sbarton22 Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 I find that the hardest form to turn is a straight line. Any angle on the tool and you are off. I can use my 1" straight edge scraper to get close, but find I always have to rely on a sanding block to get there. I turned an aluminum and purpleheart pepper mill, and it is just a straight cylinder. The design is very simple, but the effort to make it simple was really tough. I would have never thought that and I'm sure the person I am giving it to won't understand it either. I also find that in my pen vise, I will get a run of crooked holes. How can I possibly be making such an easy task this complicated? On the other hand, I suppose, I just made a pentel .9mm pencil conversion, which is a seemingly difficult task, quite easily. So easily, in fact, that I don't quite understand why so many other people struggle with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 I am pretty new to turning as well, and have found make a solid cylinder one of the more difficult tasks to accomplish. This kinda reminds me of my high school days in marching band. We could make beautiful curved formations on the field, but never a straight line! One of the other more experienced turners will probably jump in here soon too, but I have found, after getting it close to final dimension taking it a small section at a time using calipers and a straight edge to make a good and consistent cylinder. Mark the high areas with a pencil, the LIGHTLY bring those areas down to the needed dimension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 talking about east tasks being hard i was at work and my shoe came untied i swear i looked at if for 5 min before i remembered how to re tie it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger T Posted December 22, 2011 Report Share Posted December 22, 2011 Scott, I make quite a few rolling pins. What I have found that works best for me is to use a parting tool and a pair of steel calipers. I set my diameters all the way down the blank, usually with a spacing that closely matches the width of my big skew. After I have all the depth's laid in, I use the skew flat on the rest and use planing cuts to being the waste wood down to the depth of the layouts. With very light cuts, I can usually get the blank within .010-.020 of my intended diameter. I am real anal about my pins being flat, with no humps or valleys in them, so at this point, I use a long, straight piece of wood wrapped with 150grit paper and level the field down so there are no humps or valleys. Hope this helps you out some. Roger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbarton22 Posted December 22, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2011 Roger-- So, more or less, sandpaper is the ultimate fix at the end to get it straight. What kind of finish are you putting on those rolling pins? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger T Posted December 23, 2011 Report Share Posted December 23, 2011 Scott, yep ultimately it is. But if you dont get it pretty close with the tools, i fear you will be sanding it until the cows come home. I just use plain old mineral oil on mine. Roger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jHop Posted April 1, 2012 Report Share Posted April 1, 2012 Do you use the "pin" method for setting your calipers, or do you just go right to the measuring device? (no pun intended, by the way.) And have you ever done a rolling pin with a slight taper to the edges? I think those are a Swedish style, but don't quote me. (my rolling pins are attached to the ends of my arms, which is why my pastry is always thick and lumpy instead of light and flaky...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fransikaner Posted April 1, 2012 Report Share Posted April 1, 2012 Some might call the tapered end pins "French". I like them much better than the traditional pins used in the US. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger T Posted April 2, 2012 Report Share Posted April 2, 2012 JHop, I dont know what the pin method is that you are referring to. What I do, after getting the blank roughed into a cylinder, is I will take my calipers, and find the smallest diameter I have on the roughed in blank. From there, I adjust the calipers just a tad smaller, maybe 1/32 or so, and start laying in my diameters using the parting tool, The rest of the work I have described above. I've never done any French rolling pins, I've had pretty good luck moving the ones with the handles. One thing on my pins, I do try and shoot for a diameter as close to 3" as I can. This will give you a nicely sized handle, with finger room on the bottom. I try and allow 5/8" - 3/4" of finger room around the handle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbarton22 Posted April 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 Roger-- Any photos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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