JT Turning Tools has a new gadget

[Glen Blanchard]

Tom Steyer at JT Turning Tools has a new gadget for turners. As I understand it, although it has special application for hollowing, it can also be used to duplicate a spindle turned item. He has named it 'Cutter Vision' and apparently it will be debuted at SWAT.

More information can be found via a link on his website.

http://www.jtturningtools.com/

I have no financial interest in the company, although I own many of Tom's other offerings. I thought there might be some here who would find this interesting.

[Don Bunce]

Trent Bosch has a similar device called the Visualizer...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCg7jXCesEA

While I am as big of a tool junkie as anyone, it seems to me to be a super overkill. A laser pointer does the same thing.

Why not just get a CNC lathe, and let it do the work for you?

[Jim Underwood]

Great idea Don. You know anyone that makes one that will do hollowing?

[John Keeton]

I haven't seen either of these systems in use, but I am not sure I want to be fixated on viewing a monitor screen when I might be better served watching and listening to the turning spinning on my lathe at several hundred RPMs. Stuff happens quickly and being aware a millisecond prior to the event might prove valuable. The issue of lack of visibility when using my steady would still be present. I wish I had gone with three wheels instead of four!

The laser setup seems sufficient for my needs - unless, of course, it totally eliminates any chance of a catch!! If so, I might be willing to reconsider!

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

I wish I had gone with three wheels instead of four!

John, It's OK to treat yourself to a new three wheel steady rest. You worked hard for the right. By the way, I use a 2 wheel OneWay steady and the wheel is still in the way of the laser. Maybe we can get a quantity discount on two three wheel rigs>
As for the new gadget, folks, I'm so far behind the times, I just bought my first articulating system and laser. It took me forever to give up my purist instincts and stop hollowing by hand. I must admit to being fascinated by the technology but with a TV in the shop I might stop turning and watch old movies all night.
faust

[Jeff Gilfor]

Trent Bosch has been working on a similar product, and should be releasing it soon. Natural progression using current technologies.

[Michael Gibson]

Trent Bosch was demonstrating it in his booth in Phoenix at the International Symposium, impressive. Michael

[Glen Blanchard]

Actually, as I see it, there are a number of advantages to this technology when compared to laser use. The first and primary one is that the user is viewing the entire cutter - that is, 360 degrees of the cutter - not just a dot. This translates to never having to reposition the camera as is necessary with a laser. No more being concerned about having the laser dot on the tangent to know the true wall thickness. I will admit to having blown through the wall of a HF because I misjudged that darned tangent, and of course the thinner we turn the smaller that margin of error is.

Interestingly, maybe one year ago or so I read of a lens that can be placed over a laser that will transform the laser dot into a circle (thus theoretically achieving this 360 degree 'view' of the cutter). The lens is cheap so I bought one. I just could not get it to work to my satisfaction, so I gave up on that project, but I clearly recognized the advantage of being able to gauge the location of the entire cutter rather than just a single spot of the cutter.

I talked to Tom the other day and another cool application is to use it as a digital caliper. Certainly no one will be making this purchase just to retire their calipers, but those who use it to hollow will have this feature at their disposal. With the lathe turned off, the cutter is placed against the interior wall. The size of the halo around the cutter on the monitor is then adjusted (in the software) so that the halo kisses the outside wall of the vessel. The virtual ruler at the top of the screen provides a very accurate measurement of the wall thickness at that spot of the hollow form. No need to use calipers anymore, and of course the typical caliper is only as accurate as our ability to align it with that same tangent. Sometimes (for me anyway) that's easier said than done.

Perhaps I am just a geek, but I find it intriguing.

[Wally Dickerman]

John, It's OK to treat yourself to a new three wheel steady rest. You worked hard for the right. By the way, I use a 2 wheel OneWay steady and the wheel is still in the way of the laser. Maybe we can get a quantity discount on two three wheel rigs>
As for the new gadget, folks, I'm so far behind the times, I just bought my first articulating system and laser. It took me forever to give up my purist instincts and stop hollowing by hand. I must admit to being fascinated by the technology but with a TV in the shop I might stop turning and watch old movies all night.
faust

You can reverse the Oneway 2-wheel steady....put the wheels on the backside of the vessel. I do this when I'm doing a fully beaded piece. Works well.

I have an articlulated hollower as you do. I've used a Stewart armbrace hollower since 1987. I'm so used to it that on most HFs I often use it part of the hollowing. I'm old-timer enough that I don't rely on a laser until I'm working in the bottom half of the vessel. I have some good well usedcalipers that still see a lot of use.

[John Keeton]

IMO, much of "our" (turners) concern about how even or thin the walls are on our vessels isn't shared by the buying public. They seem to be drawn by other factors and first impressions. I rarely have anyone feel the inside or seem interested in the wall thickness or how even it is. They do occasionally comment on the lightness of the piece, which, of course, is a result of thinness. We, myself included, still strive for these things and it probably derives from what we want other turners to think of our work.

[Glen Blanchard]

I agree John. The exception however is if one intends to pierce. In that case, thinner is better......esthetically.

[Curt Fuller]

IMO, much of "our" (turners) concern about how even or thin the walls are on our vessels isn't shared by the buying public. They seem to be drawn by other factors and first impressions. I rarely have anyone feel the I side or seem interested in the wall thickness or how even it is. They do occasionally comment on the lightness of the piece, which, of course, is a result of thinness. We, myself included, still strive for these things and it probably derives from what we want other turners to think of our work.

John, I agree with your comment 100%. And I would also add that I think we sometimes get so caught up in the technical aspects, including wall thickness, that we loose sight of the artistic qualities of what we're turning. That's not to say that there aren't good reasons for getting consistency in wall thickness, and there are certainly some good, basic design principles that make a piece nice to look at. But I can't count the number of great pieces of wood I've sent flying across the shop just because I thought I needed to get that last 1/8" of wood out of the bottom where no one but another wood turner would ever even notice.

As for the fancy new tools that look into the unknown, I think they would be a great advantage for turning away wood where you can't see what you're doing. But what I'd really like to see someone invent would be a deep boring bar on a captured or articulated system that can defy the laws of physics and make a smooth cut at the bottom of a 10-12" deep hollowform, in endgrain, hanging out a foot or so over the tool rest, and through a 1" opening. THAT would get my attention.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

You can reverse the Oneway 2-wheel steady

Thanks Wally. I've never tried that. I just assumed the wheels needed to support the spot the tool was "talking to". With a bit of luck, tomorrow may allow some shop time. I will try your tip.
I also hollow smaller pieces with an old Stewart armbrace. The laser takes the guesswork away but I still find pride in successfully hollowing to a thickness of my choosing and a consistency that is somehow "almost good enough."
faust