Finally got together pics of my third try at threading, this one an Ebony box about 2.5" in diameter.
For this one I turned the outside and hollowed almost to final dimensions, then let both the bottom and lid sit a few days in case there was any residual moisture or stress in the wood before final turning and threading. Baxter jig.
The Baxter jig makes it easy. I have it mounted on a second lathe so I can turn on one lathe and thread on the other without disturbing the threading setup. The jig makes the threading trivial; the hard part for me is getting the dimensions right.
I think I posted this picture earlier of this box along with the first two. The one on the left is my first try. Several people asked me where I got those plastic lids. Ha!
I meant to add: It appears that the Baxter jig allows you to thread items with a fairly small diameter. I assume that the limiting factor is the diameter of the cutter, is that correct?
Yes, the cutter (I think) is 3/4" in diameter or so. The thread ID of both of the two smaller boxes is about 1". I cut internal threads on the base of the one on the right as an experiment, the others have internal threads in the lid.
I forgot to mention in the original post - I used no finish on these other than a little buffing/polishing the bare wood.
Also, I see I got a little light leakage making a blue shadow on these. Must be from the one light in the room I forgot to turn off, a small gooseneck lamp at the sharpening station about 10' away. Doesn't take much!
Bestwoodtools sells.a.1/4".cutter that will let.you make a.really small.box. Willard Baxter who the threader is named after used to make acorn earring boxes that were actually smaller.than most.acorns. pretty sure my wife is going to get a set a set for christmas. Ill post a photo.
John, I do believe you have got the hang of this process. Your stuff is always top notch. Using a Baxter makes you wonder why anyone chases threads by hand. A suggestion you might want to consider; I have found that using threaded inserts (made on the Baxter) makes grain alignment a piece of cake and the max width of the parting cut is about 3/32".
I have about quit doing threads. A set of magnets properly aligned will cause the lid to "pop" off as shown in this months AAW J and for this, I still use inserts to hold the magnets. Alignment, if you drill correctly, is perfect and a lot less hassle.
>>>John, I do believe you have got the hang of this process. Your stuff is always top notch. Using a Baxter makes you wonder why anyone chases threads by hand.
Hand chasing is next for me. I think it would be fun to learn! Lots of people have asked me if I hand-chased the threads. I don't know whether they were expecting it or whether they were hoping to be impressed. Mark StLeger visited our club a few months ago and made chasing threads look easy...
>>>A suggestion you might want to consider; I have found that using threaded inserts (made on the Baxter) makes grain alignment a piece of cake and the max width of the parting cut is about 3/32".
Yikes, where's the fun in that?! That is one thing I want to try sometime. My thought was to turn and thread some inserts on the metal lathe from brass or black Delrin or Ebony or something on the Baxter.
>>>A set of magnets properly aligned will cause the lid to "pop" off as shown in this months AAW J and for this, I still use inserts to hold the magnets. Alignment, if you drill correctly, is perfect and a lot less hassle.
I saw the article about the magnets. Saw a guy do that here a couple of years ago. What I didn't like was the line from cutting and rejoining the pieces to hide the magnets. You can see the line on the photos in the AAW magazine so I'm sure you could see them in the hand. I'd almost rather let the magnets be visible in the two halves or maybe hide them under a ring of brass or something. I didn't think of hiding them in an insert.
Good to hear from you Ralph! Hope things are well and you are still doing phenomenally creative things! When are you going to visit here? - you could come and do a club demo while in town!
I believe it was Sharon Doughtie who i saw many years ago.who put magnets in the lid. What she did was.to leave a wide lip and then drilled into the lip.ad insered the magnets just barely below the surface. Then she filled the hole with sawdust from the piece and used thin CA to set it. It didnt stand out very much with the box open ad was invisible with the box closed.
John, I put magnets in my salt boxs to hold the cover tight when closed. The magnet goes in the cover and the metal connector in the side of the box. Works for me. Philip
Mark StLeger visited our club a few months ago and made chasing threads look easy...