Mouse and spindle turning in Wanstead 6/7^th September

  

Had run out of mice. I make they from pretty wood, normally spalted Beech (or should I say overly spalted Beech, that is good for nothing else). Best to do them 50 at a time. The problem is always holding it since the spalting reduces its mechanical strength. It does not work between centres.

I use a three jaw chuck that has a larger hole down the middle than my standard four jaw chucks. I carefully turn it between centres first to make a dowel that goes through the middle of the chuck. I can then do them, sometimes two at time by progressing the wood out of the jaws.

To copy the original spindle is much easier if it is directly behind your workpiece.

I made this simple softwood bracket (x2) that fits the lathe bed and holds the pattern in a perfect position.

 

This view really makes it easy to understand the importance of the pattern position.

Note the extractor hood, when sanding hardwoods I always wear a respirator.

I also have a large overhead extractor that can be programmed for speed and time. That way it can remove all dust in the atmosphere overnight.