I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a high
spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I have
roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be okay;
once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big bandsaw
I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

"Toller" wrote in message
...
I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a
high spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I
have roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be
okay; once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big
bandsaw I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.


Instead of just cutting in half, you could have undercut those end grain
portions which were going to be removed while getting the piece into bowl
shape. By reducing the diferential mass far out on the edge you could
reduce the problem to a minimum. Slowest speed, of course. You can even do
a static balance, mark and remove mass from heavy spots if you cared to.
Take the marked piece off the lathe and use a big carving gouge.

You can also use even a modest bandsaw with tilted table to nibble away
unwanted wood. I've used ~8" thick wood on a saw with 6" clearance by
nibbling round top, bottom, and middle, though only when I was trying to get
the absolute max diameter. Usually the chainsaw's enough.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

Should. the darker is brown rot, and if sound, will last. Streaks of white
show in pieces fifteen years old that I made.

"Toller" wrote in message
...
I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a
high spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I
have roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be
okay; once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big
bandsaw I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

Not sure which lathe you have, but my Jet 1442 will actually run a bit
slower than the last detent for the speed control (for the Reeves drive)
allows. I simply retract the pin and set the lathe a bit below that detent.
I checked the speed with an optical tach and found it runs at roughly 280
rpm--much better than the 400 the bottom detent allows. This of course begs
the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves drive, or if it is an
acceptable practice. No one at the Jet distribution center had the
slightest idea. But it works, and I'll probably continue to use this method
until I either damage the drive or learn from an authority that it's
deleterious.

One additional point--I bought a monstrous 2.75" roughing gouge from a
friend who used to fabricate such tools from high speed steel bar stock.
Mine was his personal gouge, as he is now 87 and has retired from
woodworking. Once sharpened, it holds its own against really rough turning
stock with a minimum of fuss.


On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

I turned a bit of crab apple a while back, and the color, while persistent,
did fade a bit. It might have had something to do with my finishing
materials, however. I used mineral oil and beeswax on one piece and shellac
followed by wax on another.

Max

"Maxprop" wrote: (clip) Not sure which lathe you have, but my Jet 1442 will
actually run a bit
slower than the last detent for the speed control (for the Reeves drive)
allows. I simply retract the pin and set the lathe a bit below that
detent. I checked the speed with an optical tach and found it runs at
roughly 280 rpm--much better than the 400 the bottom detent allows. This
of course begs the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves
drive, or if it is an acceptable practice. No one at the Jet distribution
center had the slightest idea. But it works, and I'll probably continue
to use this method until I either damage the drive or learn from an
authority that it's deleterious. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I did something similar with my Jet 1236. I actually drilled an extra hole
so I could pull the lever down and lock it. I don't think it can do any
harm to run it that way. If anything is going to suffer, it will be the
belt, from running way up on the edges of the driven pulley. Belts are easy
to replace. When you do replace a belt, eventually, I recommend the linked
belts. They run with less vibration, and the length can be adjusted in 1/2"
increments, which may allow you to further reduce the speed. See whether
the belt bottoms on the motor pulley before it reaches the largest diameter
on the spindle pulley. If it does, you can further lower the minimum RPM by
adding length to the belt.

If you keep a short length of link belting on hand, you can repair a broken
belt without replacing the whole thing. Usually, a broken belt results from
a stall, which causes the motor pulley to spin on one spot, burning the
belt. So repairing by replacing a few links makes sense.

"Leo Lichtman" wrote in message
...

"Maxprop" wrote: (clip) Not sure which lathe you have, but my Jet 1442
will actually run a bit
slower than the last detent for the speed control (for the Reeves drive)
allows. I simply retract the pin and set the lathe a bit below that
detent. I checked the speed with an optical tach and found it runs at
roughly 280 rpm--much better than the 400 the bottom detent allows. This
of course begs the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves
drive, or if it is an acceptable practice. No one at the Jet
distribution center had the slightest idea. But it works, and I'll
probably continue to use this method until I either damage the drive or
learn from an authority that it's deleterious. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I did something similar with my Jet 1236. I actually drilled an extra
hole so I could pull the lever down and lock it. I don't think it can do
any harm to run it that way. If anything is going to suffer, it will be
the belt, from running way up on the edges of the driven pulley. Belts
are easy to replace. When you do replace a belt, eventually, I recommend
the linked belts. They run with less vibration, and the length can be
adjusted in 1/2" increments, which may allow you to further reduce the
speed. See whether the belt bottoms on the motor pulley before it reaches
the largest diameter on the spindle pulley. If it does, you can further
lower the minimum RPM by adding length to the belt.

If you keep a short length of link belting on hand, you can repair a
broken belt without replacing the whole thing. Usually, a broken belt
results from a stall, which causes the motor pulley to spin on one spot,
burning the belt. So repairing by replacing a few links makes sense.

I'm using a link belt, Leo, and have been since last year when my original
belt began to show some rather ominous wear. The idea of replacing the belt
without pulling the pulleys was appealing, and the primary reason I chose to
use a link belt. But you are absolutely correct--it runs more smoothly with
less vibration, not to mention failing to show any significant wear after a
bit more than a year of use. I'm not sure if the link belt enables me to
use a slower speed than the former rubber belt, but it seems to work fine.

One additional point with Reeves drives: if the user remembers to slow the
drive down to the slowest speed detent before shutting the lathe down, the
next startup is far less stressful to the belt, link or otherwise. While I
don't know for sure, I can imagine that this might be true of lathes with
EVS drives as well.

Max

"Toller" wrote in
:

I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on
each, and roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was
way too big to fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into
it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a
high spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine)
I have roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe
seems to be okay; once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big
bandsaw I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of
red running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to
last?



Toller,
Is this the Craftsman 15" you bought recently on Ebay? I don't think you
will hurt the lathe as much as scare yourself a bit. In the future,
scribe a circle on the blank and cut or nibble as close to scribe as you
can with your chain saw. You will have a blank with many sides, but a bit
more balanced.
Thank my wife for your new lathe ($87 if I recall). I was watching it
and was going to bid that day. She insisted that I wine and dine her that
evening (using yhe oldest bribe/threat known to man). I hope it is
working for you. I found another (older 15" Craftsman with the electronic
drive) and I'm as happy as can be with it. One day soon I'll post the
whole story about the lathe and what came with it (not new wife).
Regards,
Hank (in the Catskills)

"Henry St.Pierre" wrote in message
2...
"Toller" wrote in
:

I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on
each, and roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was
way too big to fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into
it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a
high spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine)
I have roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe
seems to be okay; once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big
bandsaw I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of
red running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to
last?



Toller,
Is this the Craftsman 15" you bought recently on Ebay? I don't think you
will hurt the lathe as much as scare yourself a bit. In the future,
scribe a circle on the blank and cut or nibble as close to scribe as you
can with your chain saw. You will have a blank with many sides, but a bit
more balanced.
Thank my wife for your new lathe ($87 if I recall). I was watching it
and was going to bid that day. She insisted that I wine and dine her that
evening (using yhe oldest bribe/threat known to man). I hope it is
working for you. I found another (older 15" Craftsman with the electronic
drive) and I'm as happy as can be with it. One day soon I'll post the
whole story about the lathe and what came with it (not new wife).
Regards,
Hank (in the Catskills)

The very same. It is spooky to see it shaking, but good to know it is okay.
I tried to trim it with the chainsaw, but once I roughed it, there wasn't
any way to really hold it in position.
Any suggestions?

The same week I bought the Craftsman there was a Jet on eBay in Syracuse;
you should have gone for that one, closer.

"Toller" wrote in message
...
I tried to trim it with the chainsaw, but once I roughed it, there wasn't
any way to really hold it in position.
Any suggestions?


Screw it to a plank, future open side down. Weight the plank and have at
it.

On Jul 26, 4:27 pm, "Toller" wrote:
I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a high

If you don't have the ability to nibble down the blank before mounting
it on the lathe you can take some time to balance it between the
headstock spur drive and the tailstock. Mount it just so it stays
between centers, watch it roll to the heavy side and then try moving
the tailstock end a tad towards the light side, let go, repeat until
balanced. Then tighten it down and rough. I've had my Jet 1236 waltz
me around the garage once until I tried balancing the piece better and
now even bigger pieces don't make it rock.


On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

Check out my Crabapple pot:
http://www.liwoodworkers.org/gallery... %27s+Turnings
This branch was at least 8 or 9 years old and dry as a bone. There was
a bit of punk that I firmed up with CA but the pot came out quite nice
and very colorful. Unfortunately I don't have any left and have since
had the tree removed. Overall I'd have to say crabapple is my favorite
"local" wood. All fruit woods seem to have more color and life to them.

On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 20:27:59 GMT, "Toller" wrote:

I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a high
spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I have
roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be okay;
once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big bandsaw
I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

Couple of personal experience things...

I'd asked the same question about the bearings and such a few years back and the
general feeling was that since you (and I) used the tailstock, the lathe is
probably built for the use you gave it...

What size band saw do you have?
Does it have a riser kit?

Before I got my BS, I used my recip saw with a dewalt blade about a foot long to
round stuff off after the chain saw...

I've also used the recip or mallet and wood chisel to take off high spots after
it's mounted on the lathe..

With it mounted, you get a pretty good idea of balance and what might cause a
catch without turning the lathe on... I like to take some material off then..
YMWV




mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:15:22 GMT, "Maxprop" wrote:

This of course begs the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves drive, or if it is an
acceptable practice. No one at the Jet distribution center had the
slightest idea. But it works, and I'll probably continue to use this method
until I either damage the drive or learn from an authority that it's
deleterious.


Yes, but not right away...
I guess in the last 3 years I've put as many hours on my 1442 as some folks do
in a life time, but it's showing signs of wear..

Notably is the pulley on the motor shaft, which is sticky and noisy even with
frequent disassembly and lubrication...
As far as I can tell, this is caused by me running the lathe slower, exactly as
you described...
I'm not a machinist, but as I understand what the jet help desk told me, forcing
the pulleys into a position that they weren't "designed" to be in misaligned the
pulleys and puts stress on the rod in the headstock that moves the headstock
pulley to change speed..

I WILL keep doing it when I feel I need a lower speed for safety, but I try to
limit how often I do it...

I really would like a now Nova with digital control and all, but I need to make
my Jet last for several more sales before hinting to the wife that it's time for
another lathe.. lol



mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Fri, 27 Jul 2007 00:29:51 GMT, "Leo Lichtman"
wrote:

When you do replace a belt, eventually, I recommend the linked
belts. They run with less vibration, and the length can be adjusted in 1/2"
increments, which may allow you to further reduce the speed. See whether
the belt bottoms on the motor pulley before it reaches the largest diameter
on the spindle pulley. If it does, you can further lower the minimum RPM by
adding length to the belt.

If you keep a short length of link belting on hand, you can repair a broken
belt without replacing the whole thing. Usually, a broken belt results from
a stall, which causes the motor pulley to spin on one spot, burning the
belt. So repairing by replacing a few links makes sense.

Excellent point, Leo...

I haven't needed to change the belt on my 1442 yet, but the day that I read the
instructions for taking the spindle out to change a belt, I bought the link belt
and have it ready!


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Fri, 27 Jul 2007 03:25:13 GMT, "Toller" wrote:


The very same. It is spooky to see it shaking, but good to know it is okay.
I tried to trim it with the chainsaw, but once I roughed it, there wasn't
any way to really hold it in position.

I've had my Jet, which weighs quite a bit with the cast iron legs and all,
loaded with a couple of hundred pounds of logs and still try to "walk" out of
the shop...
A couple of things that have made it less prone to doing that, (besides better
blank preparation), are replacing the factory "feet" with bigger, better ones
from Grizzly, making sure that the feet are adjusted as well as I possibly can
to have all 4 on the ground tight and not working in a garage that's sloped for
drainage...


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 20:27:59 GMT, "Toller" wrote:

I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a high
spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I have
roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be okay;
once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big bandsaw
I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

I sure hope so, as that is how I normally rough with mine!

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:15:22 GMT, "Maxprop" wrote:

This of course begs the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves
drive, or if it is an
acceptable practice. No one at the Jet distribution center had the
slightest idea. But it works, and I'll probably continue to use this
method
until I either damage the drive or learn from an authority that it's
deleterious.


Yes, but not right away...
I guess in the last 3 years I've put as many hours on my 1442 as some
folks do
in a life time, but it's showing signs of wear..

Notably is the pulley on the motor shaft, which is sticky and noisy even
with
frequent disassembly and lubrication...
As far as I can tell, this is caused by me running the lathe slower,
exactly as
you described...
I'm not a machinist, but as I understand what the jet help desk told me,
forcing
the pulleys into a position that they weren't "designed" to be in
misaligned the
pulleys and puts stress on the rod in the headstock that moves the
headstock
pulley to change speed..

I WILL keep doing it when I feel I need a lower speed for safety, but I
try to
limit how often I do it...

I really would like a now Nova with digital control and all, but I need to
make
my Jet last for several more sales before hinting to the wife that it's
time for
another lathe.. lol

I limit the time below the bottom detent as well, Mac. I've watched the
pulleys in that configuration, and have concluded it probably is putting
strain on the system. Like you, however, I'll continue the practice until
something breaks.

Max

Maxprop wrote:
"Leo Lichtman" wrote in message
...

"Maxprop" wrote: (clip) Not sure which lathe you have, but my Jet 1442
will actually run a bit

slower than the last detent for the speed control (for the Reeves drive)
allows. I simply retract the pin and set the lathe a bit below that
detent. I checked the speed with an optical tach and found it runs at
roughly 280 rpm--much better than the 400 the bottom detent allows. This
of course begs the question as to whether this is hard on the Reeves
drive, or if it is an acceptable practice. No one at the Jet
distribution center had the slightest idea. But it works, and I'll
probably continue to use this method until I either damage the drive or
learn from an authority that it's deleterious. (clip)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I did something similar with my Jet 1236. I actually drilled an extra
hole so I could pull the lever down and lock it. I don't think it can do
any harm to run it that way. If anything is going to suffer, it will be
the belt, from running way up on the edges of the driven pulley. Belts
are easy to replace. When you do replace a belt, eventually, I recommend
the linked belts. They run with less vibration, and the length can be
adjusted in 1/2" increments, which may allow you to further reduce the
speed. See whether the belt bottoms on the motor pulley before it reaches
the largest diameter on the spindle pulley. If it does, you can further
lower the minimum RPM by adding length to the belt.

If you keep a short length of link belting on hand, you can repair a
broken belt without replacing the whole thing. Usually, a broken belt
results from a stall, which causes the motor pulley to spin on one spot,
burning the belt. So repairing by replacing a few links makes sense.


I'm using a link belt, Leo, and have been since last year when my original
belt began to show some rather ominous wear. The idea of replacing the belt
without pulling the pulleys was appealing, and the primary reason I chose to
use a link belt. But you are absolutely correct--it runs more smoothly with
less vibration, not to mention failing to show any significant wear after a
bit more than a year of use. I'm not sure if the link belt enables me to
use a slower speed than the former rubber belt, but it seems to work fine.

One additional point with Reeves drives: if the user remembers to slow the
drive down to the slowest speed detent before shutting the lathe down, the
next startup is far less stressful to the belt, link or otherwise. While I
don't know for sure, I can imagine that this might be true of lathes with
EVS drives as well.

If you mean electronic variable speed drives and if you are referring to
inverter drives for three phase motors, it doesn't matter where you
start, (so long as things are balanced) because they have a soft start
feature that slowly spins up to speed. I'm using a 3HP Teco inverter
fed by single phase 240vac, and running a 3 hp 3-phase motor on the
lathe. I can set any speed from about 40 to 1000 rpm on the spindle in
the current pulley setup, and as I turn larger items, this is a near
perfect range for me. (The lathe will swing 42" over the bed, about 37"
above the mount for the toolrest. Most of what I currently turn is 10
to 36" diameter, with length of 18 to 36" (tall when finished). As you
might imagine, it takes several seconds to go from zero to top speed,
but always starts slow and accelerates to speed. Unlike reeves drives
and other belt only systems, where the motor essentially goes from 0 to
full speed in a second or so, electronic speed controls can ramp up at a
rate determined by settings on the controller.
--Rick

Max

On Mon, 30 Jul 2007 21:39:30 GMT, "Maxprop" wrote:


I limit the time below the bottom detent as well, Mac. I've watched the
pulleys in that configuration, and have concluded it probably is putting
strain on the system. Like you, however, I'll continue the practice until
something breaks.

Max

Max... Since this thread started, I've been running the lathe with the cover off
and watching the pulleys during turnings....
It would appear to these old eyes that when I run it under the low speed detent,
the belt isn't true in it's alignment with the motor pulley...

Might be my lathe or the pulley, but when running at most speeds, the belt is
centered in the middle of both pulleys, but when at "sub low" speed, the belt
appears slightly off to the left..


I just bid on an order for 200 pens... I really don't want to become a pen
factory, but the money COULD go for a Nova with digital speed... *eg*

It would also give my youngest stepson something to do besides sleep.. he's here
for a month or so...
He's 25 and the average age here is probably 70 or so... nobody here his age and
he's pretty bored..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Use an axe or hatchet to true up your blank. You can mount the blank on
the lathe and turn it by hand, marking as needed for the hatchet. If
you start the lathe and the piece still shakes too much, trim some more.

Pete Stanaitis
-----------------------

Toller wrote:
I cut a 18" crab apple log in half, sketched out an 12" circle on each, and
roughly trimmed it with the chainsaw. Unfortunately it was way too big to
fit on my bandsaw, but it would have bound anyhow.

I screwed a faceplate to the flat surface and ran the tail piece into it.

Well, the lathe shook like crazy, and thunked pretty badly each time a high
spot hit the gouge. (400 rpm, the lowest setting on the machine) I have
roughed out both the outside and the inside and the lathe seems to be okay;
once I got them balanced they spun just fine.
But I wonder if a lathe is designed for that? Without a really big bandsaw
I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

On a completely different issue, the crapapple has pretty streaks of red
running though it, mixed with brown and white. Is that going to last?

"spaco" wrote: (clip) You can mount the blank on the lathe and turn it by
hand, marking as needed for the hatchet. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I strongly recommend you take if OFF the lathe for the actual chopping. :-)

In article ,
"Toller" wrote:

I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

Chew off the high spot with something else. I've used both a drawknife
and a router (mounted on a lathe-mounted jig for control). With an
appropriate jig for control, even a portable circular saw could work.
Finding the high spots is easy in the lathe (unplug it, or at least
don't turn it on.)

IMHO, a lathe with a 400 RPM low speed is a poor design anyway, but I
got into this hobby on a gol-durned shopsmith that has a 700 rpm low
speed and a teeny-tiny 5/8" spindle. That did make me love the heck out
of the first variable speed system I met that would go more-or-less to 0
RPM.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

"Ecnerwal" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Toller" wrote:

I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

Chew off the high spot with something else. I've used both a drawknife
and a router (mounted on a lathe-mounted jig for control). With an
appropriate jig for control, even a portable circular saw could work.
Finding the high spots is easy in the lathe (unplug it, or at least
don't turn it on.)

Maybe a hand powerplaner?

IMHO, a lathe with a 400 RPM low speed is a poor design anyway,

I agree, but it was an incredible bargain.

"Toller" wrote in message
...
Chew off the high spot with something else. I've used both a drawknife
and a router (mounted on a lathe-mounted jig for control). With an
appropriate jig for control, even a portable circular saw could work.
Finding the high spots is easy in the lathe (unplug it, or at least
don't turn it on.)

Maybe a hand powerplaner?

IMHO, a lathe with a 400 RPM low speed is a poor design anyway,

I agree, but it was an incredible bargain.

Power plane if you hate it. Dirt and grit a-plenty in the bark to ruin the
cutters, plus wet and electricity aren't the best of friends. My scrub
works well, as does a gouge or shave. Human power for better control.

"Toller" wrote in news:1DTri.13178$B25.719
@news01.roc.ny:


"Ecnerwal" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Toller" wrote:

I am not sure what I could have done to make it any better.

Chew off the high spot with something else. I've used both a drawknife
and a router (mounted on a lathe-mounted jig for control). With an
appropriate jig for control, even a portable circular saw could work.
Finding the high spots is easy in the lathe (unplug it, or at least
don't turn it on.)

Maybe a hand powerplaner?

IMHO, a lathe with a 400 RPM low speed is a poor design anyway,

I agree, but it was an incredible bargain.



Your lathe is capable of turning some fairly heavy blanks (ask Darrell
Fellmate). Start off between centers if you're seriously out of balance.
In fact you should probably start between centers until you have more
experience with larger blanks. 400 rpm is not a poor design. When I was
turning in Trade School, the big lathes we used were a bit faster than
that (even had to change pulleys). Zero rpm is wonderful, but when I turn
at that speed it reminds me of carving. Don't be afraid of the noise
(thunks, bumps, etc.).
How did you mount your new lathe? Big and heavy needs big and heavy. You
should have a very solid bench/stand to mount the Craftsman 15". Three or
four hundred pounds (sand, lead, depleated uranium, etc.) will give you a
solid platform. Again, don't be afraid of noise a out of round blank may
make, just respect it.
Regards,
Hank