselves doing this?
Someone did an exellent video on this subject, I can't remember who though?
- I watched the videos from Timberbits and he does none of this?
- why put a spud in the hole?
See playdoughquestion.
- are all these tips only for burls or for turning all pens?
I use these tips for all woods except for coating the outside of the blank unless the wood is punky ie. soft, dented by the finger nail.

Cheers and thanks everyone for your responses?[/QUOT
When I turn, I find it better to go from the end to the centre rather than centre out as normal, with the bevel rubbing.
I hope these help
Kryn

Thanks everyone

Is the collet missing from the 2nd photo,before the knurled nut?

Originally Posted by Heilander

Is the collet missing from the 2nd photo,before the knurled nut?

Yes it is, that blow out had happened before, was just using the blank and tube as a spacer.