I began turning in the late 30's before we had escaped from the great
depression, but this is not about trudging thru 3 feet of snow to get to
a one room school and all that. Just a few suggestions just in case.

There is so much hardware with 1/2 in. female pipe threads or true 3/4 X
16 tpi that will fit lathes with 3/4 X 16 spindles that it might be
worthwhile to make or buy adapters for your particular spindle size. and
don't forget a #2 to #1 MT sleeve.

I've found steel 3/4 X 16 faceplates and #1 MT revolving tail centers on
sale at HD & HF. Their ten dollar Jacobs chucks work for me and many of
us use their little spray guns and six dollar 1/4 in. air die grinders.
The trick is to separate the bargains from the junk and be willing to
guess wrong about jello steel.

Most steel suppliers will cut 2 to 4 in. diam. bar into 1/4 in. or so
slices to be welded to inexpensive 3/4 X 16in. longboy nuts. That size
nut won't take up all the space for the screw holes in small faceplates.
Easy to make several faceplates (or backplates according to your
persuasion) dedicated for various uses in a turning shop.

For centering a faceplate over a dimple in a blank a matching sharpened
bolt screwed thru the faceplate works a treat and a long rod held in a
tailcenter or chuck will jam steady a deep vessel.

Tip: To make a centered sharp point on round bar or a bolt, hold it in a
hand drill against a rotating grinder. How to hold a 3/4 in. bolt in
most hand drills I leave for you to figure out. Maybe cut off the head
and rotate the bolt on your lathe and rotate an arbored stone in a hand
drill against it. I'm a fair 'shade tree' mechanic, but the leaves are
beginning to fall.

With the rush to larger lathe spindles, 3/4 X 16 and # 1 MT
accessories such as chucks, revolving centers, spur drives, work arbors,
etc. are now good value. BTW, 3/4 X 16 is an adequately robust size for
most human sized turning jobs. Just try to bend a hardened bolt that
size. Of course if your dinner table will hold a 35 in. platter and 43
pound bowl and you can afford the victuals, that's your call.

Black iron and electrogalvanized 1/2 in. pipe fittings make metal tool
handles, arm braces, faceplates, cup chucks, small screw chucks,
sandpaper punches. etc. Go to a plumbing shop, HD or Lowes and think of
the possibilities.

Various sized short nipples cut into 4 equal quadrants have rescued my
cheap independent 4 jaw AMT chuck from its job anchoring my skiff.

Tail pipe expanders can be converted to expansion chucks. Lever type
rubber bottle caps make small sanding drums. Brass plumbing compression
fittings make small collet chucks. Particularly the 3/8 in. for holding
bottle stopper dowels. That is if anybody is still using cork like the
wineries do for their best wines. I never could remove the metal caps
on the wines I drink with a corkscrew. I'm not even sure if being the
connoisseur I am, I should discretely murmur "Sommelier, this wine is
Corked" or to be even more 'derigueur' to shout, "waiter this wine is
Aluminumed, but I'll drink it for half price".

Then there's the yard sales and the twice (or more likely thrice) around
thrift shops. They are a great source for skate wheels, cabachons,
cheese platter tiles, decorative caps, assorted inserts, lamp shades and
electrical fittings, chisels, hair driers etc. ...and you might luck
into a real bargain in a quality tool. I've found a few.

Not being a slave to fashion, I like their large long sleeved cotton
shirts for wearing in the workshop. Who am I kidding? I'm secure enough
to wear them out in town and not care if the original owner recognizes
his old shirt walking by.

That's a non-problem here in S. Fla. (aka God's waiting room) where most
original owners are deceased. Not to put too fine a point on it, but
while I wait my turn, I may as well enjoy turning on the cheap. Of
course as the last of the big spenders, if we miss the recession, I'll
spring for the ice water and day old doughnuts.

Sorry you read this far? Quitcherbellyaching. I warned you at the
beginning this was long & wrong. I don't think this post is a mortal
sin, but maybe I should go to one of those new automated confessionals.
Naw! I'd probably be made to buy something new and first class if M15
doesn't persecute me first.


Turn to Safety, Arch
Fortiter


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