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Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge

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tool advice for a small hollow form

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tool advice for a small hollow form

#1

tool advice for a small hollow form

Robert Savit

>I have recently turned a small (3.5"D by 3.5"H) heart shaped hollow form with an inflowing profile to the hole. That is, the area surrounding the hole is higher than the hole itself. It was hollowed through a hole about 9/16" in diameter. The wall thickness is about 1/8-3/16" EXCEPT in the area immediately surrounding the hole. The problem is that I can't seem to crank any of my small hollowing tools far enough around to thin this high shoulder area. I have the mini Kelton set, and the small Kelton set, as well as a small crank-shaft Sorby tool with a movable cutting tip. Can anyone suggest a tool that can reach up into the shoulder area through this small a hole? One thought I had was to make a longer cutting tip for the Sorby. Any other suggestions?

Thanks,

Bob Savit

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#2

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

Wally Dickerman at Green Valley, Az.

>A tough one to handle. Your idea of an extended cutting tip might be the best solution. If you have a small opening, you'll have to be very carefull. With the added torque,even a small catch could cause the tool to mess up the rim. Let's hear how it comes out.

Wally

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#3

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

JamieDonaldson

>Here's the Ellsworth solution- make a hollowing tool the size you need out of Allan wrenches. They grab like crazy, but the right angle and a sure touch will do the job.

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#4

Keith Tompkins

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

Keith Tompkins

>Yep, allen wrenches work well. I made a holder out of 5/8 steel rod, drilled to fit the allen wrench, and tapped a hole for a set screw. You can hold it in the kelton handle.

You can grind allkinds of tips easily...

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#5

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

Robert Savit

>Thanks to all for the advice. I think I'll try the allen wrench option. One further question for the cognescenti: It's pretty clear how to grind an edge on the allen wrenches. Is it reasonable to try to bend them to get different angles, and if so, what is the protocol?

Thanks again,

Bob Savit

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#6

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

NickB

>I can't say that I am one of the cognescenti, but from what I understand, allen wrenches are case hardened, which would it pretty hard to bend them without snapping (this also fits with my experience using them). I think you'd have to anneal first, which would make them pretty unsuitable unless you could re-harden them afterward.

Hope this helps,

Nick

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

#7

Joe Fleming

Re: tool advice for a small hollow form

Joe Fleming

>Bob,

(i'm catching up on old posts)

Before you start bending metal, draw the profile of your hollow form on a piece of paper. With the design you are attempting, you have two conflicting problems. If you design a tool that cranks back more than 90 degrees, you might have a problem feeding it into the hollow form. Take a stiff wire like a coat hanger and bend it up to different tool shapes and test it on the paper to see if you can get it into the vessel and then use it to hollow.

In any case, you will probably need the tool to cut/scrape on the side of the tip as well as on the nose of the tip. Keep this in mind.

Joe Fleming - San diego

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