NOVA DVR Tool Rests

[Jamie Straw]

One of BARN's lathes is a Nova DVR, which has only the stock tool rest, about a mile long. Not so good for my spindle students, especially when the stock is short. You DVR owners, or former-owners, what are our best options for tool rests (other than Robust, too pricey)??

 

[john lucas]

there are a couple of copies of robust rests out there. I would have to dig to find them but when I do I'll post it. I have some Bestwoodtools tool rests that I like. there are also copies of theres out there if you need to keep the budget low. I think Pennstateind has those.

 

[Stan Semeniuk]

Jamie, I turn on a Nova and have made a number of different lengths out of 1" round bar stock and have been very pleased with them. If you know someone with a welder it is a really cheap and effective way to go.

 

[hockenbery]

I love the Robust rests.

Got started with Ronust rests when I was doing a demo and said something like “I would normally switch to a short rest here but we’ll use the long one because I forgot to ask for a short one”. A nice gentleman in the first row reaches into a bag and asked “will this work”. It was a 4” Robust comfort rest. Used it, it was terrific, went straight to the trade show An bought my own.

I have a couple of J rests which are terrific too.

 

[Mike Johnson]

This would be a good project for the metal shop at the BARN.
Show them the lathe and banjo and what you need and they should be able to fabricate what you need.

 

[Jamie Straw]

there are a couple of copies of robust rests out there. I would have to dig to find them but when I do I'll post it. I have some Bestwoodtools tool rests that I like. there are also copies of theres out there if you need to keep the budget low. I think Pennstateind has those.

Yep, I use the Rockler knock-off for the midi-lathes (1221s). The DVR has a 1" post but length is different from the Jet 1236 we have. Mike is right about the metal studio, they can make some. I need to see what's available and figure out best way to go.

 

[Charlie Knighton]

I agree with Al.....4" Robust one of the best investment u can make

 

[Jamie Straw]

Jamie, I turn on a Nova and have made a number of different lengths out of 1" round bar stock and have been very pleased with them. If you know someone with a welder it is a really cheap and effective way to go.

I'm spoiled by the tool rests our member Jimmie Allen makes -- trained by David Schweitzer -- they are some kind of super-good steel, TIG welded, super-slick.

 

[Jamie Straw]

I was just looking at the modular system that Packard sells. Anyone use them? Review?

 

[john lucas]

One of my favorite rests the Bestwoodtools of set bar. It's a round bar that is of set. It's 9" long a the post is set at 3". Since it's round you can use it flipped either left or right. So for doing the outside of bowls I flip the long end left. For inside I flip it right. If it's a steep sided bowl and I need to get the tool closer I flip the 3" side inside. Great tool rest. My favorite is still the Robust mini that I had cut down to 10 3/4". This matches my mirror handles and works great for that. It's also thin enough it's easy to reach under it to support ornament finials with my fingers.

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

I was just looking at the modular system that Packard sells. Anyone use them? Review?

Have not use it but I do have a modular system from woodcraft. It works well except that little plastic piece on the rest came off pretty quick. The only real PIA is that they will come unscrewed. I have cranked down on them in a vice and that helps but defeats the modularity as then I do not want to change the rest (much harder after that tightening. The post does seem to slip a little in the PM and I do not recall on the Jet.

 

[Bill Blasic]

I have just got a few rests from Best Wood Tools and I doubt that better ones could be found.

 

[robo hippy]

The modular rests do come unscrewed, until, like in my shop from all the wet wood I turn, they rust in place, which kind of mucks up the modular part. I never cared for the round bar tool rests, they just don't 'feel' right, in part because as soon as you start to drop the handle, your pivot point moves away from the wood. You could make your own. 1 inch post, preferably cut to about a 15 degree angle for some lean, 1 1/2 inch by 1/4 inch cold rolled bar stock, and you can epoxy A2 (there is O and W drill rod also, but A2 is the best) drill rod on top. For sure in the beer budget range. The A2 is supposed to keep up some hardening just on exposure to air. It isn't as hard as the 'hardened' drill rod, but still better than straight bar stock. If you pay to harden the drill rod (local black smith should be able to do small amounts) welding it on does not seem to change the tempering of the rod. There does seem to be a shortage of drill rod right now. Been trying to get some for some rests I am making and suppliers have been saying, for months now, 'it should be in next week'...

robo hippy

 

[Jamie Straw]

One of my favorite rests the Bestwoodtools of set bar. It's a round bar that is of set. It's 9" long a the post is set at 3". Since it's round you can use it flipped either left or right. So for doing the outside of bowls I flip the long end left. For inside I flip it right. If it's a steep sided bowl and I need to get the tool closer I flip the 3" side inside. Great tool rest. My favorite is still the Robust mini that I had cut down to 10 3/4". This matches my mirror handles and works great for that. It's also thin enough it's easy to reach under it to support ornament finials with my fingers.

Yep, Jimmie (mentioned above) makes the offset one. He's a protege of Schweitzer and makes his own line of negative rake scrapers and specialty box-making tools. I'll have to find out the specific kind of steel he uses. I just bought one, and it definitely will stand up to knocks from an M42 gouge. TIG weld is nice and clean. Being a finish carpenter by trade, he's fussy about such things.

 

[Ely Walton]

One consideration is the distance from the top of the horizontal tool rest bar to the top of the "clamp-able" portion of the vertical post. Depending on the height of a specific riser and clamp on the banjo, this could determine how low one can drop the tool rest. For example, I really like using the comfort-style rest (e.g., Robust), but the Best Wood Tools round bar can drop lower in my banjo because there is no finger ledge. I hope this description makes sense - bottom line - a good case for having both styles...

Ely

 

[john lucas]

Yes when your doing pull cuts I like the handle really low so the tool rest needs to be close to the work and often go low in the banjo. Many lathes simply won't let you do that. Having a tool rest that is narrow in height like the round bar tool rests often lets you do that. The downside is the round rest moves your tool further from the work when doing a pull cut with a low handle. Of course other tool rests often do the same because the bottom swept back portion of the rest can hit the bar. My older powermatic rest for example the center cast portion simply sticks out too far. All rests have plus's and minuses. The plus of the Powermatic too rest is the side closest to the wood sticks out far enough that when the wood clears the rest it won't hit the banjo. The one dowside of my Robust and round bar rests is if you set the tool rest close to the work the work can hit the banjo. This only happens on long skinny work like natural edge bowls. On platters you move the wood up until it almost hits the banjo and then there is a fairly large gap between the wood and the smaller Robust and round bar rests. The larger Robusts don't do this because they simply stick out further.