Fibronacci gauge

[Bill Bolen]

I turn quite a few hollow forms and one of the things that has always been hit and miss for me has been the location of the shoulder. The correct proportions seem be reached using the golden mean. So I threw together a prototype Fibronacci gauge to help me out with that. Yeah I know, I could just use a compass and step it off in thirds for a close placement but where is the fun in that? Made of some cut off Maple strips and 13” tall. Once the two outer legs are placed at the mouth and the other at the foot the center pointer places the shoulder at the idea Golden Mean location. I’m hoping this will also give me some help figuring finial height.

[Richard Wolf]

Looks good Bill, and a very useful layout tool for all your design work. Too many people forget that basics of design are based on principals like golden proportions.

[John Keeton]

Bill, I have given thought to doing one of these simply because they are quick. I usually do mine with a ruler and pencil marks.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Nice work on the gauge Bill but please - feel free to deviate from your measurements! It keeps things interesting!!

[Baxter Smith]

Nice work Bill. I too have considered making one of these but usually just grab a ruler and my cellphone calculator to see if I am in the ballpark. I get to check in on SMC while I am at it too.:)

[Richard Jones]

Nice work Bill. I too have considered making one of these but usually just grab a ruler and my cellphone calculator to see if I am in the ballpark. I get to check in on SMC while I am at it too.:)

I do the same thing, Baxter, but there is a Golden Mean app now that I use on my Droid.

I have made one Fibby caliper, but it's too big for my boxes, so I'm making a smaller one today out of some scrap metal.

Rich

[Steve Vaughan]

Dang if ya'll ain't taught me something again! I didn't even know you could make a tool for something like that. And then some of you are talking about measuring and calculating and stuff...and I hadn't even thought of that either! I've been doing it by eye ALL the whole time! How do you make one of these things, is there a plan somewhere?

Nevermind...just googled it and found plans.

[Roland Martin]

Nice job Bill, that's one of the things to make on my must do list, you didn't happen to make a spare did you?

[Russell Neyman]

There were plans for this in Fine Woodworking a few years back, and I made two -- a small one for detail work and a huge one for cabinet work. I didn't know there was an iPhone ap, and will go right out and download that. Thanks for the tip.

[Jesse Goodwin]

A few weeks ago I emptied an old file cabinet to use for storing turning tools. When I was done I had a stack of the hardboard file dividers that I started to throw out then retrieved back from the garbage can. They are about 1/16" thick. Since then I have made from the dividers, one of these gauges, shimmed my lathe feet, made a washer to stop chucks from seizing on the headstock shaft and spacers for bringing my McNaughton center saver tool rest to the perfect height on a reducer I turn out of Brazillian Cherry so the 1" tool rest post would fit the 1 1/2" banjo on my bigger lathe. Trash is sometimes treasure.



When I die, just bury me in my shavings.

[Bill Bolen]

Just google fibronacci, gauge all kinds of links to free downloads of dimensions and several youTube vids that I found interesting.

[Greg Bender]

I don't think there is an "R" in the name and you can go to the website woodworkingformeremortals(dot)comm and he has the plans with dimensions.He also has a link to the brass rivets.
Greg

[Robert Henrickson]

Or search "golden ratio", with or without 'gauge' or 'calipers'.