Sherline carbide cutting tool set-up

[Bob Ellis]

On the advice of somebody at Turner's Retreat, I've just acquired a copy of The Pen Turning Manual (Second Edition) by Thomas Hutchinson and the staff of HUT Products. I bought it because it has quite a lot about using a Sherline lathe (I have a Sherline 5000) for turning pens. However, it was published in 1998 and seems rather dated. I turn pens using hand tools and a tool rest to remove most of the wood and then change to a carbide cutting tool mounted in a tool post for the final cuts before sanding. The book advocates mounting the carbide cutter upside down in a rocker tool post and attaching it to the cross slide behind the mandrel so that it cuts on a 10 degree angle just above the centre line of the wood blanks. It claims that this will give a smoother cut and will deflect the chips downwards. I have never seen this mentioned in other books or in videos I have watched, so can anybody tell me whether this is still regarded as good practice or is there some reason why this method has lost popularity?

 

[Penpal]

Bob there may not be many turning on Sherline lathes but if I was I would use the lathe tool post and conventional steel bits to do the initial turning to the round.

Peter I have Taig lathes of a similar size.

 

[wm460]

This may be of interest to you.

The FoR (Front or Rear) Inverted Parting Tool

 

[Penpal]

The maker of Sherline lathes in Australia sold me their version many years ago together with attachments for turning wood I have not got a large hand but found it most tiresome the winding devices were so small its an ornament in the shed now have you got a pic of yours. I modified mine away from being a lathe.

Peter.

 

[Penpal]

The maker of Sherline lathes in Australia sold me their version many years ago together with attachments for turning wood I have not got a large hand but found it most tiresome the winding devices were so small its an ornament in the shed now have you got a pic of yours. I modified mine away from being a lathe.

Peter.

 

[Bob Ellis]

Thanks, Mark for the link, which was interesting but does not really address the issue of whether it is better to use a carbide cutting tool from the front of the lathe or from the rear mounted upside down.

I am sorry, Peter, that you didn't get on with your Sherline lathe. I have had mine for a 11 years and I love it. I bought it to turn brass, nickel silver and steel in connection with a finescale model railway I am constructing, but I have also gained great pleasure in recent months from using it to turn pens. Your suggestion about using a conventional steel bit in a tool post to make the initial cuts was the method I used for the first twenty or so pens I turned, but then I bought a Sherline tool rest and found that using that with a hand-held gouge was much quicker. I only use the tool post and carbide cutter for the final cuts because it makes them smoother and more consistent.

I will take a couple of pictures of my lathe set-up this afternoon and post them here.

Bob

 

[Penpal]

Thanks Bob my lathe served me for many years later not as a lathe but as a mandrel holder under a mill. Look for the pics mate and thank you I do prefer cutters in front easier to control and see whats going on .

Peter.