off center turning
 

when i mounted a wood block off center about a half inch, it made the lathe
vibrate badly
and that was turning slow...didn't dare take it up faster. am trying to
turn a three cornered, curved
bowl. should i screw it to the face plate waste block or will gluing it do?
if i get to turning it and it
comes off, then it would have more than usual momentum!
advice wanted before I kill me or the house.
rich

--

atv rider polaris 500
glass creations
drz400s
wood carver
spode

You are not giving us much information -- certainly not enough for us to be of help. Is the
blank 3" diameter or 30" diameter? What does it weigh? How slow is slow? What machine are
you turning on? Is the outside shape to be 3 cornered or both the outside and inside shapes?

Please get some more advice before you try this again.

Bill

In article xtsod.808$Rs2.4@trnddc03, says...
when i mounted a wood block off center about a half inch, it made the lathe
vibrate badly
and that was turning slow...didn't dare take it up faster. am trying to
turn a three cornered, curved
bowl. should i screw it to the face plate waste block or will gluing it do?
if i get to turning it and it
comes off, then it would have more than usual momentum!
advice wanted before I kill me or the house.
rich

"res055a5" wrote in message
news:xtsod.808$Rs2.4@trnddc03...
when i mounted a wood block off center about a half inch, it made the
lathe
vibrate badly
and that was turning slow...didn't dare take it up faster. am trying to
turn a three cornered, curved
bowl. should i screw it to the face plate waste block or will gluing it
do?
if i get to turning it and it
comes off, then it would have more than usual momentum!
advice wanted before I kill me or the house.
rich
=======================
Rich,
I advise keeping the work piece between centers for the whole operation,
except finishing the bottom. This will greatly reduce the possibility of
launching an unguided missle! :-) Start by finding the center of the piece.
Mount it "on center" and rotate it slowly and mark a circle of about where
you want the outer diameter of the bowl/dish to be. Stop the lathe, remove
the piece, do an equal size circle on the reverse side. Now, mark off the
circle on one side into 3 equal segments and mark with an awl or nail for
use as attachment points for the centers. Transfer those points to the other
side so that you have the 3 marks directly opposite each other. Now chose
one set of those marks and attach the work piece. Turn down to the circle
oposite your centers, move to the other 2 points and repeat the process. Now
you should have your triangular shape. The hollowing may be done using the
center points for a circular dish-out, or the 3 outer points for a pocketed
dish. Same with shaping the outside, depending on how you want the finished
shape to be. (the outside shaping would usually be done as you're shaping
the triangular shape, or "on center" for a round shape. Hope this is clear
enough to follow.

Ken Moon
Webberville, TX

~600 rpm.

Use a square to transfer down the edge, same as regular woodwork.

Always use that extra hand - tailstock - even if it seems slightly in the
way, until your piece is at best balance.

Never scrape what you can cut. Stresses the entire setup more, and makes an
inferior surface.

You can also play the game with pin jaws and three holes in a glue block.
Almost sounds like a song lyric, doesn't it?

"res055a5" wrote in message
news:Zhvod.828$Rs2.355@trnddc03...
how do i transfer those three marks? i can divide the marked circle
into
thirds,
but how do i line up one mark to another on the other end of the wood?


thanks for the advice...guess i forgot to include some information. I am
using an ancient delta lathe.
the piece i was turning is 4" o.dia., 4" long, cherry wood. I was trying
to
turn the outside.
speed, i don't know because this ancient lathe has 4 pulleys and i was on
th
e slowest pulley, but i don't
know the motor speed. I was not using the tailstock and had it just glued
to
a piece
of waste wood that was screwed to the faceplate....it didn't come off the
wastewood, but i shut off
the lathe as quickly as i could and removed it from the lathe until i
could
get more advice.