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Thread: Materials for a shop made head stock

  1. #1
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    Materials for a shop made head stock

    My wood lathe came to me without a headstock (long story) and I fabricated one for it out of 3/4" plywood and a pair of flange bearings. It's been in service for almost 20 years and has served me well enough for spindle turning. But the bearings are making funny noises now and I want to redo it, and I hope to make version 2.0 better than the first.

    I'm going to keep the basic design, which is just a square box with bearings mounted to it. I'm looking for a material that'd be better suited for the task then plywood. It needs to be dimensionally stable and machinable with woodworking tools. Some amount of vibration damping would be a plus. Hard enough to be drilled and tapped, and also glueable.

    I'm thinking some kind of plastic or composite. I'm not a materials weenie, so I'm asking for suggestions here.

    This is the basic design that I'll work to:



    And this is what it looks like on the lathe:



    The spindle is machined from 1.5" steel and will be reused.

    TIA

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Cullen View Post
    My wood lathe came to me without a headstock (long story) and I fabricated one for it out of 3/4" plywood and a pair of flange bearings. It's been in service for almost 20 years and has served me well enough for spindle turning. But the bearings are making funny noises now and I want to redo it, and I hope to make version 2.0 better than the first.

    I'm going to keep the basic design, which is just a square box with bearings mounted to it. I'm looking for a material that'd be better suited for the task then plywood. It needs to be dimensionally stable and machinable with woodworking tools. Some amount of vibration damping would be a plus. Hard enough to be drilled and tapped, and also glueable.

    I'm thinking some kind of plastic or composite. I'm not a materials weenie, so I'm asking for suggestions here.
    This is the basic design that I'll work to:
    And this is what it looks like on the lathe:
    The spindle is machined from 1.5" steel and will be reused.
    TIA
    Dave you show some excellent work there. If plywood has lasted you 20 years I would think that 3/4" MDF would last 30-40 years(just WAG). It is very stable, glue-able, machinable, thread-able etc. The only thing I might do to improve on threading it would be, as soon as I cut a thread, soak the threads with thin CA. They will be a little rough after treatment but a second pass with the tap will fix that. I make all of my vacuum chucks from MDF and treat all the threads with CA. The threads after treatment are more like a hard strong plastic then wood. Good luck on the update.
    Last edited by James Combs; 04-01-2015 at 12:14 AM.
    ____________________________________________
    JD at J&J WoodSmithing
    Owingsville, Kentucky

    "The best things in life are not things."

  3. #3
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    Thanks James. I hadn't considered MDF because of its propensity to absorb moisture. But the project will be painted, so that isn't really an issue. I think MDF does OK as a vibration damper too, seeing that it's used in speaker enclosures.

    Would be cheaper than the phenolic or Garolite stuff I've been considering, too...

  4. #4
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    If you use MDF, consider the exterior grade. I used EXTERA brand for some jigs, shellac on them, and they have not dimensionally changed in 6 years.
    The exterior stuff is heavier, water proof (not submerged of course), and paints better than standard MDF.
    Bill
    On the other hand, I still have five fingers.

  5. #5
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    +1 on MDF but be sure to get the best, densest, grade and paint both sides and all edges. Should be bullet proof.
    The older I get the better I was.
    Member Valley Woodturners, Ottawa

  6. #6
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    If the bearings are making funny noises, you'll need to replace them. Maybe no need to redo the headstock.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Don Bunce View Post
    If the bearings are making funny noises, you'll need to replace them. Maybe no need to redo the headstock.
    Version 2.0 will be a bit shorter, so that the spindle extends out a little and I'm not against the headstock when turning the back side of a bowl. Also want the center point accuracy better and I'll be switching to a VFD motor.

  8. #8
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    Put a couple coats of glue on the edges of the MDF to seal it before you paint it.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Cullen View Post
    .

    I'm thinking some kind of plastic or composite. I'm not a materials weenie, so I'm asking for suggestions here..

    TIA
    consider baltic birch plywood. Not cheap but extremely strong and obviously can be cut, glued etc. like wood.
    i can't recommend MDF, it's much too soft to hold screws etc.

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