Different media for turning

[John Miliunas]

Fine, so this isn't wood, but it was turned on a *wood* lathe in a *wood*working shop by an aspiring *wood*worker. It was a test in a few ways. First, I needed to see if I could successfully put a hole in a large piece of clear acrylic for the upcoming bathroom remodel. I had a small slab of acrylic, so I tried it with an 8" hole. Although it's a bit time-consuming, the mission was a success, meaning I'll be able to do it on the big slab for the bathroom. So there I was, holding this 8" round piece of acrylic, 2" deep. "What the heck!", I thought. So, I chucked it up on the lathe and away I went. Slow, slow, slow process! A wood lathe is definitely NOT the best machine for this! I ended up whittling away at it, primarily using a 1" skew chisel as a scraper, of sorts. I wasn't sure what I'd end up with, so I just threw some straight angles at it and turned a hole in the center, about 2-1/4" diameter by 1+" deep. I figured I'd live with it a bit and get some other input on what to put in the center. A votive candle (with glass) will easily fit in there. A little bigger and I could put a potpouri lid on it. Bigger yet and it would make for a nice vace holder. Anyhow, here a few pics. The pics do not do it justice. It's really kinda' cool looking. Not the best photo setup and it's really kind of hard shooting something that's clear! Thanks for taking a peek.

[Michael Ballent]

VERY Cool!!! Did you need to do anything to get it polished up or is that right off the lathe? Why was it slow? Tools used or power of the lathe? Just curious and very nice work...

-Michael

[Jim Becker]

Nothin' like a little alterno-wood to make for interesting shavings! That's a nice piece, John.

[John Miliunas]

Nothin' like a little alterno-wood to make for interesting shavings! That's a nice piece, John.

Thanks for the nice comment, Jim.

Michael, ditto on the "thanks". It's slow, because one can't really use "traditional" tools for turning bowls. Well, you can, but I find that when using a bowl gouge, for instance, it tends to chip pieces of acrylic out. I mainly used a skew and parting tool, taking very small bites. Extremely time-consuming but yeah, the end result is kinda' cool.

As for finishing, I found that some of the areas came out pretty clean right off the tool. But, that's real heavy on the "some"! When I was finished with the actual turning, what was left is kind of a frosted look to the piece. Wet-sanding ensued, starting at about 220 and on up through all the grades of Micro-Mesh, right up to 12000. Then, I unmounted it, and slathered on a little automotive rubbing compound and buffed it on a wheel. If I do it again, I think I'm going to hone up all of my scraper chisels, making sure I've got a nice wire edge on each and use them.

[Dale Thompson]

John,
That "turning" looks great. You said that you used a 1" skew as a "scraper". You got a real fine finish for a scraping cut (any cut, for that matter). Did you try the skew as a skew? Maybe that's a bad idea because the bevel rubbing might generate too much heat.

Did you use any finish on your "candle holder"? I didn't see any scratches, but if there were some, I wonder if a jeweler's polish would take them out. You do REALLY nice work for a cheesehead!!

Since you like pics, I'll post one of a piece that our former police chief made out of acrylic. He also does flowers in red, blue, yellow and other colors. He also makes animals, such as giraffes, out of this material. I have no idea how he makes any of this stuff. On the other hand, I have no idea how talented guys like you think, work, create and share your skills.

Nice job, Spring, I'm getting that werewolf thing AGAIN!! AARRGGHH!!!

Dale T.

[John Miliunas]

Thanks, Dale! If I do much more of this type of turning or just using this medium, I think I'll get some of the polish specific for acrylics. I think PSI sells it, primarily for use on pens. Actually, pen blanks was the other use I was considering for this hunk of acrylic. Maybe when I cut out the real sink hole, I might cut some blanks out of it.

Your friend does nice work on those flowers, too. Looks like you can even see the veining on the leaves. Pretty cool.

[Richard Allen]

Hi John

Nice work. I have done a little bit of alternative material work. Tends to look machine made, even though I know it's turned by hand.

I have found that the speed of the lathe and the speed of the advancing cut into the material is real important on the acrylics I have turned.

Automotive rubbing compound works well to polish up the surface.

One thing you might want to consider is using acrylic in wood pieces.

In the attached picture, the eyes, nose and mouth are acrylic.

Thanks

Richard

[John Miliunas]

Hey Richard, now that's different! Cool. Yeah, I've thought about mixing the media, though this was my first attempt at anything this size with man-made material. I've done Corian pens, but that doesn't even come close in comparison. I found the toughest part to be holding the tool steady enough while going across the face.

[Dale Thompson]

Thanks, Dale! If I do much more of this type of turning or just using this medium, I think I'll get some of the polish specific for acrylics. I think PSI sells it, primarily for use on pens. Actually, pen blanks was the other use I was considering for this hunk of acrylic. Maybe when I cut out the real sink hole, I might cut some blanks out of it.

Your friend does nice work on those flowers, too. Looks like you can even see the veining on the leaves. Pretty cool.

Hey Spring,
First you've got to show off your talent and then you have to show off your wealth. Are youse 1 uv dem dere eego mainiacks? Whatever, don't EVER wave money in front of a north woods zombie. We will do ANYTHING for a few bucks to add some extra "mash" to the still. Remember, I know where you live.

In a later post you mentioned "facing off" as being a bit of a challenge. I may stand corrected but, according to some pretty reputable folks (not ME, Raffan), properly "facing off" may be one of the hardest cuts you will make on a lathe. Looks ta me lik youse has gots dat 1 purty wel down. Nice work, bud.

I like the idea of doing a "clear" acrylic pen. However, getting rid of the tube would require sizing a drill which has the same O.D as the tube. Bushings would also be a problem. Anyway, it would be "just for fun". You can buy them at Wal-Mart for a buck three-eighty. ool:

NOW, would you quit showing off for a day or two and let me recover some of my self-esteem?

Dale T.

[John Miliunas]

Thanks again for all your kind comments! Much appreciated, especially seeing as to how my own self-esteem is diminutive compared to Dale's! And Dale, no worries about more pics for a few days. I've got some ideas for finishing off the acrylic paper-weight, but too much to do otherwise tomorrow and into the weekend. Might try a bit more of my meager attempts at designing something for it Sunday. Don't want to give it away, but the intent is to have it feel as though it DOES belong on a WW site. We'll have to see if I can pull it off!

[Dale Thompson]

Thanks again for all your kind comments! Much appreciated, especially seeing as to how my own self-esteem is diminutive compared to Dale's! And Dale, no worries about more pics for a few days. I've got some ideas for finishing off the acrylic paper-weight, but too much to do otherwise tomorrow and into the weekend. Might try a bit more of my meager attempts at designing something for it Sunday. Don't want to give it away, but the intent is to have it feel as though it DOES belong on a WW site. We'll have to see if I can pull it off!

John,

I hope that you don't spend too much time on your paperweight. Remember that, chemically, plastics are actually liquids. Over a period of time (it may be zillions of years), all of your work will just be a "puddle" on your coffee table.

I hope that this doesn't cause you to lose too much sleep. However, as a friend, I thought that you would like to know.

Dale T.

[Jim Becker]

JohnRemember that, chemically, plastics are actually liquids. Over a period of time (it may be zillions of years), all of your work will just be a "puddle" on your coffee table.

Well, you know...techically, the same can be said about "us"...and it won't take a zillion years either! But I don't recommend we try "that" on the coffee table...

[Dale Thompson]

Well, you know...techically, the same can be said about "us"...and it won't take a zillion years either! But I don't recommend we try "that" on the coffee table...

Jim,
I'm about as close to a puddle as you can get without splashing when I get stepped on.

Dale T.

[Rob Littleton]

Nice work John........

I just got thru glueing together a whole bunch of red and white acrylic for a pen project.

I use the parting tool and went real slow. When it was turned to shape, i rubbed it down with several scales of sandpaper, then put the torch on it BRIEFLY to remove the lines. Came out awesome.

Thats a nice looking........erm.........thingy with a dollar in :-)

[John Miliunas]

Nice work John........

I just got thru glueing together a whole bunch of red and white acrylic for a pen project.

I use the parting tool and went real slow. When it was turned to shape, i rubbed it down with several scales of sandpaper, then put the torch on it BRIEFLY to remove the lines. Came out awesome.

Thats a nice looking........erm.........thingy with a dollar in :-)

Rob, thanks much! "Thingy". I like that. FWIW, the dollar isn't part of it, just under the piece to give some dimensional size and let the viewer see that this hunk is really, REALLY clear.

Not sure if this applies to acrylic, per se, but when I turn Corian for pens, I use a skew. A 1/2" Sorby with the oval shaft, to be exact. It works great, leaves a beautiful surface and requires very little sanding. Polishing with Micro-Mesh, mainly. For smooth finishes on spindle work, the skew is your friend. Well, except for when you get a "catch". You're the second one suggesting the torch thing. May have to try that!