Chatter tool

[Tiger]

Dear all,

I am experimenting with some texturing and am using a bandsaw blade gripped between the jaws of some locking pliers. I have put a slight bend in the blade and am having variable results with it. Has anyone else used a similar tool and can you provide any hints/tips on using this tool. I have only experimented on scraps of pine which wouldn't be the best to test it on but I'm not sure that I want to invest much more time with it (ie make a handle, secure with a set screw etc.) if it's not going to work satisfactorily.

[OGYT]

I've not tried to make a chatter tool, yet. But today I was making a screwdriver handle out of Bois d'Arc, and I was using an 1/8" parting tool as a skew... using the side of the tool and it was chattering like a banshee. Made some interesting marks, but I didn't want them there, so I sanded them off.
I'd think that you could make some sort of handle that would allow you to adjust the length of blade so you could adjust the chatter. Might try that meself. Sounds like a worthwhile endeavor.
Cheers

[Slow6]

wasn't Skew making chatter tools a while back?

[Slow6]

http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...t=chatter+tool

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

I did? ...I did! :eek:

Yeah, I don't use it much but 'tis a fun toy to use on odd occasion. More hassle to set up than the end result merits, IMHO, and mine collects more dust on the shelf than it does on the lathe. But still a fun toy nonetheless.

The timber used makes a lot of difference, pine isn't the best to experiment with. try some KDHW instead... that's probably closer to the average blank. For hardwoods, it seems to work best in end-grain, while with softwoods it works best on long grain. You do need to make it adjustable length to "tune" it for different types of wood, too. I made the slot in the shaft double thickness so I could add a shorter length of blade behind the main cutting edge, to act a bit like a car leaf-spring.

I haven't used it enough to be able to accurately guesstimate how to set it up for any particular piece, so I set up a scrap of the same type of wood, with a profile similar to the part I want to decorate, in my second lathe and set the tool on that. Saves a lot of headaches.

Well worth making, if only for the experience; I don't regret a moment spent on making mine. I imagine that if I had a reason to use it more frequently, I'd soon overcome it's apparent shortcomings. 'Tis just that I do very little decorative work, preferring the timber to speak for itself. [shrug] (Well... to be honest, it's more a case of no amount of icing will make a cow-pat taste better. )