How to make a swan neck hollowing wood turning tool from an old file

With a tool like that you can hollow forms because it can penetrate in really difficult areas.

I made it from an old file, because files are made of tool steel, which should work nicely on a project like this one.

First of all I cut the steel to size with my angle grinder. I also used the angle grinder to remove most of the file marks.

I finished cleaning on my belt sander.

I then used my tilting base on the grinding wheel to grind the bevel of the tool at a consistent angle.

I heated the tool to red hot with my propane torch. I used two metal bars mounted on my bench, and while it was still hot I bended the steel to shape. I repeated this process a few times, until I was happy with my tool’s shape.

I then placed the steel in my home made foundry and when it became red hot I dipped it in oil to harden it. To reduce the tool’s hardness and prevent it from snapping I put it in the oven for 2 hours at 180 degrees Celsius.

I cleaned the tool with sandpaper and oil. I also used my rotary tool to clean the curvy parts.

I cut a piece of maple on my bandsaw, and used my chisels and a mallet to carve a groove for the tool to sit in.

I glued the pieces together using wood glue and clamps. 

I mounted the handle on the lathe and used a spindle gouge to round it over. 

I used my rotary tool to cut a piece of metal tube.

I created a tenon to receive the tube. I used the scraper to make a curve and the skew to round over the back. I used a spindle gouge also. I sanded the piece on the lathe and finished with mineral oil.

I used my home made disc sander to sand the metal ring flush with the tool handle.

I glued everything together with two part 5 minute epoxy glue.

I sharpened the tool using several grits of sand paper, a wood sanding block and oil. I finished with a piece of leather with polishing compound. Every time I created a burr I removed it and moved to a finer grit.

At this point my tool was ready. I think it will come out really useful in future wood turning projects.

I hope you liked it!

How to make a DIY lumber rack

I needed a place in my shop, that would be dedicated for storing lumber.

I made this rack out of spruce boards and screws.

I cut the pieces of the same length all together. I clamped them together and used a mallet to set them in line. I then used my circular saw with a guide rail to make the cross cut.

I begun the build by making the sides. I made pilot holes and screwed everything in place.

After the two sides were ready I added the cleats, again with screws. I also used a 90 degree straight edge, to make sure everything was straight.

I then cut the inner braces to size, with a handsaw and a miter box. To hold them in place before screwing them in, I used a piece of rope and a piece of wood in the way a bowsaw blade tension can be adjusted.

At this point the carcass of the rack was ready. I can add more shelves or compartments in future if I have to.

I hope you like it.

DIY pallet wood toy warrior on the lathe

I had a long thick block of wood from a pallet and I decided to make a wood turning project with it.

First of all I cut the piece to size using my bandsaw. 

I used a draw knife to remove as much material as I could, before mounting the piece on the lathe.

I then rounded over the piece on the lathe. I used a  carpenter’s curved chisel as a roughing gouge to do that.

I then made a template of my piece on a piece of heavy paper. I used the template to establish my basic lines on the lathe. I then used a skew chisel to kind of carve the basic shapes on my piece.

I measured the template with my caliper quite often to establish the basic shapes on my blank.

I then used the skew chisel, a spindle gouge and a flat chisel to turn the body of the warrior.

I sanded the piece and removed the tailstock to turn the head. I sanded the piece with 100 grit sand paper.

I drilled the holes for the arms. I enlarged the holes gradually, by using several drill bits. I also made two holes to act as eyes.

I cut the body to size on the bandsaw and sanded the bottom on my lathe disc sander.

I then turned the arms and the sword. The sword is attached to the arm with a hole, which I made on the drill press. To flatten the blade of the sword, I used my disc sander again.

I then turned the shield of my toy warrior. I drilled a hole in the center using the lathe’s tailstock with a drill chuck. I removed the shield with my parting tool. I cleared the back on my disc sander. I also turned a small pin that fits in the shield. 

I glued the pin in the shield. I also glued in the arms. I wanted the shield and the sword to be removable.

My little warrior toy was now ready. Pallet wood is not ideal for wood turning because it chips really easily.

But I think it was an interesting project and turned out nicely in the end!

Pine bowl on the lathe

I made this a bowl from a piece of over 40 years old pine tree.

No video for this one, it just came out really nice. The top is made of scrap plywood and spruce.

I finished the pine with mineral oil. The top is painted with acrylic and clear varnish.

The grain patterns are really impressive on this piece, I hope you like it.

DIY Santa claus for Christmas Ornament Challenge 2016

I made this Santa out of of bitter orange and lime tree pieces. 

First of all I chucked the bitter orange piece on my lathe and turned it true using my scraper tool.

On a piece of cardboard I designed and cut out half of my Santa’s template. I wanted a simple minimalistic design.

I then used the template to mark my lines on the lathe. I used a skew chisel to establish my measurements. I then used the parting tool to remove material and kind of create my basic forms.

To round over a few parts and to create the cone for the head I used my spindle gouge. 

After I was happy with the shape I sanded the piece on the lathe.

I cut of the base on my bandsaw. I sanded the bottom using my homemade disc sanding jig for the lathe.

I then chucked the lime tree piece between centers and turned my Santa’s arms. I used a regular straight chisel to do that.

I then drilled the arm holes on my drill press. To hold the piece down I placed it on a wooden base with a hole in the middle. 

I glued the arms in place and drilled two holes to act as eyes.

I then drilled a pilot hole and added a metal hanger on the Santa’s head.

I painted the piece with acrylic paints. I finished by spraying a few coats of clear acrylic varnish.

My Santa was now ready. 

Check out more information about the ornament challenge and the other entries on those links:

Christmas Ornament Challenge 2016

Alan Stratton

Alan's youtube channel

Carl Jacobson

Carl's youtube channel