Thread: Turning Bangles

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f8/jewellery-92404/

Hi Aj..did a couple of tuts on bangles some time back - the titles were "Making A Bangle - Pt 1" and "Making A Bangle - Pt 2".
Just put the text in the "Search" at the top of the page and it will take you to those.

Lets see some pics of the ones you do.

Thanks Ed. They were the ones I was looking for.

Hey Ed

Well I will be trying a few of them when I am aloud to go back to turning and I must say nice tutorial simple and easy to follow thanks for sharing

Ian

Here is a tutorial I wrote on making bangle bracelets. My process has evolved a little since I wrote it. I use more jigs when cutting them on the table saw now. I will take some pics of the jigs an post later tonight.

Have fun and good luck.

Link

Mike

G'day
When I first started making bangles I used a method as described by Chris White .
Google" Chris White wooden bracelets".This is similar to the method described by Ed but he puts spacers between the jaws of the chuck so's the blank sits off the base of the chuck . This enables the centre of the bangle to be removed in one go so there is no need to turn the blank round to bore from the other side .
I have now come up with what I think is an easier and quicker way .
I have several different sized bangle templates which are just a wooden disc with a nail hole in the centre . I place one of these on a suitable piece of wood and use a nail to punch a mark in the centre then draw round the template then cut it out on the bandsaw .
Mount the blank between the live centre and the face of a chuck and true up the blank .
I now mount a wooden disc , a bit larger than the biggest bangle I want to make,in the chuck on the lathe. I then run a bead of hotmelt glue round the rim of the bangle blank and glue it to the wooden disc using using the live centre to align it .
When the glue has set I bore out the centre using a hole saw .I can now finish most of the inside and outside and radious the edge .
Now place the mounting disc with the bangle in the microwave oven and zap it for 30 seconds or so . A quick twist and the bangle comes off .
Reverse the bangle and mount on your chuck in expansion mode . Be gentle , it doesn't take much to hold it . Now the rest can be finished off .
A few points .Bangles are best made from end grain blanks. If cross grain is used there will be two very weak points in the bangles and some women are very enthusiastic trying to force bangles over there hands .
Remove the pilot drill from your holesaw . The plug you remove can be used for something else .
The hotmelt glue will stick better if the blank and mounting disc are given a quick zap in the microwave to warm them up before glueing .
Clean up your mounting disc with a flat chisel while the glue is still soft.
Happy bangle making
Ted