————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

My first blog entry about my summer! How exciting! But…the first one or two will be rather boring, describing the design process and planned construction process and no pictures, but it will get better as we go! (I promise!)

So, we want a new table in the kitchen. The old one (Which my dad made in an apartment!) is getting cramped, scratched, and…well, old. The wood to use is obvious – maple. Our kitchen is already light, (White cabinets and windows abound) so my dad wants something light to fit. (Unlike our current table, stained oak with a mirror top) Maple it is!

We (well, my dad) decided to do the table in two parts, the top and the bottom/legs. The top would be maple ply, surrounded by maple edging to hide the ply. Edging included, we want it to be 61×38 to fit within our piece of MDF, and to follow the golden ratio. The top will sit on the old table until we get some legs together. We want to do the table in two parts because we need/want a table, soon, but we are not sure how to construct the legs.

We also want to do the table in two pieces because we are going to do the table top rather unconventionally – 1/4” ply on a board of MDF (1/2” or 5/8”, I can’t remember which right now) we got with the house, (I think the MDF used to be a headboard) clamped with nothin’ but regular house vacuum power. Yes, I posted a topic about his, yes everybody agreed it was a bad idea, yes my dad is stubborn :) (I must say though, I think I may have mis-expressed myself in my post, and I believe my dad knows what he is doing) He cited using a vacuum in the print shop he worked in the hold irregularly shaped sheet metal flat while being printed on. The vacuum was hooked up to a table with holes in it, and it worked!

Our problem needs a different solution. We decided to use an old mattress bag, put the ply and MDF into it, and duct tape the vacuum tube into it.

B-ooy were we ignorant.

Oh, and as another cliffhanger/hook, remember this is one of three blogs! (Not three parts, three blogs on three different projects!)

As a side note…

The evolution of my clamp setup. By the time I finished, the need for the clamps was minimal, as the glue had already set! Lol.

This is what it looks like now

And from the top

That rag on the dremel is my safety glass ‘case’, strategically positioned to minimize dust infiltration into the dremel.

Turnings to be showcased in next entry! :) (But you did get a peak in that last photo :)

Cheers,
Marcel

P.S – I still need a source of pen kits with cheap mailing! Anyone? Anyone at all?

So, I want to try turning. I’ve always considered myself a handyman-esque person, and I had that urge to build! The tipping point was when I found a few blogs such as AfriGadget, StreetUse and Future Perfect. Their owners travel a lot, and they notice ingenuity, mostly on the streets of third world counties. They also highlight how things are different in different cultures/countries. Either way, the amount of ingenuity I saw inspired me to make my own lathe.

The first thing I think of is getting my dremel into my workbench/vice combo vertically. (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture :( ) Not the stablest of plans, but its enough to screw a wedge (yes, a wedge…hey, I had the ‘fever) 1×1cm tapering down to nothingness onto the screw mandrel, and sand that puppy. Oooh, I sand it good. It takes me a while, but I’m a proud new owner of a button. The next time I get my mini-hacksaw, and use that to rough out a cylinder, and then a chisel for finer work, but still a lot of sandpaper.

But I wanted more. I take a board, a drill and some zipties. This is what I come up with.

I make a few things (I even manage to turn Purpleheart!)

It’s all very nice and fun, but it’s still not enough! The vibrations are horrible, and the dremel keeps sliding around. I want to turn some pens, damnit! So I make a list of what I need to make/get for to turn a pen. It goes something like this:

• Lathe
  o Make a solid mount for my dremel
  o If extra support is needed, tailstock

• Mandrel
  o 7mm rod for slimline kit
  o Nut to hold blanks tight
  o Mounting system to dremel

• Blanks
  o Jig to drill straight holes without a drill press
  o Way to cut reasonable blanks
  o Milling system

• Supplies
  o Pen kit

Now I have my to-do list and lathe plans have replaced dancing sugarplums, I’m off. I think about a pulley system, but I deem that to be to complicated. Maybe next time.

But there is one thing I have already learned – No matter how, when or where, turning is always a magical experience!

Here’s a sneak peak at a future post:

P.S – Is there any place that you know of that I can buy a slimline kit and bushings, without paying $6 for shipping?

P.P.S – Clicky on the images to enlarge them!

Cheers, ‘till next time,
Marcel