Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
A question for turners.......
During the bat project, I used my table saw to cut off the corners of my blank thinking that this now 8 sided blank would be easier to turn round. As an experienced turner (which I'm not), do you bother to do this??.....or do you just mount the blank as is and bring it to round that way??.....or would you definitely use a band saw or some other method to cut off corners/edges and not a table saw??
Re: A question for turners.......
I start everything from square. Turning is easy and a lot more fun, and safer than using a band saw or table saw.
Re: A question for turners.......
You already have a power corner remover with the lathe. I use a spindle roughing gouge, and do a scooping action starting near the tailstock. The flute of the gouge goes from vertical to horizontal in this action. It wouldn't take but 3 minutes to knock off the corners in a method like this on the lathe.
My thoughts as well
Re: A question for turners.......
I cut off the corners whenever I can.� This takes a little longer and a little more effort to set up, but then the beginning of the turning goes much easier.� I save the corners and sand them to the same grit that I used on the project, then apply the planned finish to the corners to see what the final project will look like.� If I don't like the look then I can try another finish on another corner.� This saves a great deal of grief if the planned finish turns out to be a disappointment or a total surprise.
This would not apply for a spindle project, but for a bowl/platter/hollow vessel this is what works for me.
Re: A question for turners.......
Roger -- Sometimes I cut off the corners and sometimes I don't. I generally don't cut off the corners to save time at the lathe. Instead, I'll cut off the corners if I'm using rare or expensive wood. I can usually find ways to use the 'saved' corners on another project. I'll also cut off the corners if the blank is particularly 'fragile'. For example, let's say the blank is made from several pieces of wood glued on the bias. Turning the blank round on the lathe can tear-out a chunk, ruining the blank. To avoid that, I might cut the corners off.
Re: A question for turners.......
You probably should have narrowed your question by specifying "spindle turners". I don't see what sawing adds, saves or avoids. With a heavy roughing gouge I could go from square to what you accomplished with the saw in less than a minute on a bat of beech. I begin a few inches from one end, then quickly work my way across the spindle a few inches at a time. A few inches at a time prevents long splinters from splitting off. I don't care if short splinters split off. After the corners begin to round then I make passes the length of the rest.
I would probably do the whole bat with this tool. The straight sides make a serviceable skew for the finish cuts.
For something bigger than 4" I would consider sawing, but I have never had occasion to turn anything bigger than a bed post or Newel which I have never sawed.
Re: A question for turners.......
I agree with Bill. On anything larger than maybe 4" square, I would cut the corners off on a bandsaw first. Just makes the turning more enjoyable.
Re: A question for turners.......
I agree with Bill with a couple of caveats. For a new turner on a 1/3hp or even a 1/2hp lathe, learning to take a square blank to round with a dull roughing gouge can be very frustrating. Learning when a roughing gouge is sharp or not and how to sharpen and present it to the wood is easier if one can find a mentor to get over the initial learning curve. While learning the basics of sharpening and cutting for woodturning, taking those corners off can lessen the frustration. With experience, doing it all on the lathe gets easier and easier.
Good points.
The fist bed posts I turned years ago from 4 x 4 cherry appeared intimidating. I sawed the corners off and discovered that was intimidating too. With experience I found that removing corners with the proper roughing gouge is straightforward. In the beginning sawing, especially for a flat woodworker learning to make furniture parts, may be a comfortable place to begin. But one soon discovers it is not necessary.
Some good points here....
If you are going to do more turning, getting a mentor and/or joining a turning club is a good idea. My son an I took a class from David Ellsworth and he improved my technique with the bowl gouge in a matter of seconds. That minute or two was worth the whole class.
Sharp tools are important. Learn to sharpen and get set up to do it. They cut much better and easier if they are sharp with less tear out and fewer splinters. (This is also part of why turning is a slippery slope, Got a lathe? now you NEED a grinder and a chainsaw and more tools, and ...)
And, I made this point on the flat work forum, I use the jointer to take the corners off if I remove them at all. If you have a center marked you can set a compass in the hole and draw a circle on the end of the blank, and set the jointer fence to 45* and joint off the corners down to the circle. If the blank is too big to start with, you can joint all eight sides down close to the circle. (You can even taper the blank, but I digress...)