pipemakersforum.com

I have a Premal bobble head in my shop.

mightysmurf8201 wrote:I have a Premal bobble head in my shop.

I am flattered/disturbed.

oklahoma red wrote:

wdteipen wrote:drilling and facing is better/more precise on a metal lathe. Shaping stummels is easier on a wood lathe.

I think there are a number of carvers that have rigged up tool rests in one form or another in order to use wood lathe tools on a metal lathe to get the best of both worlds.
I've done it on a limited basis with a bar extending out of a QC tool holder. The drawback in my opinion is freedom of movement is limited and cuts must be very light if the bar is hanging out in the breeze too far; vibration is an issue even with a fairly stout bar.

Yeah, I have something similar rigged on my metal lathe but it doesn't work as well as a wood lathe.

Same here, I use a 10mm carbide tipped cutting tool held the wrong way as a support for using regular chisels on the metal lathe (yes, up until now I've been using a regular chisel, not a wood turning chisel...)

works, but is far from optimal.

I made a tool rest for my 920 Jet metal lathe. I made it small but stout. I remove my quick change tool holder and mount this one too the cross slide. I can then adjust it any way I like to get close, I also made the rest adjustable up and down. And with it being small/short I can get in close to my work so I have the best accuracy of cuts without being too far from my work and with height adjustment of rest makes it easier to get the right tool angle as well.

I have a spindle adapter for my Trent Rudat chuck so it fits both my metal lathe and wood lathe so I can move a chucked block from one to the other easily. That way, I can do the precision work on the metal lathe and do the hand shaping on the wood lathe. It's the perfect solution for me because I prefer shaping on the wood lathe.

smokindawg wrote:I made a tool rest for my 920 Jet metal lathe. I made it small but stout. I remove my quick change tool holder and mount this one too the cross slide. I can then adjust it any way I like to get close, I also made the rest adjustable up and down. And with it being small/short I can get in close to my work so I have the best accuracy of cuts without being too far from my work and with height adjustment of rest makes it easier to get the right tool angle as well.

This sounds AWESOME! Are you willing to share a picture?