Question and Lathe Alert

[Hilel Salomon]

For those of you looking to buy a new lathe, Woodcraft has the DVR XP on sale. Several creekers, including me, have this lathe and are quite happy with it.
Now.... a friend of mine gave me a beaten up hole ridden burl which I have made into a 14" bowl. The patterns are incredible, but I didn't dare make it too thin. Sanding this has murdered my pads and made me go through many, many sheets. Tried using my hands, but it's impossible. I still haven't gotten it right and was wondering how you folks sand a bowl that has holes, and parts of the side missing?
Thanks, Hilel.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Hilel - it really depends on how much wood you have holding everything together. I have been able to lock my lathe in one spot using the index pin and then sand a small section using a power drill and 2" sanding disks. Course, power is off and you can only do a small area at a time. On really thin bowls that are barely holding together - I was forced to sand by hand.

Best of luck with this! Looking forward to seeing the finished bowl real soon!

[Richard Madison]

Ditto what Steve said. Orient your drill and direction of rotation so you are sanding from a solid area toward an opening, never from open space toward solid. Keeps from catching on an edge. Use light touch.

[Nathan Hawkes]

Sounds like a winner, Hilel. I like pieces like that! I hear you on the sanding problems. I use homemade pads similar to Fred Williamson's setup--I made several MDF discs with tee nut threaded inserts fashioned on one side, so that they may thread onto a threaded headless bolt held in a drill chuck. I attatched 1" foam and industrial velcro to the surface. I can keep several different grits ready to use without having to pull off the paper & wear down the pad. The velcro is also re-usable several times. As Richard said, I always go from solid to air, never the reverse. bad things happen.



edit; I also use a deflated inner tube tied down on one end and around the handwheel on the 3520B. Its too much of a pain for my impatience to use the spindle indexing pin except on very large bowls--16" & up. The inner tube (never used with the lathe moving) keeps the rotation down as long as I don't use too much pressure with the sanding pad.

[Richard Madison]

Nathan, I like your inner tube idea. I sometimes use an allen wrench that is a loose fit in the indexing hole. There is very little load on it so no chance of damaging the threads, but still need to make/find a more suitable wood or plastic dowel. I hate screwing the index pin in and out. The lathe should have an electric or mechanical disc brake with motor start lockout. Could probably design, build one, and sell 2, but am just not the entrepreneurial type.