Patrick Smith
02-24-2003, 1:56 PM
Hi everyone,
I wanted to post a big thanks to Bill Grumbine for his post on the Pond a few months ago on how to make hollowing tools cheaply. I've been wanting to make my own tool from his plans since he made the post and I finally rounded up all the parts. The instructions and assistance from the guys at the Pond were invaluable and without it I would still be in the dark.
This was my first attempt at making my own tool and handle - it was made for about $4 total, I already had the wood. The carbide tip is from Harbor Freight, a set of 5 was $5 - I was worried about the shape of the cutting tip, but the good news is that the steel underneath the carbide tip is M2. So I can just grind right through the carbide and make my own shaped tip if I need. The steel rod was about $3 for a 3' length. The length of the tool shaft is 18" - it sure feels longer though.
The hardest part of this was drilling the end of the steel to accept the bit. That was a p-a-i-n!! I ended up holding the shaft with my left hand and freehanding the drill and bit with my right (no vise!). But I finally got it deep enough. I ground off the corners of the square bit at the bottom and it fit pretty well. A lot of epoxy later and it feels very strong. The bit is in the shaft about 3/4".
I made the handle from some 8/4 walnut I had. In hindsight I probably should have used oak because the handle feels very light. But if it falls apart I will just make a new one out of oak -- too late now since the shaft is epoxied in :) I would also make the next handle much longer. The ferrule is some copper pipe I had - it really looks neat on the walnut. That's my first crack at making a tool handle - I got pretty close to copying the shape on my Sorby tools, I think. I am still not too good at making flowing curves on spindle cuts though.
Overall, this project was easier than I thought. I was most worried about drilling the tool handle for the steel shaft but that went easier than expected. I can't wait to make more of these! I'm thinking about getting a pipe bender and trying a few curved shapes for the 45 and 90 cutters.
Thanks for looking. Thoughts and comments welcome!
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow1.jpg
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow2.jpg
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow3.jpg
I wanted to post a big thanks to Bill Grumbine for his post on the Pond a few months ago on how to make hollowing tools cheaply. I've been wanting to make my own tool from his plans since he made the post and I finally rounded up all the parts. The instructions and assistance from the guys at the Pond were invaluable and without it I would still be in the dark.
This was my first attempt at making my own tool and handle - it was made for about $4 total, I already had the wood. The carbide tip is from Harbor Freight, a set of 5 was $5 - I was worried about the shape of the cutting tip, but the good news is that the steel underneath the carbide tip is M2. So I can just grind right through the carbide and make my own shaped tip if I need. The steel rod was about $3 for a 3' length. The length of the tool shaft is 18" - it sure feels longer though.
The hardest part of this was drilling the end of the steel to accept the bit. That was a p-a-i-n!! I ended up holding the shaft with my left hand and freehanding the drill and bit with my right (no vise!). But I finally got it deep enough. I ground off the corners of the square bit at the bottom and it fit pretty well. A lot of epoxy later and it feels very strong. The bit is in the shaft about 3/4".
I made the handle from some 8/4 walnut I had. In hindsight I probably should have used oak because the handle feels very light. But if it falls apart I will just make a new one out of oak -- too late now since the shaft is epoxied in :) I would also make the next handle much longer. The ferrule is some copper pipe I had - it really looks neat on the walnut. That's my first crack at making a tool handle - I got pretty close to copying the shape on my Sorby tools, I think. I am still not too good at making flowing curves on spindle cuts though.
Overall, this project was easier than I thought. I was most worried about drilling the tool handle for the steel shaft but that went easier than expected. I can't wait to make more of these! I'm thinking about getting a pipe bender and trying a few curved shapes for the 45 and 90 cutters.
Thanks for looking. Thoughts and comments welcome!
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow1.jpg
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow2.jpg
http://www.driftwoodroad.com/images/hollow3.jpg