How to make a different wooden nutcracker for Christmas

I made this nutcracker out of oak and eucalyptus wood. I think it's threaded screw mechanism and the fun character make it a unique Christmas present from a woodworker to friends and relatives.

Tools and materials I propose: Wood threading kit Lathe Wood turning tools set Forstner bit set Woodworking vise Jointer planer

Table saw Bandsaw Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, that at no cost to you, I get a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.

The whole mechanism is just a screw that acts as a press against the nuts. To make the male screw I used pine, oak and eucalyptus. The wood that worked the best was eucalyptus. It is really hard and dense wood.

First of all I turned the piece true on the lathe. Then I flattened it with a straight chisel and a sanding block. I then added mineral oil as lubricant, and cut the male threads using my wood threading kit.

Next I planed a piece of oak on my jointer. I then cut it in half on the bandsaw and glued the two pieces together.

While the glue dried I started working on my character. I first made a tenon to fit on my chuck with my skew chisel. I then mounted the piece on the chuck. I established my measurements with the parting tool and did most of the shaping with the spindle gouge. I also used the skew in a few tight spots.

I drilled the bottom with a forstner bit. I gradually increased the size of the bit until I reached the diameter I wanted. I did all the drilling on the lathe.

Then I lubricated the hole and used my taps to start threading. The female threads are easier to make because my kit has two taps and completes the threading in two passes. 

I then glued the threaded dowel in the female hole.

I painted my character with latex paints. It is easy to find, doesn’t smell and dries really fast.

To speed up the drying process I used my heat gun.

I then parted the piece off the lathe, sanded it an painted the top.

I finished it with three coats of clear glossy varnish.

Then I squared the glued stock on the jointer and cut it to size on the tablesaw. I completed the cut in several passes to make things easier for my table saw.

Then I found the centers for the lathe.

I used a 38mm spade bit to drill the hole for the nuts. I drilled half way in. Then I used a regular drill bit to drill all the way through. Then I flipped the piece over and finished the drilling with the spade bit. This way I had a much cleaner cut.

Again on the table saw I removed as much material as I could, to save me some time on the lathe.

Finally I started shaping the base on the lathe. I mostly used my bowl gouge here.

Using the same process as before I created again the female threads.

I applied the varnish and my little nutcracker was ready.

I think it came out really nice. 

Have all a merry Christmas! See you soon with a new project video!