Chasing thread chasers

[Dave Jones]

Hi, all

I've been looking at getting some thread chasing tools for a while. I've looked at half a dozen brands, watched half a dozen videos, and still don't know which way I want to go.
What's your experience with chasing threads? Has it paid off, or cost hair by the handful?
On a more specific note, have any of you tried the Carter and Sons with the ball in the middle? I don't mind the price, but the design is such a departure from other lathe chisels (with their full size, comfortable looking handles and all that) that it's off-putting.

 

[Vincent Vogel]

I bought one of those and like it better that the two piece sets. My experience with hand thread chasing is it takes a lot of practice and you need hard wood.

 

[Brian Gustin]

On a more specific note, have any of you tried the Carter and Sons with the ball in the middle? I don't mind the price, but the design is such a departure from other lathe chisels (with their full size, comfortable looking handles and all that) that it's off-putting.

View attachment 84918

I have that in 16 TPI.. Love it mainly because it means I only have one tool to keep track of , with the 2-tool sets you have to keep track of the sets which could become a problem if you get into threading enough to have multiple size sets..

I assume I lucked out with my first ever threads - while they were no where near perfect, and looked horrible, they actually did work on the lidded box I made, using walnut wood - But again, I'd note it'd be really difficult to get good threads on typical domestic hardwoods , though the actual use and process of using the tool is quite easy .. the hardest part is getting the perfect size tenon and mortise to make your matching threads - Id recommend watching Sam Angelo or Mike Peace on youtube for tips on thread chasing which to me helped a lot for my first attempt.

 

[john lucas]

I have been hand chasing threads for 20 years off and on. I have tried or own most of the brands on the market and have 3 sets of antique chasers. Ive also made my own. In my opinion the Carter and sons is the best. They all work and the difference is subtle but his just seems to be easier to use. Also both cutters are attached so you will never lose or misplaced one. I picked up 12 antique thread chasers at a booth in a flea mkt. Only got 3 matching pair out of that treasure. I will probably nake matching mates some day for the others.
I do most of my threading with a Baxter threader because woods that are good for habd chasingcare hard for me to find or buy.

 

[Thomas Wilson]

I have been hand chasing threads for 20 years off and on. I have tried or own most of the brands on the market and have 3 sets of antique chasers. Ive also made my own. In my opinion the Carter and sons is the best. They all work and the difference is subtle but his just seems to be easier to use. Also both cutters are attached so you will never lose or misplaced one. I picked up 12 antique thread chasers at a booth in a flea mkt. Only got 3 matching pair out of that treasure. I will probably nake matching mates some day for the others.
I do most of my threading with a Baxter threader because woods that are good for habd chasingcare hard for me to find or buy.

Does the jig make chasing possible on typical domestic woods? Are there any species that never will form a good thread, even with the jig?

Thanks,
Tom

 

[robo hippy]

The Baxter threading jig is excellent. It will allow you to thread woods that can or will not take hand chased threads. He is a one man shop, but the machine is very high quality. If you want to hand chase, you need boxwood, mountain mahogany which is very rare, or dogwood. Some can get hard maple to cut well. Osage is not one, even with the Baxter, it likes to chip out.

robo hippy

 

[John K Jordan]

I bought a Carter by accident but it feels good in the hand.

Mark StLeger suggests to learn to practice thread chasing with PVC pipe - cuts well, no grain to deal with.

Like Sir Lucas, I prefer to thread with a Baxter jig from Best Wood Tools. SO easy to use. Works wonderfully on ebony, blackwood, holly, hard maple, rosewood.

If you find a used one take care that it was made for your lathe since to have BWT adapt it for a larger or smaller lathe may not be I cheap. I bought the jig for the Jet1642 but can't use it now since I gave the 1642 to a friend and it won't fit the PM3520b - thought about milling a riser. It sits quietly, lonely in a box, depressed, dreaming of making threads.

JK

 

[Wyatt Holm]

I have a set of Hamlet chasers, I don't think they make them anymore. I learned thread chasing from Mike Mahoney, the Carter set is his design I believe. If I had to start over, I would get the Carter set.

 

[john lucas]

The Baxter threader allows me to cut threads in tge softest woods. I do soak really soft woids with thin CA before I cut. Then I cut the threads to half the depth. Then coat again. Cut to final depth. Coat with CA and make one final cut without changing anything.thats probably overkill but ut works

 

[Vincent Vogel]

The biggest problem I have is getting the male and female threads the right diameter to work together. I've had good results with hard maple.

 

[Richard Findley]

There’s definitely a knack to thread chasing but worth practicing. The main think is to develop a sense of touch, brute force and thread chasing don’t mix at all. Not tried the Carter but it looked good when I saw it in St Paul.

If you work cross grain (like a bowl blank) you can thread almost any wood. My demo in St Paul was in Walnut and it cut beautifully.

Richard

 

[John K Jordan]

The biggest problem I have is getting the male and female threads the right diameter to work together. I've had good results with hard maple.

I have to figure out the dimensions each time. Also, don’t make the points of the threads too “pointy.” I have a book on my shelf with good info, can’t remember the name at the moment.

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

Hi, all

I've been looking at getting some thread chasing tools for a while. I've looked at half a dozen brands, watched half a dozen videos, and still don't know which way I want to go.
What's your experience with chasing threads? Has it paid off, or cost hair by the handful?
On a more specific note, have any of you tried the Carter and Sons with the ball in the middle? I don't mind the price, but the design is such a departure from other lathe chisels (with their full size, comfortable looking handles and all that) that it's off-putting.

View attachment 84918

Mark St Leger previously had some available. I have a set of 16 TPI, and they are excellent. I also have lots more that I purchased from eBay UK. I have a nice collection of antique chasers. I believe I have 10-19 TPI.
The Ashley Iles are worthless. Even the replacement was unusable. The Sorby ones are good, but the huge handle is cumbersome. I do not like the NR profile of the Carter chaser. In my opinion, it makes it harder to sharpen. I have one, but I rarely reach for it.

 

[Bill Blasic]

The Baxter Thread Master is simply a work of art, machined by a Master Machinist. I can put threads on any wood from 1/4" to 5" diameter holes. There are a wide selection of threads available. I made a video using it and had a little problem that Victor saw and he told me to drop it off at his place on my way to the symposium. It was a problem he took care of years ago. I stopped back after the symposium and he had it updated. The problem was using a big chuck when you loosened it to move it it leaned forward. My biggest chucks will not make it lean now. I had an opportunity to buy an BTM-12.5 and did so and I had Victor update it to the BTM-12.5X. You can adjust .001 at a time, you can back it off to check your size and when you move it back you are right where your supposed to be. It is very accurate. I worked for GE as a machinist for over 34 years and every time I put one of these on one of my lathes I marvel at the construction. Is it expensive, yes a little so but when you see what you get you won't be disappointed in its build or its use.

 

[John K Jordan]

Does the jig make chasing possible on typical domestic woods? Are there any species that never will form a good thread, even with the jig?

John Lucas mentioned what it did with CA for some softer woods with the Baxter jig. Really works, with every species I've played with.

As for hand chasing various woods, I was reminded of what I wrote on another forum about a Mark StLeger demo at our club:

Among other threaded things, he demonstrated "his Baseball sphere box with hand chased threads. Mark made the baseball from ash, almost impossible to thread cleanly, so he demonstrated hand-chasing on a piece of PVC pipe then chased the threads in PVC inserts glued to the ash."

In case anyone is interested, I have a MS Word doc of this. (I don't see how to attach it to this message without converting it into a PDF)

Mark St Leger previously had some available. I have a set of 16 TPI, and they are excellent. I also have lots more that I purchased from eBay UK. I have a nice collection of antique chasers. I believe I have 10-19 TPI.
The Ashley Iles are worthless. ...The Sorby ones are good, but the huge handle is cumbersome. I do not like the NR profile of the Carter chaser. In my opinion, it makes it harder to sharpen. I have one, but I rarely reach for it.

Nice summary!

I got several sets of hand chasers from Mark StLeger one of the times he came to Knoxville to do a demo and workshop. I think they are good.

WARNING: Off-Threading-Topic alert!!

Mark is such a pleasant person! Since he had family in our area he gathered up kids and grandkids and brought them to my farm to visit with the llamas and alpacas!

Had time for a little shop visit too.


Mark is kind and generous, always has time for people. At one symposium I had a pocket full of finger tops and he got down on the floor to encourage a kid learning to spin them. After a few tries, the boy was able to spin one upside down:


JKJ

 

[John K Jordan]

I have to figure out the dimensions each time. Also, don’t make the points of the threads too “pointy.” I have a book on my shelf with good info, can’t remember the name at the moment.

@Vincent Vogel

The book I use is "Making Screw Threads in Wood" by Fred Holder.

Making Screw Threads in Wood: Holder, Fred: 9781861081957: Amazon.com: Books

Making Screw Threads in Wood [Holder, Fred] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Making Screw Threads in Wood

www.amazon.com

Covers everything - the tools, calculations, the why. Thread chasing and jigs. Projects.
Want to thread? Get this book! (Anything by Fred Holder is worth reading.)

Page 15 has a diagram of the flats on the threads, saying they are "extremely important on wood threads."

Page 34 covers sizing, diameters, the math. For the threads thread pitch I used the most I wrote down numbers in the book.

I also have this one: All Screwed Up! (chased threads) by John Berkeley.
www.amazon.com/All-Screwed-Up-Puzzles-Featuring/dp/0941936937



Yes, I'm a confirmed, card-carrying book fanatic, since I learned to read. First the books at school, then the bookmobile. It got a lot worse when I started getting my own money.

JKJ

 

[Dave Jones]

@Vincent Vogel

The book I use is "Making Screw Threads in Wood" by Fred Holder.

Making Screw Threads in Wood: Holder, Fred: 9781861081957: Amazon.com: Books

Making Screw Threads in Wood [Holder, Fred] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Making Screw Threads in Wood

www.amazon.com

View attachment 84984

Covers everything - the tools, calculations, the why. Thread chasing and jigs. Projects.
Want to thread? Get this book! (Anything by Fred Holder is worth reading.)

Page 15 has a diagram of the flats on the threads, saying they are "extremely important on wood threads."

Page 34 covers sizing, diameters, the math. For the threads thread pitch I used the most I wrote down numbers in the book.

I also have this one: All Screwed Up! (chased threads) by John Berkeley.
www.amazon.com/All-Screwed-Up-Puzzles-Featuring/dp/0941936937

View attachment 84985

Yes, I'm a confirmed, card-carrying book fanatic, since I learned to read. First the books at school, then the bookmobile. It got a lot worse when I started getting my own money.

JKJ

I'm a sucker for books with goofy titles. I might have to check both of these out.

 

[hughie]

I made my own, a simple double sided tool, as I couldnt understand why you would need two separate tools other than a sales option to sell more. The material is 1080 high carbon steel not HSS as 1080 is well within the range all of us to heat treat in the shop either in water or oil.
As I dont churn out heaps of screw cut items the edge is not a issue. Hollow ground on a 200mm wheel and the edge touched up with a diamond hone. The front edge can be sharpened to act as a cutting edge to clean up the start of the thread if necssary

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

My favorite books are Bill Jones compilations of all of his articles from Woodturning Magazine UK. Bill was the last of the Ivory turners. He demonstrated with Alan Batty around the US and the Utah symposium. "Notes from the Turning Shop" 1 & 2.
I was a long-time subscriber to Fred Holder's "magazine", a journal maybe? He had a lot how to articles.

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

The Baxter Thread Master is simply a work of art, machined by a Master Machinist. I can put threads on any wood from 1/4" to 5" diameter holes. There are a wide selection of threads available. I made a video using it and had a little problem that Victor saw and he told me to drop it off at his place on my way to the symposium. It was a problem he took care of years ago. I stopped back after the symposium and he had it updated. The problem was using a big chuck when you loosened it to move it it leaned forward. My biggest chucks will not make it lean now. I had an opportunity to buy an BTM-12.5 and did so and I had Victor update it to the BTM-12.5X. You can adjust .001 at a time, you can back it off to check your size and when you move it back you are right where your supposed to be. It is very accurate. I worked for GE as a machinist for over 34 years and every time I put one of these on one of my lathes I marvel at the construction. Is it expensive, yes a little so but when you see what you get you won't be disappointed in its build or its use.

Almost pulled the trigger on the Baxter. I would love to have one to be able to make woods like Koa with threads... Maybe I'll get one in Raleigh if he's there.

 

[John K Jordan]

Bill [Jones] was the last of the Ivory turners.

I never knew about the “ivory turners.”
I have a little turned ivory box made by a local person maybe 40 years ago. It has a threaded lid with hand-chased threads. She did some wonderful scrimshaw on the top of the lid. It’s a treasure - should prob keep it in the safe with the opals and the diamonds (just kidding) but I like looking at it!

I have a few whitetail dear antlers. I’ve heard that people turn those.

JKJ

 

[Mike Peace]

The Sorby ones are good, but the huge handle is cumbersome. I do not like the NR profile of the Carter chaser. In my opinion, it makes it harder to sharpen. I have one, but I rarely reach for it.

Totally agree about the awkward sized Sorby chasers. I turned a replacement set of handles similar to a Crown set I have and they are now so much better to use. I did a video on this.

View: https://youtu.be/Z7YzOOyOF04

 

[Mike Peace]

I made my own, a simple double sided tool, as I couldnt understand why you would need two separate tools other than a sales option to sell more. The material is 1080 high carbon steel not HSS as 1080 is well within the range all of us to heat treat in the shop either in water or oil.
As I dont churn out heaps of screw cut items the edge is not a issue. Hollow ground on a 200mm wheel and the edge touched up with a diamond hone. The front edge can be sharpened to act as a cutting edge to clean up the start of the thread if necssary

Clearly one solution does not fit everyone. I do a fair amount of thread chasing with a variety of manufacturers chasers. I tried making one from a bolt. It did not work for me. Here is my experience.

View: https://youtu.be/9apyQ7_Ew54

 

[hughie]

One thing important the cutting edge must be on centre of the thread diameter, plus high carbon is fine grain allow for superior edge. So a bolt won't work as the thread form is rolled on, not clean enough form.