Decisions on the little tools 'n stuff........?

[Jamie Straw]

I'm off on a shopping trip to Woodcraft tomorrow (and maybe Rockler, not my fave) to get a few miscellaneous tools/supplies for this irresistable Vortex stuff. Given that a shopping trip involves spending ~$20 for ferry tickets plus the floating time and driving time, I always try to "get it right" when I go to Seattle. Help please?:)

Skewchigouge -- looks pretty neat, a good idea?
Jacobs chuck for the lathe -- Any problem with a keyless?
Outside calipers seem in order (no inside needed at this point). Is there a particular style that would be best?
HUT polish....liquid or stick?
Thanks again. I contacted Ruth Niles today and ordered the stoppers, she offered any help "Just email me." And the stoppers are made right there in the neighborhood, no worries about running out for the holidays! Thanks to all who brought her name up in the other thread.

[Richard Madison]

Jamie,
Kind of a pricey trip just to get there and back, definitely worth some advance planning. We do the same when it is only $6 worth of gas.

Definitely prefer a keyed Jacobs chuck for the lathe and drill press. Know that there is a secure grip on the bit. Keyless are fine for cordless drills.

Six-inch dial calipers (not battery powered digital) are very useful. Have home made wall thickness calipers for that.

Dunno what a skewchithingy is good/needed for.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I like the keyed chuck and outside calipers would be good. Skewchigouge don't see a need for it and hut polish I tried. Don't waste your money.

[Curt Fuller]

They'll mail it all to you for less than the boat ride costs. But then you miss out on the fun of wandering through the candy store. The skewchigewchy gouge is a great tool for spindle turning, but not much else. It's kind of like a skew with a 180 degree radius. I agree with Bernie on the Hut polish. The liquid is just a friction polish (and in my opinion not the best, mylands is a better product) and the bars are just hard wax. The keyless chuck is something I've thought about getting myself. I spend a lot of time digging through the shavings trying to find my chuck key.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Jamie - I like my keyed chuck and just find it easier to tighten. Skewchigouge may work fine but sure comes across as some sort of a gimmick. Do you need one? I doubt it will make a huge difference in your (or anyone's) turnings.

There are a lot of finishes out there for stoppers - but friction polish is not one of your best choices as it blotches easily and will dull from hand moisture the first few times you use it. I use a wipe-on gloss lacquer and apply several coats while still on the lathe.

Good luck with your shopping!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jamie,

I'm a believer in keyed chucks. I had a co-worker running mate who bought a Milwaukee Hole Shooter some 10-12 years ago with a keyless chuck. I bought the one with the keyed chuck. He went to Montana and worked one installation with the keyless chuck...got back and went to a local Milwaukee authorized repair center and had them install a keyed chuck on it. I've seen more than one problem with keyless chucks of various brands.

[Jamie Straw]

They'll mail it all to you for less than the boat ride costs. But then you miss out on the fun of wandering through the candy store.

You hit the nail on the head, Curt! Plus, I have other non-Vortex shopping to do. :) My main life-activity is riding/training horses, and have to go to the Seattle side of the water to get anything more than basic stuff. [BTW, I often call and order something to be mailed. It gets here the next day, and supports the brick-and-mortar store.]

I forgot that Woodcraft carries the Myland's. Hope they have it at the storefront, I'll pick some up.

I did a search on the Skewchigouge last night, and a few people had made their own, I figured it must be at least somewhat useful. I'll be doing alot of between-center turning, so I'll take a look, perhaps give it a try.

[Jamie Straw]

I like the keyed chuck and outside calipers would be good. Skewchigouge don't see a need for it and hut polish I tried. Don't waste your money.

Thanks, Bernie -- re: the outside calipers, I have a vague memory from turning class that there are a couple of different designs. The one's I'm looking at from Woodcraft have the horizontal threaded shaft with a nut that holds the legs at a chosen distance apart. Are those pretty easy to maneuver while turning down to a chosen diameter?

http://www.woodcraft.com/Images/products/141595tmb.jpg

[Jamie Straw]

I'm a believer in keyed chucks. I had a co-worker running mate who bought a Milwaukee Hole Shooter some 10-12 years ago with a keyless chuck. I bought the one with the keyed chuck. He went to Montana and worked one installation with the keyless chuck...got back and went to a local Milwaukee authorized repair center and had them install a keyed chuck on it. I've seen more than one problem with keyless chucks of various brands.

Thanks, Ken. I have both, of course, in various tools, but some vague stirring cautioned me against opting for the convenience of keyless, perhaps especially since it's a no-name chuck.

[Jamie Straw]

I use a wipe-on gloss lacquer and apply several coats while still on the lathe.

Good luck with your shopping!

Thanks, Steve. Is there a particular brand (or two) that you had good results from? I've only used lacquer once, from a spray can, and know nothing about the choices.

[art san jr]

Hey Jamie,
Woodcraft has "free shipping" ongoing right now, plus $10 off $20, coupon code 12249.
But, if you want a little excursion, handle the merchandise, 'meet an greet', well that's different. Have a ball.
Art.

[Jim Sebring]

You might take a look at the MT2/Jacobs keyed chuck at Harbor Freight. I picked one up about a year ago at the Everett store for about $10 (on sale, I think). The Jacobs chucks I've seen listed in the catalogs are NOT drilled and tapped for a drawbar. The HF one wasn't, either, so I made up a simple jig out of a scrap Fir block to hold the chuck in. I then drilled and tapped the MT on the drill press for a 1/4 x 20 drawbar made from a piece of allthread.

I drill quite a few holes using the lathe, and have found use of the drawbar almost a necessity, especially when withdrawing the bit from the hole ( I put the chuck in the tailstock). Without the drawbar, the chuck wants to pull out of the morse taper in the tailstock.

[Jamie Straw]

The Jacobs chucks I've seen listed in the catalogs are NOT drilled and tapped for a drawbar. The HF one wasn't, either, so I made up a simple jig out of a scrap Fir block to hold the chuck in. I then drilled and tapped the MT on the drill press for a 1/4 x 20 drawbar made from a piece of allthread.



Well, Jim, I'm kicking myself for not asking earlier -- What is a drawbar? I've seen it mentioned a couple times, don't know what it is. :(

[Reed Gray]

As to the Skewchigouge, I got to try one under Allen Batty's direction, and found it to be much easier to turn beads and coves with on a spindle than the spindle gouge. It is much different from the Spindle Master which is too light weight. Allen said "They made it all wrong!" I will have one some time, but would prefer to get bar stock and make my own.

robo hippy

[Jim Sebring]

A drawbar is a rod that retains a tool (spur drive, Jacobs chuck, live center, etc.) that is inserted in the morse taper throat in either the headstock or tailstock. The bar is threaded into the tool and is prevents the tool from releasing from the friction-fit taper by holding it firmly in the throat. They're easy to make from a length of allthread ( I use 1/4" x 20), a washer and a wingnut.

For example, to use a drawbar to hold a Jacobs/MT2 chuck in the tailstock throat, insert the rod into the outer end of the tailstock. Screw it into the threaded MT end of the tool, slide a large washer onto the rod followed by a wingnut and tighten the whole thing up. The tool will be held firmly in the MT and can't vibrate loose at just the wrong time.

[Gary DeWitt]

I've had a skewchigouge for a couple years, like it quite a bit. Used it just the other day. It doesn't do anything you can't do with a skew, it's just that it is very much less likely to catch than a skew. Works very well for turning beads and even turns part of the inside of a captured ring. As with all tools, keep it sharp.
Drawbar is essential when using a chuck in your headstock. If the chuck has a threaded hole in the end of the morse taper, you can make your own bar from allthread, washer and a nut, mine is 1/4 x 20.

[Jamie Straw]

A drawbar is a rod that retains a tool (spur drive, Jacobs chuck, live center, etc.) that is inserted in the morse taper throat in either the headstock or tailstock.........

Thanks, Jim, I had a vague image, nice to have details.

[Jamie Straw]

I've had a skewchigouge for a couple years, like it quite a bit.......

Hi, Gary. I looked the skewchigouge over carefully at Woodcraft yesterday. As was getting very carried away buying wood, I opted not to buy the skewchi, but it looked quite easy to copy -- grind my own. Won't cost much to try. I figure it could save time switching from the skew to the spindle gouge when I'm turning smaller things.

.....all this free wood laying around the property, too wet for Christmas stuff. :eek: At Woodcraft, I picked up several small blocks of different exotics, some olive wood, a longish stick simply labeled "wood". Nearby hardwood warehouse, got 8 BF of Brazilian cherry, just to see if it turns well -- the only 8/4 board I could afford to buy.:)