man of wood Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 I want to slow down my lathe because it is spinning too fast for the log I have put on it. I moved the belt from the smallest pulley on the motor to the largest on the lathe. I'm very new to turning and took a peace of the cheery tree in back( 9" across by 7 or 8" long) and screwed it to a plate. Do you think maybe my speed is good and I don't have it centered. What is the best way to find the center of a log. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 What model lathe do you have, and what are the RPMs of the slowest setting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man of wood Posted July 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2012 I have a Delta/Milwaulee made in 1950, and the manual saids based on my belt to pulley set-up that it is running at 340 RPM. I don't know how to figure if the speed is right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted July 25, 2012 Report Share Posted July 25, 2012 first of all what is it doing is it walking on you? of so you might need more weight. alot more maybe even mount it to the floor. is it turning uneven because that is something that is going to happen untill you can true up you cylinder for making something out of the log. as for finding a center of a log you can make a device or buy this http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2083056/33683/The-Bullzeye-Woodturners-Center-Finder.aspx if you want to make you just need a thick sheet of plexyglass/acrylic that you can mount to your lathe turn round and put some groves in for sizing. it looks like it will work for odd shaped or sized pieces of wood. havent tried it yet but it is on my list and its such a simple tool that i cant see how it cant work. you might need to turn it by hand and just use a tool to cut it a little at a time till you can turn it safely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimV Posted July 25, 2012 Report Share Posted July 25, 2012 it is almost impossible to find a true center of a "log". The best you can do is get close. i hope when you say you screwed it to a plate, that you used a faceplate that was meant to be used on your lathe. Safety first. As far as speed goes, I ignore "what speed shoud i run at". I run the speed whatever speed I feel comfortable running at. If the lathe is shaking too much, I slow it down. If I can speed it up a little, I do. When first roughing a larger blank, the driving factor is the amount of imbalance on the lathe I can tolerate. One of the better ways to find a closer center of a blank is to place the piece between centers and rotate it by hand. Use just enough pressure on the centers to keep it from slipping as you rotate the spindle BY HAND. If the piece does not fall back to a low spot, you have found a close center. Then using a tool rest and a pencil, rotate the blank by hand and make a circle on the face near the tailstock (this face should be the face you want to mount the faceplate to). Then remove the workpiece and mount the faceplate using the circle you just drew as a guide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man of wood Posted July 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2012 Very good, Mr TimV... I too run the speed that feels good, but my slowest is moving my lathe crazy.............. do you think I need more weight??? Will this mess up my bearings????? This lathe is from the 50's and is tight as a drum and I don't want to mess it up. should I just lock down the lathe and start cutting and make the jumping stop???? Duckkisser........ I like the templet and have to think about how I can make one or buy it..... I would rather make it than buy it. Thomas Please respond......... I'm very glad you do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted July 26, 2012 Report Share Posted July 26, 2012 dont mean to jump the post but here are a few sites that i found usefull http://aroundthewoods.com/tools.shtml http://www.woodturnersresource.com/ http://www.woodcentr...orum/ornaments/ http://www.woodturni...e.com/index.php http://www.turningbl...olprojects/Page http://www.woodworke...h=center finder http://globaltooling...ert-knives.html blades for a home made e-z carving tool this is prity usefull for beginers especial dealing witn end grain this is a very good tool that you can make yourself and save alot of money. same with the decorating tools they add flair with little cost. favorite turners http://www.youtube.c...D?feature=watch http://www.youtube.c...re=results_main http://www.youtube.com/user/bobham5 a few tricks that i have learned to burn lines get the sample cards of formica it will burn a hole on side grain or face grain of a project. these can be found at any do it yourself store favorite finish is : shelack, boild linseed oil, denatured alch one part of each mixed together. it makes a decent finish that blends and smooths well, dries fast and is shinny. Some stores http://www.woodcraft...s-and-kits.aspx http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/ http://www.packardwo...gory_Code=tools http://www.pennstate...ning-tools.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted July 26, 2012 Report Share Posted July 26, 2012 Make sure the lathe is solidly attached to the stand, and and more weight to the stand. That will help the with the lathe jumping around. An unbalanced piece will be hard on the bearings. Depending on the quality and shape they are in, this may or may not have a negative affect. Weighing down will help though. Also, make sure that until you have the piece balanced you are using the tail stock. With it being unbalanced, even screwed to a face plate, their is a risk of the piece breaking free and flying at you. (face shield is an absolute must) Ultimately, if it still doesn't feel right, don't do it. As to your original question, without making some serious modifications to the lathe, it probably is not possible to get it running any slower then the 340 rpms you mentioned. However, I have seen some variable speed conversion kits for Jet Mini and/or Midi lathes, which I believe includes replacing the motor. I don't know if you could adapt one of these or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted July 26, 2012 Report Share Posted July 26, 2012 was thinking about your problem and had a thought that might be usefull if you are turning a piece of wood that has some large parts that stick out or its at a strange angle you can use a angle grinds to chew up the wood and carve it so that it is more round. you are carving it to be closer to true center. i have done this a couple of times with some odd pieces and it worked out fine. just finished a tool that you might find usefull if you making boxes and bowls. make a handle and mount a drill bit to it. then when you need to drill a hole and make a depth for you bowl you just put a drill bit in the handle push on your wood block and there ya go a instant hole the size you need. and depending on how deep you push you have the depth of your bowl. so you push 2 inches deep with your drill bit. then when you cut out the inside of your bowl you only go as deep as your drill bits hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man of wood Posted August 1, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2012 Thank you all, great stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suiciedchild Posted August 10, 2012 Report Share Posted August 10, 2012 American woodworker show on PBS , guy had a Jacobs chuck mounted in the tailstock with a larger forstner bit. The with the lathe spinning slowly advanced the tailstock , the forstner bit hogged out alot of material very fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimV Posted August 10, 2012 Report Share Posted August 10, 2012 Yes, (sorry for delayed response) take interrupted cuts staying firm on the chisel on the tool rest. The vibration will decrease as you remove the high spots. Have you worked more on the piece? How did you do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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