Airborne In Canada

[Bernie Weishapl]

Ron glad to hear you are ok. I have the Trend which I bought directly from them at about a 50 to 60 dollar savings. It is very comfortable, is lighter and is not as hot in the summer. I really like it.

[Jim Becker]

Drop about 70 US bucks or the equivalent into one of these Pin Chuck things. Easy and useful for roughing green or turning cured in safety, because they allow you to make everything a spindle turning until the very last....Which you may do safely with any gouge you properly apply to the work..

George, it's important to distinguish between "putting something between centers" and "spindle turning". In general, the vast majority of "spindle turning" has the wood grain running parallel to the lathe ways. Tools like a spindle roughing gouge work very well for these situations. In effect, you might be able to use one safely to rough a large end-grain bowl or vessel, although this turner will stick to his Ellsworth gouges.

Where spindle rouging gouges get into trouble is with grain that is crossway to the ways...so-called faceplate orientation. The alternating face and end grain places major stress on the tool, especially with the way they are typically ground. The chance of catches and subsequent tool breakage and possible personal injury are nasty...so much so, that the turning community at large is now saying that this is an improper tool for such work.

Using a pin chuck, or a screw chuck or any other accommodation will not change that. I'm not saying that one cannot choose to use "any gouge" if one prefers...and if you have the experience to do so, that's just fine. But there are many folks new to turning who don't understand the forces involved and those are the people who invariably "launch" a big hunk of wood or worse, the now-un-handled tool...sometimes into their own body.

Safety first.

[Harvey M. Taylor]

I agree with the longer screws, and would add: one of those three-wheel bowl steady rests would be in order when it comes time to move the tail-stock out of the way.

[Jim Underwood]

Nick Cook mentions a friend of his who did a similar thing with a spindle roughing gouge, and had the tool embed itself in his jaw.

I'll stick with those who avoid the use of this tool for faceplate turning.

[George Tokarev]

Nick Cook mentions a friend of his who did a similar thing with a spindle roughing gouge, and had the tool embed itself in his jaw.

I'll stick with those who avoid the use of this tool for faceplate turning.

Always makes us old folks wonder if we just have so many more people out there who don't think, or whether we really are losing our ability to do so.

Before your time, back into the seventies, there was no such thing as a cylindrical gouge. Hadn't been for as long as there were turners. Everybody used something similar to what we now call "roughing" gouges, and the "long and strong" versions used for reach over the rest were really expensive. Machining a flute in alloy steel became possible, was cheaper than forming and forging, and the "bowl" gouge was born. Then we had to learn how to grind and use it. As you'll notice from the number of ways it's done, we're still playing. Or, as I would contend, none is superior to the others.

We lost our collective memory in the interim, and now we blame the tool that did the job for so long.

It is a poor workman who blames his tools.

[George Tokarev]

George, it's important to distinguish between "putting something between centers" and "spindle turning".

Not if you define spindle as between centers as opposed to not between centers. Grain orientation is a confusing way, in my opinion. Means I can have a piece mounted on a faceplate, rotating around the long grain and it's a spindle?

Then there's the great truth of turning that it doesn't make any difference to the wood if it's rotating along the grain or across it. The gouge is a great equalizer, and if you proceed as you would in a long grain piece on a cross grain, cutting across the fibers and wedging downhill, it won't take long to discover it. Diameter is larger, but most people spin their smaller diameter stuff faster than large in the belief that it takes more energy to remove the same shaving from a smaller piece than a larger.

Look at the process not from the turner's point of view, but the turning, and you'll see it's true.

[Bruce Smith]

Ron, sorry to hear about your accident but it certainly is a good job you were wearing some protection like you know it could have been much worse. Check on this forum as well as some of the others as there is presently a couple of individuals in the process of purchasing either the Trend or the Triton, lots of good user information on the postings. I personally use the Triton (2 years) and really like it, no complaints. I sent you a Pm as they are presently on sale on this side of the border. Good luck on you decision.

[Mark Pruitt]

Bummer, Ron. I would just go with another face shield and a pair of Safety Glasses. I doubt that a Trend would have afforded you any higher degree of face protection.

I think I would hang the face shield you were wearing on the wall as a tribute to its doing its job.

[Glenn Hodges]

Sorry it happened Ron. Did you have the tailstock run up to the piece?

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

Glad you are OK Ron.................how is the lathe

I have the Triton, and I like it, got a great deal on it here in Japan (I do not know that the Trend is for sale here??). The face shield on the Triton is really beefy, and I have a lot more confidence in it surviving a direct hit than any face shield I've owned. The only thing I could think of that would be better, is a full face motorcycle helmet, with a similar fan and filter system built into it.

I was actually thinking about making one of these with an old full face helmet I have, but then the Triton came to me in such a great deal.....

Be careful out there!

Cheers!

[Ron Journeau]

well, ordered the triton yesterday, on sale for 219 canadian, Busy bee mailed me today that it is already on the way, so it won't be long..

Mark, good idea, will mount the shield, scratches, blood and all, a real conversation piece...and yes, the tailstock was up and running, but not as fast as I was, trust me

[Jim Underwood]

It is a poor workman who blames his tools.

Yup...... that old Nick... he's such a poor workman.