home made steady rest?
 

home made steady rests?
Anyone have a url about homemade steady rests i could browse for
ideas i could share with my dauginlaw. who is going to weld one up
for me and my mini jet for some 20+rollingpins to made up by
christmans season. Tks in advance.

"Don" wrote: (clip) home made steady rests? (clip) my dauginlaw. who is
going to weld one up for me (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Don, I have build two steadyrests using welded steel construction. I have
e-mailed you detailed description, but I don't want to bore everyone. If
anyone else is interested, I will be happy to respond.

Hi Don, The pins are probably payment for the steady and not for making
the pins? Lots of pies, but no errant husbands in your town this
Christmas. :)

Hi Leo, you have offered too many good & helpful ideas and cogent
comments not to let us be the judge if your posts are boring. We all
have the 'don't read' option, but I doubt it's ever applied to your
posts.


Turn to Safety, Arch
Fortiter



http://community.webtv.net/almcc/MacsMusings

I turn a number of rolling pins, and haven't found a steady rest to be
needed. For larger hollow forms yes. For long thin spindles, yes. Rule
of thumb for spindles, is 10 to 1. A spindle 10 inches long by 1 inch
thick will have little or no vibration as it is turned because there is
enough mass to support the wood. . Going longer there will be some
vibration depending on thinness and pressure.
robo hippy

"Arch" wrote: (clip) let us be the judge if your posts are boring. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Okay, Arch--you asked for it. The steady rest is a square frame, welded out
of flat stock. The corners are braced with 45 degree gusset plates, so that
the opening becomes an octagon. I used FOUR arms, not three, with four
roller blade wheels on the ends, contacting the wood.

Here is the really innovative part: The arms are bolted to the gusset
plates. They pivot--they do not slide. This works quite well, and it is
much easier to build than a set of slotted arms with the required guides to
keep them in line.

As the rollers are brought toward the center line of the lathe, they
eventually touch each other, leaving a sort of curvilinear square opening at
the center. This would limit the use of the steady rest on things like pool
cues or walking sticks, where the diameter is very small. So I reverse two
diagonally opposite arms on their pivots, so the wheels are rolling in two
different planes, and I can go all the way down to zero diameter. (You
wouldn't be able to do this on a three-arm steady rest.)

BTW, I agree with Robo Hippy, that a steady rest is probably not needed for
doing rolling pins. It a rolling pin is stiff enough to flatten dough, it
is certainly stiff enough to turn on the lathe.

An aside: A steady rest can by used in place of a live center at the
tailstock end, if you want to turn something like a knob or finial on the
end of the work. You can hold something like a drapery rod in a chuck, and
turn the opposite end.

Arch, this is a test. If you're still reading this, thanks for your kind
remarks.

I should of added that these rolling pins are 18-21 inches long on
my extended jet midi lathe
and the org rest is about 5 inches long lots of movement needed to go
back and forth on lathe
one 18" long much easier to tunr them ..

Hi Don

Do you mean the rest to steady your tool or a rest to steady the wood
blank ??
I get the feeling that you meant a tool rest and typed steady rest, or
am I wrong ??
If you meant tool rest I have a couple of pictures of a home made tool
rest on one of my photo albums, and you can have a look, they are very
easy to make, and the Pict's are self explanatory IMO

http://homepage.mac.com/l.vanderloo/PhotoAlbum25.html

Have fun and take care
Leo Van Der Loo

Don wrote:
I should of added that these rolling pins are 18-21 inches long on
my extended jet midi lathe
and the org rest is about 5 inches long lots of movement needed to go
back and forth on lathe
one 18" long much easier to tunr them ..

"Leo Van Der Loo" wrote: (clip)I get the feeling that you meant a tool rest
and typed steady rest, (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Leo, the other, I'll bet you're right. So, I take it all back.

I replied to an earlier thread on a steady rest (which I couldn't find)
about there being different hardnesses of wheels. Our club had a demo
last week with a Sudal type of tool and a steady rest. The demonstrater
(Dean Jordan) has a wheel on each end of each arm; one softer, and one
harder, and the arms can be rotated. there are hardness ratings between
50 and 100 (I think). With bigger hollow forms, the softer wheels can
allow more vibration.
robo hippy

Hi there "other" Leo

To late now!!! G (to take it all back)



How about a picture Leo, I would like to see how you made yours, there
are some questions in my mind about the rigid' that has to be there, I
have the steady rest that came with my lathe but it is only able to get
around approx. 5"D, I had in mind to use something like 3" angle for the
frame, hexagon in shape and sliding rods through a pipe like setup, also
would use 4 wheels rather than three, as I look at wood warp the way it
does, 4 wheels would work better I imagined, what is your experience
with that Leo ??
I had also questions on how I was going to keep the wheels running at 90
degrees to the wood's turning axis in a simple way, you would only have
to square your frame and all the wheels would run perpendicular, quick
and simple, I like that in a way.


Have fun and take care
Leo Van Der Loo

Leo Lichtman wrote:
"Leo Van Der Loo" wrote: (clip)I get the feeling that you meant a tool rest
and typed steady rest, (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Leo, the other, I'll bet you're right. So, I take it all back.

"Leo Van Der Loo" wrote: How about a picture Leo, I would like to see how
you made yours,(clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Well, maybe if I talk nicely to my son, I can get him to take a picture or
two for us.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I had in mind to use something like 3" angle for the
frame, hexagon in shape
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Mine is made of 1/4" x 2" flat steel, welded into a square. As I mentioned,
the 45 degree gussets welded into the corners act as mounting surfaces,
strengthen the frame, and convert the square opening into an octagon.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
also would use 4 wheels rather than three(clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I think four will definitely work better.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
(clip) as I look at wood warp the way it does, 4 wheels would work better I
imagined, what is your experience with that Leo ??
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I have no basis for comparison, since I have never tried a three wheel
steady rest.

Your plan to use 3" angle iron was probably based on the need for surfaces
on which to mount the arms. But, by using angle iron, you wind up with an
opening that is 6" smaller than the outside of your hexagonal frame. By
using 1/4" flat stock, you lose only 1/2" from your outside dimension. The
flat areas for mounting the arms come from the corners of the square, which
were of no use anyway.

Thanks for your interest.

yes i meant tool rest! sry about that
i have seen articals from those of us that have made a series of
TOOL RESTS. and unable to remember the urls.
tks everyone for any info
and leo your steady rest sounds neat.

YES a tool rest !
Don't know what i was thinking of.when i typed steady rest.
tks for mis info everyone sry to have run u down the wrong street.

Leo L.

If your son is in cooperative mode, include a pic of the Lichtman
Reversible Tool Rest. It's handy & useful.

(aside; thank him for sharing his record collection. Some of those old
entertainers were my peers (age only) and I saw them perform in Miami)


Turn to Safety, Arch
Fortiter



http://community.webtv.net/almcc/MacsMusings

"Arch" wrote: If your son is in cooperative mode, include a pic of the
Lichtman Reversible Tool Rest.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Arch, as you know by now, the picture, showing both the steady rest and the
tool rest has been done. I don't have a website, but I will be only too
happy to send it to anyone who asks.

Hi Leo L

Tried to send a thank you note, but the E-mail bounced, so I'll thank
you here for the picture you send me.

Have fun and take care
Leo Van Der Loo

Leo Lichtman wrote:
"Arch" wrote: If your son is in cooperative mode, include a pic of the
Lichtman Reversible Tool Rest.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Arch, as you know by now, the picture, showing both the steady rest and the
tool rest has been done. I don't have a website, but I will be only too
happy to send it to anyone who asks.