Tool rest question

[Art Moore]

My Google-Fu is not working this morning, so:

My lathe came with a flat tool rest. I see a lot of aftermarket rests that either have a round rod welded on top of the post or have a rod welded on top of the flat. Can somebody explain the advantages/disadvantages of each type, or is it just a matter of preference?

[Brent Wells]

The smooth rod (hardened steel) that you see on robust and some others gives you a smoother tool rest. It will not get beat up when roughing or if you have a catch like the original that came with lathe. There will be less maintenance where you do not have to sand or file smooth. This helps with getting one smooth cut with out ridges.

[John Keeton]

The Robust rests will also let you have your fulcrum point closer to the work for better control.

[John K Jordan]

My Google-Fu is not working this morning, so:

My lathe came with a flat tool rest. I see a lot of aftermarket rests that either have a round rod welded on top of the post or have a rod welded on top of the flat. Can somebody explain the advantages/disadvantages of each type, or is it just a matter of preference?

Cast iron: One of the standard procedures for using a wood lathe is to periodically dress a cast iron rest with a file, sandpaper, and wax. I think the "other" John Jordan, the famous woodturner, still insists on this in every class.

One important thing is the SMALL diameter round rod, at least the one fastened on the top of the Robust rests, is hardened steel. You can't dent or scratch it easily such as with cast iron. I have a half dozen Robust rests, different sizes, and I rarely use my other rests now.

The other type you mention, with a LARGE diameter round rod at welded at the top is a different story. Hardened or not, I don't like them (I have several, some I made myself) A 3/4" rod, for example, forces the contact point to be too far away from the work, in my personal opinion. Sometimes this is OK, but other times it is a compromise. This is an example: http://bestwoodtools.stores.yahoo.net/tmotoresy.html They are very pretty. Many people love them.

JKJ

[Art Moore]

Thanks for clearing this up. I kind of figured that a small round rod would give better control, but wasn't sure. My cast iron rest has already met the belt sander to smooth it and break that sharp front edge. As far as "pretty" goes, I'd much rather have "functional".

[Damon McLaughlin]

I find it hard to slide a tool with a flat bottom along the cast iron tool rest at an angle, for example when shear scraping. I've rounded the edge on my scraper to make this easier. Nova's modular tool rests appear to very similar to the Robust.

[robert baccus]

It is fairly easy to put a hardened rod on a favorite tool test --very cheap also. Buy a "air hardened" rod at a steel supplier store --grind a flat on the cast iron rest and glue it on with JB weld glue. The Robust one i have was done this way and broke on me. Yours may differ in construction. The rod is heated to cherry red and allowed to cool in air by the way.

[John K Jordan]

...JB weld glue. The Robust one i have was done this way and broke on me....

For those who don't know, Robust makes the rests differently now. The rods of several of the older rests have popped off, sometimes after dropping the rest.

Brent English (Robust Tools) said this:
"...the early ones where just epoxied. Current production is spot welded and further bedded with epoxy.
THE RESTS ARE 100% GUARANTEED. If this happens to you or you bend one because you got a big catch, just return it for replacement. NO QUESTIONS ASKED.
Just be sure to provide your return address."

JKJ

[Reed Gray]

The A2 drill rod is a lot harder than both the oil and water quenched drill rod right out of the box. However, all will work better if they are hardened/heat treated before you put them on a tool rest. The JB Weld does work, and if you drop them, they can pop off, but repair is easy. Any local blacksmith should be able to heat treat pieces of drill rod. There is a noticeable difference in hardness and slickness with the hardened drill rod, as in muck less friction. Haven't used cast iron in years... Never will again.

robo hippy

[Damon McLaughlin]

I mentioned in an earlier reply that the Nova modular tool rests appeared to be similar to the Robust lathes. I had a chance today to see both the Nova and the Robust side by side and while they appear similar when looking at photos they are not comparable. The Robust tool rest is much thicker and heavier, I would suspect that the Nova modular tool rests would be fine for mini or midi lathes, but their lighter weight and thinner bodies would probably be prone to vibration. Another important note is that while both have a round rod afixed on top of the rest the one on the Nova is not hardened like the Robust. There are many reviews of the Nova being soft and easy to ding and gouge if one gets a catch. My new to me lathe came with a couple Robust tool rests and they are such a step above the cast iron rest that came with my Rikon.

[Adam Petersen]

I can verify David's statements about the Nova modular. Not my best purchase. The rod dings almost as easy as cast iron.

[Joe Frank Porter]

I have a laguna Revo 18/36. The tool rest that came with the lathe has the rod attached, but I often get nicks in the rod. I don't know if the robust tool rest will be better. I am planning on getting a couple of the Robust tool rests in different sizes and hope it is better, since they get such good reviews.

[Reed Gray]

Experimenting with hardened drill rod, I can take a sharp file and a hack saw blade to the hardened drill rod (both Robust and some I did myself), and I can get scratches in it, but you can barely feel them, so more like scuff marks than dents and dings. Haven't tried this on the Laguna tool rest as I don't have one...

robo hippy

[Art Moore]

You guys are good salesmen. I see a couple of Robust rests in my future. Thanks for the heads-up on them.