practical woodturning projects (show and tell)

[Stephen Blalock]

“practical adjective​

3 : capable of being put to use or account : useful”
Merriam Webster

I am new to woodturning, enjoy this website a great deal. I would love to see practical stuff members make and use. I'll start.

leader cover UV protection

split shot holder

drink holder

reamer handle, for fishing rod cork handle

Boat for context

 

[Larry Copas]

It gives me great satisfaction to make something useful and beautiful.

A few of this years stool crop.


Lots of tools also are made.

 

[Larry Mitchell]

Bolt handle knobs

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Larry Copas: Those are very nice stools. I especially like the first one for it's simplicity. Can you share the dimensions please?

 

[Brian Horais]

“practical adjective​

3 : capable of being put to use or account : useful”
Merriam Webster

I am new to woodturning, enjoy this website a great deal. I would love to see practical stuff members make and use. I'll start.

leader cover UV protection


split shot holder


drink holder


reamer handle, for fishing rod cork handle


Boat for context

Here are some 'Twisted' peppermills and thermed stools to add to the list of practical items made on a lathe

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

useful but not pretty DC connection on top of the Dust Deputy. The two legged stool was to provide rest in Pharmacy but leave room for techs to pass by.

 

[Lou Jacobs]

to paraphrase an old expression: When you’ve got a lathe, every problem has a turned solution.
I was rehabbing an old hybrid bike for my daughter, and I discovered that the grip-shift rubber cover had deteriorated to the point that it was gummy and would come apart in your hands when you twisted it. After searching for just that cover, and finding none available (they only want to sell complete shift mechanisms), I thought of turning covers. These could just as easily be napkin rings, but the inside diameter had to be a very tight fit. Coated inside and out with several layers of polyurethane, then epoxied to the shifter. Works well, and I’m hoping she’ll get a few years of use out of the bike. If the side grain winds up cracking, which I don’t think is likely due to the epoxy, I’ll knuckle under and buy complete units. replacement shifters.

 

[hockenbery]

There are thousand of useful turned objects

First project I do in bowl classes is a carving mallet - used for 30+ years hitting stuff like spud drives
A carving plate with juices well.. used 40+ years for London broil, roasts, corned beef, etc.

Napkin rings useful for non paper napkins
Gavel - this one was used by our HOA president
Tool handles of all sorts two I use a lot
Globe useful for planning trips?

Baseball bats, croquet ball and mallets, golf tees, bocci balls,

 

[Larry Copas]

Tom, the first stool is my milking stool, but it is sometimes used for other purposes. It is 12" in diameter and 17" tall.

 

[Lou Jacobs]

Al, I’ve always admired and puzzled over your globe picture. It’s amazing! At first I thought it was inlaid, but now In the larger images I think I see the grain running from land to sea. Was it somehow masked and then sandblasted?

 

[hockenbery]

Was it somehow masked and then sandblasted?

Yes. Sandcarving a much simpler process. Fun to do

The Dec 2016 AAW journal has an article on the process with a 1/2 page panel on the process used for the globe.
If you want to do some sand carving let me know.

 

[Lou Jacobs]

Thanks! I’ll look for it.

 

[Lou Jacobs]

I just read the article Al. It was very clear and informative, but you’re too modest. You didn’t mention that you wrote it! I’m not ready to do it yet, as I don’t think I’ve got room in my shop for the blast cabinet, and only have a small pancake compressor, but I’ll keep it in the back of my mind.

 

[stu senator]

Here is a selection of stuff I made for the kitchen:
Round cheese board, small french rolling pin, honey dipper, two different types of wine stoppers, a tab can flipper opener, a drink muller, a fruit reamer and a push-pull for the wire rack of a small oven.
Nor shown are a few salt and pepper grinders, salt shakers, pen and pencil holders for the desk, salt cellars and even a temporary replacement for a stopper for a sink. And naturally lots of bowels and platters to hold stuff from fruit to the many remotes of the TV.
Don't we all?

 

[Lou Jacobs]

And naturally lots of bowels and platters to hold stuff from fruit to the many remotes of the TV.

I’d like to see how you get the remote into the bowel - or on second thought, maybe I wouldn’t. ;-)

 

[stu senator]

I’d like to see how you get the remote into the bowel - or on second thought, maybe I wouldn’t. ;-)

It holds the various remotes in a central place so, hopefully, they don't get lost.

 

[Pat Patterson]

I’d like to see how you get the remote into the bowel - or on second thought, maybe I wouldn’t. ;-)

It holds the various remotes in a central place so, hopefully, they don't get lost.

Trying to picture this. Made like a box with the remotes standing vertical?

Pat

 

[Lou Jacobs]

And naturally lots of bowels and platters to hold stuff from fruit to the many remotes of the TV.

Maybe I should explain. I was, with tongue in cheek, referring to the spelling “bowel” rather than “bowl.”

 

[stu senator]

<Maybe I should explain. I was, with tongue in cheek, referring to the spelling “bowel” rather than “bowl.”>

Spell check? I guess, always blame the computer it can't defend itself, yet.

<Trying to picture this. Made like a box with the remotes standing vertical?>

If it fits vertical or horizontal or in between, whatever you want and looks good and works so long as the family puts it back.

Stu

 

[RichColvin]

useful but not pretty DC connection on top of the Dust Deputy. The two legged stool was to provide rest in Pharmacy but leave room for techs to pass by.View attachment 46353View attachment 46354

Gerald,

I heard a story about a lab where the activities done (many years ago) were so boring that the staff would sometimes fall asleep whilst doing them (especially on 3rd shift). The solution was to give them stools with only a single leg. Then, if they fell asleep, they’d fall over and awaken again.

Rich

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Here's an old list of things suitable for lathe work if you're looking for inspiration.

 

[robo hippy]

Don't remember exactly, but there is a 'traditional' milking stool, one leg. It has also been used as a therapy stool for autistic kids. Gives them some thing to focus on.... I did make one once.

robo hippy

 

[Mike Johnson]

I have made a number of Ferro rod fire starters with wood handles made of fat wood with a compass mounted in the end of the wood handle.
If you need to start a fire you can shave some wood off of the handle to get a fire started in an emergency. I also made a few of them with a recess
in the handle under the compass that holds fishing line and hooks for catching fish in a survival situation.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

I like making screwdriver handles and mallets

 

[Mike Johnson]

Nice looking mallets & tool handles, turning mallets are pure mental therapy when turning them. I like to turn a slope on the top of my mallets so that the handle is pointing towards you when you set it down and pick it up from the table, There is a sweet spot in the angle on top to get the mallet to balance on a flat surface.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Pictures?
Everyone likes pictures. ...worth a thousand words, etc.

 

[Mike Braden]

Red oak gouge handles

 

[Bob Vaughan]

A one-piece replacement threaded locking handle for a Boy Scout Camp shaving horse

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Guard moving stud handles for jointer guards that did not come with such safety devices. Part 1

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Guard moving stud handles for jointer guards that did not come with such safety devices. Part 2

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Speaking of handles, here's some upgrade rosewood spinner knobs I put on a table saw I was restoring. I made these a little longer than factory and that helped some. A brass tube sleeve was epoxied in the hole to reduce rotating friction wear.

 

[Mike Peace]

I made this for my granddaughter from a Raffan book on toys.

View: https://youtu.be/9Uo_7Dgs16E

 

[Bob Vaughan]

Here's a "practical application" turning that uses the indexing mechanism. Made from a piece of tulipwood. Sometimes practical applications succumb to obsolescence, but I thought there will be those here that will appreciate a turned piece to replace the usual pencil point. The term: "colossal waste of time" comes to mind, but that's never stopped us before.

 

[stu senator]

"colossal waste of time"

It's not a waste if you enjoyed doing it, learned something or solved a problem that was bothering you.

Any one out of the three is a plus, more then one is even better.

Stu

 

[Tom De Winter]

I had to get to the last picture to realize what it is.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

I had to get to the last picture to realize what it is.

I just can't bring myself to throw it away like so much of the other obsolete entertainment detritus. I thought it would be mildly amusing to see.

Another practical use of the wood lathe below although it isn't a turned object. My wife did seminars where the attendees would use pencils. Sharpening a gross of pencils every few months got old real quick. The electric pencil sharpeners did a horrible job, so I rigged up the wood lathe to turn the handle. The rig beat the heck out of any other sharpening method both for speed and quality. I'd rigged this lathe with a DC motor so speed was adjustable.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

For those of you that do regular woodworking, another practical use of the wood lathe is sharpening mortising chisels. I tried two different type chucks and they both worked great.

 

[Don Wattenhofer]

How about a grab bar and a segmented door knob bumper.
Note: The grab bar is mounted on an outside wall in my house that is built with SIP panels (wafer board inside and out side with Styrofoam in between) thus the 6 screws. If you were to mount it to a stud wall I would suggest that you use 2 heavy construction screws thru the face of the flat area of the bar.
I have another identical one mounted vertically near my front entry way attached to the backer plywood on a pocket door.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

How about a grab bar and a segmented door knob bumper.

The grab bar is great. Nice turned proportions.
A segmented door knob bumper is a level of decadent luxury only an accomplished woodturner would have. I love it.