"JJM" wrote in message
...
I am new to the group and not real good at doing detailed searches so this
topic may have been addressed in the past.

I am looking for a steady rest for my Jet full size lathe (14").
Woodcraft has their own with bearings, OneWay has theirs for about $110
with rubber wheels and then I see some homemade units that look really
slick using the roller blade type of wheels.

Question is: Throw me some opinions of what works and what does not work.
I really like the idea of making my own but I went to a sporting goods
store and just to buy inline skate wheels with the bearings and you can
drop anywhere from $40 to an insane $100+. My kids are grown and gone or
I would snag some from their old skates that we probably threw away a few
years ago. (ARGGGGHHH).

Thanks folks in advance for the help.


You haven't told us what you're trying to steady. Makes a big difference.
Spindle steadies are on the far side of the object, and are designed to
counter thrust down and away. They can be as simple as a notch and wedge,
which notch can be modified with a file to suit the contour of the piece
being steadied. Bowl steadies are on the near side and counter up and
toward. Easy to think of what you want in a homebuilt steady by looking at
commercial ones like the Oneway.

Soft surfaces, as mentioned, beat hard ones, especially convex soft surfaces
like the inline rollers skates use. I bought a replacement set at Wally
world for about twelve bucks for my steady. The convex wheel form allows
contact against sloping surfaces with minimum scrubbing. So your steady
should mount to get the support opposite the tool position when cutting, and
be adjustable to diameter. Nice dense Baltic Birch can make one, though
with fathers' day coming, I might be tempted to do what I did and put the
Oneway on my wish list.