Expert advice sought: How would you do this?....

[Neil Bosdet]

I posted recently about making some Espresso Tampers and was looking for a supply of the SS bases. Below is something like I'm wanting to make. The metal part is the base that is the subject of this post.

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Someone here suggested making the bases out of Lignum Vitae. I like this idea and happen to have a large board of Lignum Vitae that I have had for years without having a use for it. This will be great. The board is 12" x 48" x .75" and will make about 80 bases if I use it all up for this purpose.

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So, being relatively new to turning, I don't know how I'd approach turning these. LV is extremely hard and not very glue friendly. I'm hoping some of you will share your expertise and experience on how you'd turn them (set up - mounting, etc.) in a semi-production situation. By semi production I mean I will turn maybe 10-40 at a go. I don't mind turning them individually as long as it's repeatable, quick and safe. Finished size of the bases is about 2.5" round x about 5/8" thick +/-. There will need to be a 1" recess in the top to accommodate the handle plus I will tap a screw into both base and handle to secure them together. How would you approach this project?

Thanks for any help you feel you can offer.

Cheers,

Neil

[John Keeton]

Neil, does the handle recess "have to be" 1"?

Were it me, I would cut a disc of the LV on the bandsaw at just over 2.5". Then drill a hole for your recess just a bit smaller than you anticipate the handle diameter being at the juncture.

I would then chuck up the handle stock and turn it to your desired profile, with a stub tenon on the end to fit the recess, but with a little overlap in the shoulder to hide the joint. I would then clean the disc recess with acetone, and using 5 minute epoxy, glue the disc onto the handle with slight tailstock pressure against a small scrap of wood so as to not mark the disc.

With the tailstock in place, I would profile the disc to the desired shape, level out the bottom face, part off the handle from the chuck, and hand sand the nub from the handle.

[Neil Bosdet]

Neil, does the handle recess "have to be" 1"?

Were it me, I would cut a disc of the LV on the bandsaw at just over 2.5". Then drill a hole for your recess just a bit smaller than you anticipate the handle diameter being at the juncture.

I would then chuck up the handle stock and turn it to your desired profile, with a stub tenon on the end to fit the recess, but with a little overlap in the shoulder to hide the joint. I would then clean the disc recess with acetone, and using 5 minute epoxy, glue the disc onto the handle with slight tailstock pressure against a small scrap of wood so as to not mark the disc.

With the tailstock in place, I would profile the disc to the desired shape, level out the bottom face, part off the handle from the chuck, and hand sand the nub from the handle.

Hi John. Thanks for your comments. No, the recess doesn't have to be 1", it can be any size. The bottom of the base will be flat or ever so slightly curved. There is not enough stock thickness to waste. How are you thinking the base will be secured to the tailstock?

Thanks,

[Reed Gray]

The turner who used the Lignum would use a more hour glass shaped style as in handle, and flared where the Lignum was attached. This gives much more surface area for the glue to use. You do have to use acetone to cut the natural oils in the lignum. The simple 2 part epoxy resins available in your big box stores are pretty minimal, and he used a specialized epoxy, but I do not know the type. Turning a small mortice and tenon on the mating surfaces is a good idea, again for better holding power.

robo hippy

[John Keeton]

How are you thinking the base will be secured to the tailstock?

Thanks,You wouldn't need to "secure" the base to the tailstock. It would be glued to the handle (recess and stub tenon), and using a small scrap of wood, I would simply bring the tailstock up and use light clamping pressure to get a good glue up. Then, leaving the scrap in place, and at low speed, you should be able to turn the base. The friction between the scrap and the base should be enough to get most of the turning done, remove the tailstock to finish off the very bottom of the base.

[Damon Stathatos]

Why don't you just glue the lignum base material to the handle material and then turn it as one piece ?

I work a lot with cocobolo that is supposedly notorious for not holding glue surfaces, but I haven't had too many problems with that. I make sure that the mating surfaces are both completely flat, acetone them, wait until completely dry but not too much longer than that, and then glue and clamp away. Like the lignum, cocobolo is also very dense but once you get used to it, you don't notice as much how hard it is, it just becomes somewhat natural.

You could try one, see how it goes, and then decide if you want to continue like that or not.

[Neil Bosdet]

Then, leaving the scrap in place, and at low speed, you should be able to turn the base.

Do you really feel I could turn Lignum Vitae at low speed? I was thinking it would be likelier to catch at low speed as the stuff so hard.

[John Keeton]

Neil, I guess I should have clarified - by low speed, I would think 6-700 rpm on something 2.5" would be plenty slow. The only reason for "slow" is because of the scrap on the tailstock only supporting the piece by friction. Not being there, it is difficult to voice an opinion. It could be that one could turn it much faster. I would just have to feel my way with that one! That said, I have never turned LV, but I have turned some dense woods. Faster is better, but "sharp" will solve a lot of issues, too.