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Rotisserie Vase

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Jan 14, 2020
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Hi,
So some time ago I was trying to figure out how to make the inside of my vases water tight. I still am. But it was suggested that I use epoxy finish. I found a great video by a man who does tons of epoxy finish on turnings. Lots of great information and ideas in that video. But he's got a crazy giant setup. As I've mentioned before my workshop is in a matchbox. So I set about figuring how to tone it down.
What I ended up with is pictured below. It cost a total of about $18.00. Plus $1,400 in research man hours. I am selling the plans here for only $1,350. The design was inspired by Da Vinci and the craftsmanship by Maloof.
The key was choosing the right motor and then finding all the fittings. A rotisserie motor is what you want, nice and slow and designed to run for hours. They range in price from pretty cheap to very expensive. I went with cheap. Many of the specifically rotisserie motors, are more expensive and really have no mounting brackets or anything. They also take a square peg as the driver. I found these little guys which are dirt cheap and actually have mounting holes and a male drive rather than a female.
I'll post a pic in case the link dies.
You can see it comes with a little brass driver that fits on the post coming off of the motor. So how do get something this small to drive a big ol 1-1/4" drive faceplace? That was difficult. Seems finding an actual fitting for a 1-1/4 x 8tpi was not gong to happen. So what I did was I took a 1" pine dowel and just crammed it in there and tried to force some threads on it. Not pretty. Or successful, really. But I got like 1 or 2 threads, enough to screw it on and off a few times. maybe more. Then I bought a 12mm deep socket for a socket set. I drilled a hole in the other end of the dowel and glued that in. Now that tiny little motor can turn my vase.
I thought about how much "power" these little guys were gonna have. But I figure, they have to be able to turn like.. a chicken. And my vases maybe the size of a chicken but they will be hollow. and .. not made of meat. So I think it'll be ok. I made the holder so there would be a second wall that would bare the brunt of the weight rather than the motor, added some wax, and presto.
So, lessons learned
1) make the threads better on subsequent model. Great ideas here in this link.
2) design scaffolding or whatever more intelligently so it will accommodate greater weight/size pieces. This works for may small trial vase and I figured I could screw it down if necessary but If I rebuild I'll make it nicer.
3) could probably use a bearing in the support wall and maybe in the driver wall.
4) motors come in different speeds. This two pack is actually two different motors one 2.5 rpm and one 6 rpm. Go with the 6. 6 rpm it turns out is incredibly slow.
But other than that I think it's pretty sweet. You can take the post off the contraption very easily because of the socket, and the post can ( supposedly ) screw on and off the face plate so that's modular as well.
I hope my (enjoyable) pain and suffering inspires someone and or saves them so work.
Raif
 

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Joined
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You can do the same with the motor off a discarded microwave. (Not the energy generator, just the little motor that makes the plate go round)
 

Bill Boehme

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I did something like that about 50 years ago except that I wasn't doing any woodturning back then. I was seriously into homebrew amateur radio (homebrew in ham radio talk means to build your own transmitting and receiving equipment ... not the other kind of homebrew that involves fermentation). Anyway, I needed to wind a modulation transformer for an AM transmitter ... I salvaged the iron laminations from a Bogen public address amplifier and used the rotisserie motor to rotate the transformer core while I guided the wire in nice even layers. I quickly realized that my eyes were going to roll right out of my head trying to count the number of turns. Luckily, I found an odometer-type counter at a ham radio junk store in Houston where I frequently hung out with other hams of my ilk. After a few thousand turns of wire, I finally completed the transformer just before getting drafted by the Army. So, my project got packed away. When I returned to civilian life I discovered that ham radio had undergone a dramatic change. AM radio had been completely replaced by a new thing called single sideband and my transformer was suddenly just a museum relic. But, I still have the transformer just in case AM radio makes an unexpected comeback. I also still have the rotisserie motor and now I am inspired to use it in my woodturning.
 
Joined
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Kokomo, IN
I found AT WAL-mart for $20 in the garden shop an rotisserie motor AND spit have made 2 one for home shop and one for my winter home (RGV). what I think to be most common spindle threads is 1"-8 and that is what mine are SO, a 1"-8 bolt is commonly avail at HD/Lowes n most any hardware.. weven if one uses the square spit rod saw the head off (IF you geta bolt NOT too hard ) U can drill a hole in the end jusst slightly undersize, drivve the square rod in that hole. maybe add some epoxy. then ya have threads for 1"-8 accessories to fit. SO buy a bolt with same treads as your lathe spindle etc and do the same. I have haad some pretty good size bowls on mine for hr.s on in. here is another 1"8 source, along an old abandoned RR one can find old bolts that are just layin around, ones that got thru the plate that joins 2 rails, THEY are also 1" 8 threads !
 
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Glenn, YES that should work for putting a finish on stuff from the lathe like some of us do. I find, best I can determine one of mine turns around 5 to 5 1/2 RPMs I use it most. I have one that seems to turn maybe 2 1/2 RPMs . it is easyier to end up with minor but not acceptable runs.. my favorite finish? Rustoleum 2X Clear. Deft was good but Walmart dropped it. Krylon does pretty good but Rustoleum seems to cure some what harder. DO NOT buy it at Jo-Ann Fabric or Hobby Lobby when Walmart or say Meijer sells it for just under $4
 
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So I did see the "cup turner" setups on amazon, but I did not trust the motor. I figured a cheap motor on a home setup would be easily replaced.
The main issue I had was going from the small motor axis to the large face plate. That is where I expended the most brain power. My lathe is 1-1/4" 8tpi, and HD has nothing of the sort. I did get some links to online sources in my other thread. However, unless you have a welder, which I do not, you still have to be pretty creative about making the connections.
I found finishing the inside was rather difficult, but then I watched the video I linked and found the secret. Home made angle chip brushes. I am only finishing the inside ( that is my plan anyway ) as I like a wood finish on the outside, but want the inside to be water tight. That said, even with the hack job I did on my first piece it does look pretty impressive. I could see doing the whole piece.
Bill, I've never tried to cook a ham on a rotisserie radio before. JK, I know what ham radio is :). AM is gonna be the next retro fad so just be patient.
R
 
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Raif, a hardware store if you are familiar with called Fastenal might have stuff that match your 1-1/4"-8 threads. if so I'd hope they are familiar enough with head markings to know they were not selling you a hardened bolt. I too have tossed around the idea of using epoxy to seal a vsse to hold water so live flowers could be used but have not as yet folloeed up on my minor thoughts.
 
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Bill Boehme

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AM is gonna be the next retro fad so just be patient.

I'm ready for it with my modulation transformer and a box of old vacuum tubes and electrolitic capacitors.i found my modulation transformer, just over fifty years old ... it's a beast at 6 pounds 2½ ounces.

image.jpeg
 
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Bill: I've seen a lot of intersections between hobbies (I've found other uses for my bookbinding equipment and bicycle tools), but I never would have imagined any use for ham radio in wood turning.
 
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I'm ready for it with my modulation transformer and a box of old vacuum tubes and electrolitic capacitors.i found my modulation transformer, just over fifty years old ... it's a beast at 6 pounds 2½ ounces.

View attachment 35792
That was state of the art back then! I just removed an old projection Tv from a Reno. Weighed like 400 lbs. another state of the art thing at the time.
 

Timothy Allen

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Not inexpensive, but one way (no pun intended?) to get a 1-1/4" male thread to mount your faceplates or chucks to would be this adapter from Oneway -- it fits onto 3/4" x 10 tpi, which is a standard thread in which you can find bolts and threaded rod at most any hardware store (and which also happens to be the thread on Oneway, Powermatic, Jet, Robust, etc... live centers).
 
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