wrote:
I have a Delta 16" lathe that I thought had bad bearings or a spindle
that was bent because I get a lot of vibration especially on larger
bowls. Hats off to Delta, they sent me new bearings and a spindle for
free and a new belt (it was out of warrarty), but I'm still getting way
too much bounce when the bowl is turning. On a 12" bowl it's hard to
keep the tool edge on the wood! I have the supernova chuck and it
seems to hold the piece very well, but if something in the worm gear
was off would it cause the vibration? And if so how would I be able to
check it. I'm at the end of my rope in trying to figure this out. Oh,
and I have around 450lbs of sand on or in my lathe also. Any insight
from anyone would be a great help.

I too am not sure what you mean my 'vibration'. If you mean the bowl is
not turning concentrically it could be due to:

1- the bowl has been remounted. Even with 'perfect' technique there is
still likely to be some lack of concentricity, but there is plenty of
scope for poor technique and some woods lend themselves to better
accuracy than others.

2 - the wood is green and warping as it dries out.

3 - the turning preocess is releasing stresses in the wood causing it to
distort.


--
Derek Andrews, woodturner

http://www.seafoamwoodturning.com
http://chipshop.blogspot.com - a blog for my customers
http://www.seafoamwoodturning.com/TheToolrest/ - a blog for woodturners