â phillips: hi! welcome to the "american woodshop." i'm scott phillips, and this is season 22, "bringing it home" -- great projects that you can make for your home with tools in your home. and we're going to start with this very affordable wood lathe today.
we'll turn pens, pepper mills, and pda or phone amplifiers. don't go anywhere. announcer: "the american woodshop" with scott phillips is brought to you by... ...woodcraft -- since 1928, providing traditional and modern woodworking tools and supplies to generations of craftsmen. woodcraft -- helping you make wood work...
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phillips: today, we're gonna have some fun together turning pens, pepper mills, amplifiers. very easy to do. now, look at this pen. it's a modern pen, stylus on this end for your cellphone, and this pen mechanism -- it's called an inertia design. you shake it to retract the point or to bring it out. beautiful, and look at the wood.
this is called spectraply. now, before we get started, whatever you do, work safely in your workshop. be sure to read, understand, and follow all the instructions that come with the tools and products that you use. now, let's get into it. if you look down here, you can see this mechanism right here, and that's what is fit inside your turned workpiece, but to
make all that happen, it starts with this brass tube. and what i've done -- you can see here, i used epoxy to glue the brass tube inside of that blank, and that's cut on a bias so that you can get an regular, beautiful spectrum of color there out of those various different dyed plywoods that are glued together. now, to work this down,
first thing we'll do is bring this over to the band saw. this is 1/4-inch blade. and it has four teeth per inch on it. and i'm setting the miter gauge at 6 degrees, and this is set up on dust collection. i'll just cut that off. [ saw whirring ] now, that cut is just a little but longer -- let that come to a stop --
than the brass tube. i'll bring the tube back up. and that's so that when we drill it, if there is any tear-out, we can use this end mill to trim it off. now, to drill the hole through this -- you can see the white lines on there -- that gives me a point of reference. let me clamp this up.
now, that's secured by the tail vice, and you can see i put white lines on there as a go-by because when that brass tube is glued in on a diagonal like that, the grain is a lot prettier. now, i could use a drill press, but what's the fun in that? i'm using a 3/8-inch bit. it's a marked a "v" bit.
and i'm sighting down those edges, and i want to keep it in the center of that blank. okay. and i let that very special bit do the cutting. i don't want to break out. okay, now, drill through. don't break through. and let's take a look at that. release the tail vice. no tear-out.
and that gives me enough wood right there to turn. now, i'll drill the other holes, and then it's back to the band saw to cut out the pen blanks. again, you could use a drill press with a fence to drill these holes and clamp it in place if this handheld technique is not good for you. so, out of an 1-1/2-inch-square piece of wood -- spectraply -- i get four turning blanks,
and i set up the resaw fence here so i can cut these blanks right off and square them up. that looks really good right there. and be sure to use a good push stick. cut these square. then it's on to the glue-up. so, with the band saw, you can see how you end up with your blanks. and it doesn't matter that they aren't perfect.
just make sure that hole's pretty close to the center, and we'll turn it round. now, i've glued a brass tube in the middle of this one, and that epoxy has cured out. but look at this right here. equal parts of epoxy -- you mix it together thoroughly, and this is a five-minute cure. and that's good. do not get it on your fingers.
and then what you do is, you take the brass tube that comes in the pen kit, and you sand it completely so it's scarified or rough, and that gives the glue something to bond to. wipe it off securely, get it clean, and i'll get a little dab of that epoxy on the end. spin it in like that on this end. push it until it's almost all the way through, and then i'll swing it around to the other end.
plenty of glue still left. it's a matter of getting the glue just right. you press it home. it's square on that end, no tear-out from the drill, and that needs to cure. i like to let it cure overnight. now, this one right here is ready to mill, so what i'll do is bring up what's called an end mill. and this creates a square shoulder
for the mandrel on the wood lathe to seat to. and you can see that's slick. that gives me a nice clean shoulder and a brass ring all the way around. i'll do the other end, and then it's on to turning. to turn the pen, we're going to set the pulley speed on the wood lathe at 1,810 rpm. now, this is called a number-two morse taper that fits into that number-two drive right there.
and this is called a mandrel. these are bushings. and you can see on this end, i have a bushing pressed in. there's a brass tube end milled. press a bushing in for that pen kit, for the inertia pen. i have some spacing bushings here. that way, i can use one mandrel for a dozen different varieties of pens.
and i just finger tighten that. i don't want to over-tighten that, because it could put pressure onto that turning. now, i look this tailstock and advance the ram into that point on the end of that cavity for the mandrel. adjust the tool rest up so that when i bring this roughing tool -- that's a carbide cutter --
i want the cutting edge to be right at center line. okay. safety first. no rings, no loose jewelry, no long hair. you don't want to get caught up in the spinning. and so now what i'll do is just use this tool straight in, level to the ground, flat to the tool rest, and make those cuts. check all the locks before you turn it on. here we go.
face shield down. and thumb on top like this. just take nice, light, light cuts. remember, this is not perfectly square because of the way we cut it out. now, we'll take it right on down. 1,800 is a perfect speed for this. do not touch those bushings. you can sand down to that.
now, let's take a look at that. oh, that's perfect. that's perfect. that's perfect. now what i'll do is a little bit of sanding. and whatever you do, when you sand these plywoods, be sure to wear a dust mask. that's very important. i also like to have a vacuum going, and i sand on the bottom
of the rotation of the work piece with 100, 150, than 220. then it's on to frictioning on a heavy-duty finish -- something that will stand up to the oils in your fingers. and i like to use a polyresin for that. another good one is gun-stock oil. your choice. we'll friction that dry. then it's on to assembly. that's all there is to turning this.
now, i've removed the mandrel and i'll take the bushings off. okay. pressure fit just like that. set the bushings aside for the next turning project. out come the spacers for the inertia. turning. okay. brass tube inside. i want this to be the point end down here. i want this to be the end that has the stylus on it. so i bring that up,
and that brass tube is a tight fit, pressure fit, to these bushings on these two parts. and there are a bunch of different ways to put them together, but these easy-hold clamps right here -- the jaws stay nice and square, and that's how the parts press together. nice and easy just like that. okay. so, to finish this off, what i'll do is put the stylus on the nib on the end
like that and then thread the cap on. it's threaded. beautiful pewter mechanism. they have them in all sorts of colors and tones. and then, on this far end, you thread this off so when you need to replace the cartridge, that's how you do it. you just press it in until it stops. and there you have it. that is the new inertia design.
different treatment for the end and the trim on the top on the stylus, and you cannot beat it. so that's how you turn pens -- inertia pens, that is. now, let's get on to the pump-and-grind pepper mill. over to the band saw. when they press this spectraply into form like this, they use glues that you do not want to breathe.
so, make sure that you have good dust-collection set up. and these are prescription lenses that are safety glasses. make that cut. i'm using the miter gauge, and this blank needs to be precisely 3 13/16 long. and from here, what we do -- let that come to a stop. respect that blade. and that will be put onto the lathe with this four-jaw chuck. let's get to it.
here's an important thing to know. this pepper-mill kit has a clear chamber right here for the pepper mill, and this is the bottom of it. this is the top -- the pump mechanism. now, to turn the workpiece that's going to become the body of the pepper mill, has to look like that. so, you have to drill a 25-millimeter hole
to match the mechanism, and that's what i have right here -- 25-millimeter forstner bit. now, what i'll do is take the blank that we just cut at the band saw and put it securely against the base of the jaws, and the square points of the turning square go in between the sides of the jaws. you tighten it down securely following the close instructions
on the chuck. and that's good. that's there to stay. and i'll bring up this point to where it almost touches on the forstner bit, and this is set at 1,810 rpm. lock the tailstock. and now i can excavate that 25-millimeter hole. take your time on this. and what i'll do is take this bit
so it's a little more than halfway through this length. clear out the chips. and then what i'll do is turn off the lathe and flip it around end for end. and i'll drill a corresponding hole exactly the same way, and that clears the chamber all the way through. from there, it's on to jam chucks. so, that is the perfect tool and the perfect way to do it on the wood lathe.
and what i have here is called a jam chuck. it's turned down to a 25-millimeter diameter to match the hole, and there's an 1/8-inch shoulder on each end, and that's that shoulder. these are phenolic. you can make them out of wood. you see the four-jawed chuck here. now, watch what i do with this detailer. it's a carbide cutter, diamond shaped, and shield down.
and what i can do to create beautiful, perfect profiles is just sweep that on down to that 1/8-inch diameter, and that diameter right there is precisely sized to 25 millimeters right there so it matches the hole. now what i can do is take this workpiece, mount it between the jam chucks like so. easy does it. that comes in.
tailstock is up. advance the ram -- this workpiece and the live ball-bearing center goes right into the end there like that. good pressure. make sure all the locks are locked. and now what i can do is turn this into a beautiful barrel form. i'm going to use the rougher like you saw before.
cutting edge right at center line. needs to go down just a hair. i'm being careful not to touch the jaws here. everything's secure. now we can turn this down. these jam chucks are necessary when you're doing pepper mills like this. so, you ease straight in, and you work it down. same technique as one the pen. i've found that if i just keep my thumb on top of the chisel,
that's the easiest way to make sure that the chisel bottom stays on the tool rest securely. if i use it overhand, i have a tendency to roll it up and i don't get as good of a cut. so this rougher that has that square cutting edge just does a fabulous job. match the speed. 1,810 here. and if you're off 100 or 200 rpm, don't worry about it.
it'll still do a fine job for you. different lathes have different speed ranges. since this lathe cost under $300, hey, i learned to live with the speed that i have. universal turning speeds range between 1,200 to 1,800 rpm. now, when we turn the big bowl, we'll want to take the speed down to around 800. okay. one last pass here. that looks real -- oh, look at that.
that's beautiful. have to take this down. there's a flat spot there. but i love this spectraply. take that down just a little bit more. then i'll use -- okay. that's perfect right there. now what i'd like to use is the detailer. and i'm going to put one, two, three, a little decorative piece there.
don't go too deep. that's very thin right in there. okay. and let's take a look at that. now i'll take off the tool rest and i'll sand it with dust collection and apply the finish, and then we'll get on to assembly. now, there's the wooden body to the pepper mill right there. perfectly done.
this is going to be the bottom -- slightly tighter taper to that metal base there. and that will slide right over like that. and then we have this ring that's been sanded and cleaned that gets glued into this top edge right here. so, again, i'm mixing up the five-minute epoxy that really takes, truthfully, a couple hours to really cure. and you do not want to be getting this onto your fingers.
and you certainly do not want more than you have to have on here. that could glue the mechanism shut. obvious things, but, hey, got to think for what you want. plan ahead. so this goes right into that top. and that cures out. and then here at the interface, i sand this where the plastic is.
and the instructions that come with this tell you to put the glue on the plastic. but this bottom ring is threaded, too. you have to be able to thread this big ring off to put the pepper or salt in, so planning ahead, do not get any glue at that interface right there, whatever you do. so you can keep it up on the plastic like that right there.
and epoxy seems to bond to plastic better than metal anyhow. i will put a little bit on that interface right there. and now i can ease this on up and down. got a little bit of squeeze out there on that bottom ring. have to get rid of that. otherwise. you wouldn't be able to put pepper in. okay. now, that looks really great. and i'll let that cure out.
this gets screwed on after the glue has cured. so that looks really good. now, over to the band saw to create an amplifier for cellphones. sometimes, things just work, and this is one of those times. i turned this bowl, i stuck my cellphone in it. it doubled the output. you'll hear more that at the end of the show
once i show you how to turn your own amplifier. no power required. you just lay it in there, hit "play," and even phone calls -- remarkable. so what you have to do, using scrap wood -- in this case, mahogany -- is glue up one, two, three, four circles of wood.
these two top circles have the center cut out, and they are 11 1/2, 10 1/2, and 9 1/2 inches in diameter. that's a 4-inch disk. so, i used the band saw to cut the outsides round. and then i use jig saw to cut out the two cores. i'll get those all made and show you how to do the glue-up. once all the disks are cut out, it's really important to glue this up the right way,
and to do that, you always put good wood glue on both mating surfaces. so, that allows it to tack properly when you put it together, and it won't skate around, and give you a very durable glue-up. this is mega hold-down -- a centuries-old tool. and it puts pressure right where i want it --
straight down. and then i have these clamps that i can put in to keys on the side to really draw everything nice and tight. need that down just a hair more. and so i'll clamp this up and let this cure for two days solid, because honestly, i want this to be rock hard. so, we've got this one ready to roll.
let's go turn it. that's how you do the glue-up with scraps. i have the pulley set up for 810 rpm now. 1,000 down from what we've been using so far. this four-jaw chuck as the expanded chuck -- quick change, less than 30 seconds -- to hold the spigot, which is what that foot is called, so now i'll just knock these three corners off and make this smooth.
then this live ball-bearing center stays until i hollow the form on the inside. so here we go. beautifully balanced. and you just carefully use the rougher to knock the corners off. it's a matter of taking your time. this is not something that's beyond you. if you've never turned before,
be sure to take lessons before attempting this. there are lots of places to go to get great lessons for hands-on. notice how this chisel is married to my body. that gives me lots of stability. so i rough this round. that's what this is called. get it balanced on the outside first. then i reconfigure the tool rest so i can work on the inside.
and there i'll use the rougher until i get it smooth, and then i use this really tiny round carbide cutter to smooth it. it takes light touch. and it's phenomenal how you can bring up the form very quickly. whoo, boy. now that is egg-shell thin. so that's what you want to resonate and make it an amplifier, because this does broadcast that sound.
and then i'll use this detailer to cut in a groove there and there like so... ...just because it looks great. and from there -- loving that form -- what i'll do is take off the tool rest and i'll sand on this bottom quarter, working through 100, 150, 220, and i'll get it beautifully sanded outside and in.
and then i'll friction on a water-based polyurethane, because that will be nice and durable in time. okay. that finish is looking really good. now, i need to turn the foot, or the spigot, and to do that, i've expanded the jaws into the interior of the bowl with these big, easy grippers
and locked that securely in place. i'm using the tailstock to help stabilize this, and what i'll do now is, i'll just use the finisher to smooth this right on out. now, stay away from the bottom of that rim right there. i'll hollow this right off. and this is a finishing cut. and once i get this done, then i can back away the tailstock, finish the very bottom,
use a detailer up by the bottom of the bowl, sand it lightly, finish it, and that completes the turning. now let's take a look. when i turning is done right, it's light in the hand, and that's graceful all the way around. now let's hit "play"... [ "bonny hielan' laddie" playing ]
...and check this out. [ volume increases ] it's an amplifier for your smartphone. it doubles the output and it's a perfect way to use your cellphone. talk into that. the pump-and-grind pepper mill -- beautiful spectraply. this enhances every kitchen table. and then the inertia-pen kit -- you cannot beat it.
with that built-in stylus, perfect for smartphones. so, there you have it. it's the world of turning. the only thing that's holding you back is you. get busy. head to the woodshop, and takes some classes, have some fun, make beautiful gifts. hope to see you next time in "the american woodshop." now go have some fun. see you.
phillips: for more information behind the scenes at "the american woodshop, "go to our website for complete details on tips and like us on facebook. ♫ and away we go ♫ ♫ bonny laddie, hielan' laddie ♫ ♫ hey, ho, and away we go ♫ ♫ bonny hielan' laddie ♫ ♫ singin' hey, ho, and away we go ♫