My first Glaser screw chuck project.

[Bill Wyko]

Well ,here it is. My first screw chuck/vacuum chucked project. At first I was only going to do the maple as a platter, then I saw a segmented ring thats been hanging in the rafters for years. I thought I might finally put it to use. And to mix it up a little more, I added some turquoise inlace to toss some color into it. It measures 12.25 inches in diameter, it's a little less than 1/8" thick and weighs in at a hefty 5.4 ounces. The woods are figured Maple, Wenge, hard Maple and Turquoise inlace. It was turned using Glaser MIni QR tools, Mini screw chuck and a Oneway Vacuum chuck. Thwe finish is only at the Shellac stage right now. Please enjoy.
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL2109/11908737/23971405/400562447.jpg
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL2109/11908737/23971405/400562449.jpg
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL2109/11908737/23971405/400562451.jpg

[Wally Dickerman]

Very nice...Geeze Bill, don't tell 'em at the Tucson Gem show that you're using inlace instead of turquoise.

[Bill Wyko]

LMAO Wally, I tried real Turquoise once, it dulled my turning tools instantly. I'd like to use real stones but i haven't figured out what to use to cut them down.

[Dan Forman]

Execution is very good, the maple has some really nice figure. A couple of questions: how much of the screw did you leave to penetrate the wood, and did you use the vacuum chuck to torn the whole bottom side, or just for finishing up?

Dan

[Wally Dickerman]

LMAO Wally, I tried real Turquoise once, it dulled my turning tools instantly. I'd like to use real stones but i haven't figured out what to use to cut them down.

Yeah Bill, cutting rocks tends to dull the tool pretty fast. I've used quite a bit of turquoise. Hey, it comes from Az, right? I mix the turquoise with 30 min. epoxy and apply it with a small spatula. After drying, I grind it down to wood level using an 80 grit sanding disc on my sanding drill.

[Tim Rinehart]

LMAO Wally, I tried real Turquoise once, it dulled my turning tools instantly. I'd like to use real stones but i haven't figured out what to use to cut them down.
Carbide tipped tools are best IMO for roughing down to point where you can then sand. I don't use my gouge but for one or two light shear scrape passes after applying any inlay materials.
That being said...I've not tried true turquoise, so it may be best to just grind down to prevent from being tore out. My experience has only been with malachite and lapis rocks, and copper powder.

[Bill Wyko]

I used the full 3/4" of the screw and tightened the face plate up to the piece. The faceplate really makes it rock solid and trues it square to the lathe bed. I glued a tenon to the bottom to turn the platters inside using my Oneway chuck. Then I used the vacuum chuck to hold it from the inside so I could remove the tenon. This way there is no mortise or tenon left on the bottom. I'm also using the vacuum chuck for finishing. I'll be applying 4 or 5 coats of tung oil for the final finish.

[Robert McGowen]

Be careful using the vacuum chuck when finishing. You will be surprised how much finish can end up inside your chuck, through the spindle, and possibly even into the pump. The wood may look totally solid, but the vacuum will let you know just how porous it really is! DAMHIKT

[Bill Wyko]

Now that you mention it, I did see what looked like sweat beads inside the platter. It was the finish bleeding back out of the wood due to the vacuum. I was only pulling-7psi. Any more and it would have broken the bottom of the platter. The whole thing is only about 3/32" thick. I was surprised to see how strong it held even with the low amount of vacuum I used.