Woodturning: Tiny Scraps
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- Опубліковано 19 жов 2024
- I can't seem to throw away scraps of wood. Even the smallest pieces wind up in a pile or a bowl. If you also have this problem, this video is probably only going to reinforce your malady. I take my smallest scraps and show how to make them less trash-worthy.
This is Peter Brown's video that I mentioned: • Confessions of a Wood ...
Like what I see... I wear scrubs to work and a couple of weeks ago the draw string kept getting pulled into the waistband. I needed a couple of EMERGENCY beads. I took a little piece of hoarder wood and turned a couple of beads. The ladies I work with laughed and said only I could have a problem that required woodturning to fix. To that I said when you have a skill you only have to find a need. Thanks again for sharing.
Thom in San Diego
I agree completely! Thank you for watching. :-)
Hv NEVER seen ANYONE else rackle miniatures! Bravo!! 👏👏👍👍👌👌
Remarkable stuff!
The beauty of handcrafting, if you don't like it change it. This has helped a lot thanks for your time.
I'm glad it was helpful. :-) Thanks for letting me know.
I think they look cool. I can see some of those going on the top of a gnome's hat. Not to say a man can't do delicate work but... such delicate work for a man's hand to do. I am impressed.
I made a tool of my own after watching this video. Thank you!
I often turn items and use the full length of wood, so having a tiny drive center is a great help when I am finishing a piece. With my new 1/8 inch mild steel drive center I can more easily carve and finish the ends of these pieces.
If I need to I can make another from drill rod (which I would heat treat and temper) but the mild steel tool is working well so far.
I'm glad I could help. :)
Thanks for the chuckles and lessons this morning!! Second video watched and second with the skew....gotta overcome some fear, you and Mike Waldt make it look so easy! Thank you for sharing!
You're welcome! Thank you for watching.
You are a mad genius, John, & very skilled.
Jimmy
Ha ha ha! Thank you, Jimmy. :)
Awesome video and product. Can't wait till I can start turning. I'll be saving all my scraps until then!
WOW…and my wife thinks I'm a wood hoarder…gotta show her this. You may save my marriage! Thanks…just subscribed.
She just watched it…now she's added KNOBS to my honey do list. What was I thinking?!
It happens to the best of us. :)
Great Video! My wife says I horde to much because I think that maybe one day it will come in useful and sometimes it does, my neighbours also know where to come if they need something to help them out of a fix, now as a budding turner wood has been added to my "don't throw it away, it might come in handy" list Thanks for sharing ! All the best Bram.
Thank you! If I throw away a piece of wood some project will come up that would've been perfect. Thanks for watching. -- John.
The first thing that comes to mind, that those could be used for, is a knob for the string/chains on ceiling fans. I like to use exotic wood scraps (cocobolo) for those. Most people have ceiling fans here so they can be used for gifts, too.
Thanks for you sharing your demo.
You're very welcome. :)
I have the same affliction - never throwing my wood scraps away, no matter how small. I enjoy fly fishing and I can tell you these would make perfect fly reel handles.
I've always wanted to try flyfishing... maybe these are my "in". :)
I highly recommend it.
Hey if you ask me, that's just great art! Keep it up. This village in India where I grew up, I knew this very old lady (85+) who painted on grains of rice. At that scale your pieces of work are gynormous. Keep it up. I am a hoarder too, but for scrap electricals and electronics.
Thank you. I'm wondering whether I can turn rice on the lathe... :)
Gah, it's the curse of the creative person- wait, I can totally use that... for something! I have so many bits and bobs of various things, because I'm interested into so many creative media. Finding them, or even remembering them, can be harder than figuring out what to use them!
...interested IN, even. Stupid autocorrect.
+Laynie Fingers One more comment, since it's 2am... why not? Those little bits might also be fun to incorporate into jewelry pieces. I can imagine them as beads in a funky, chunky necklace!
A bead chain is on my list. :-)
My secret is to never hide things away where I can't see them... :-)
+Roundabout Woodworks That's a good one! 😀
first i thought you were turning beads, to make the actual jewelry. tiny turned earrings etc. then i thought it was going to be a tiny knight for a travel chess set. for a moment i thought it was a mini pepper grinder for a doll house. but i am quite satisfied with knobs too. replacement knobs for electronic devices or musical instruments would work well in my home. i guess i need to start saving even smaller pieces of scrap. i also have to practice a whole lot more. and i need to conquer my strong fear of the skew. thanks for sharing!
I enjoyed reading your comments. :-)
Small scrap happens automatically - just don't throw anything away!
I just heaved out a pile of scrap yesterday and feel just awful now. The guilt is overwhelming, but on the other hand I finally have space for an extra toothpick in the shop.
Ha ha ha ha! I feel your pain. :). Thanks for the laugh.
I can see me using them small scraps for band saw box drawer pulls. Oh no, does this mean I will become a wood scrap hoarder? My husband will thank you for this. ha ha ha ha
Yup. I'm an enabler. :-)
Ok, I guess that's ok its up to you. Nobody can tell you what to save or throw away, Right?
Vicky Wood an horses I won't throw away anything I don't have to sweep up. :-) It's not scrap until I can't turn it into something pretty.
Lol, great saying, I like that and its a good point.
Great little video,now I know why I have saved all those small off cuts of almond and rosewood, thanks
I use my scraps to make pens,pencils and little bits like that. I even use the shavings to put a burnished surface on my jobs. Wast not want not, not like it grows on trees!
Excellent idea! Looks like they would make good window blind pulls.
I like the way you think! :-) My wife put your idea on my list of stuff I need to make. ;-)
or that little thingy on the end of a pull chain for a light.
Brilliant tool control John, I won't throw anything away again.......well....I don't now! ;)
Great video
Take care
Mike
Thanks, Mike. I'm an enabler. :-)
In the beginning. Is that a grabow pipe? It looks to be a long bulldog variety. Maybe a yello bowl?
Sorry for the strange question lol.
+kaidanariko it's a Peterson XL24 Kinsale. I have a couple of grabows but I don't smoke them anymore because the bowls are small.
Well done, Iv'e been saving many scraps for projects also.You did a great job! Make more videos, needed in a world of giant everything!!!
Thank you, John. :) I haven't quit making videos; I've just slowed way down. ;)
Glue a nail in the end and you'd have a homemade pushpin. Since I began turning I have all sorts of little wooden pieces laying around, and this just gives me one more reason not to throw them away, thanks.
You're welcome. :)
Great! Nice style of presentation. I have a little metal working lathe with a 19" bed that I refurbished. Mostly use it for turning arrow heads and bits of Yew to plug knots on English longbows. Your vid' gives me some good ideas. Yeah I've got plenty of offcuts too!
I soooo want a metal lathe! :-)
I didn't know you could plug knots in a bow limb. Doesn't it weaken the bow?
Nice work, turning tinny things is tough and using a skew on them is very impressive. I too hoard little pieces, I have made glue ups using a 1/4" square piece of soft pine as a center core and glue the pieces around it to make some interesting pen blanks. I use the slightly larger pieces by blind drilling and gluing a small dowel 3/16" to 1/4" to grip in the chuck and use as a shank for small knobs.
Thanks, Doc. I get clumsy around glue. I've made more glue-ups by accident than on purpose. :-) The dowel is a good idea.
Neat. I did the same basic idea with a tiny screw (cut off the head with dremel) then screw end into tiny blank, then smooth end into dremel, then used a files and sand paper to shape. Worked really well
Looks like a pawn for a chess game. At first I thought you were making a rook for chess. I too like to save scraps of wood and now that I have a lathe of my own, I now have some more ideas of things to make. Thanks for sharing and nice job.
You could make a chess set (I thought you were making a pawn as I watched). You could also make a board to go with it if you have 64 little squares tiles lying around. It would be a good series of videos to see all of that being made starting from scraps to a finished chess set with a board that folds into a case to store the pieces in.
Or you could use what you made here as a weight that goes at the end of bathroom light-switch chord. You could also make thread bobbins and wooden thimbles. Great vid (and beard), btw. :)
I'd like to see you make a knight on a lathe...
+bob maki A design challenge to be overcome! :P
Amazing tool control! Your are definitely a master, albeit a little twisted, but a master none the less, lol ;-) Thanks it was great fun to watch!!!
LOL, I'm glad you enjoyed it. A little twist is what holds things together sometimes. :-)
Great idea but I would go with a mini screw chuck. When you screw up your piece to the face of the screw chuck it would totally eliminate the wobble and the tail stock would be unnecessary. Also having your small drive sticking out so far would also introduce extra wobble. This idea is fantastic though and I will be producing something similar today guaranteed! Thanks for this video. Perfect for small knobs and tiny finials
Thanks for the tutorial... You have motivated me in using the scraps...
about the drive/wobble issue, choose a bit 1/64th or 1/32nd smaller than the rod, so it fits tighter in the hole. I've used a 1/4 inch rod in a 3/32 hole to turn some wood I was sanding (never thought to put my drill chuck on the live head of my lathe though, put it in the drill press).
Wife: what did you turn today dear?
Me: an Oxo cube
Wife: Oh, that's nice dear.
...helluva job man. 'don't know if my eyes can cope with turning something that small though.
so i tried this with my tiniest scraps. because, i too cannot throw away wood. i decided to mount them on a stainless skewer or toothpick, and made a few sets of cocktail garnish toothpicks for my bar. they actually look real nice. thank you for the idea!
Very cool! You're welcome. :-)
Makes perfect sense John. Great idea.Thank you for sharing.
You're welcome. :) Thanks for watching.
Very nice how you made something of a little piece of wood like that. Good job.
Tiny mushrooms, i hole shelf of tiny different wooded mushrooms or glue them together say the size of a rubix cube and make a bowl as a test peace. Once turned in to a bowl you would have all the different odd shapes left in the side of the bowl it could look awesome or just poo but finding out would be fun part.
Great video.
Thank you. :) I made an adjustable sled to cut pieces for segmented turning but lost my enthusiasm for the idea before the first glue-up. :)
Many thanks for this educational video. This was exactly I was looking four
Great way to practice. If you were to string 5 or 7 on a mandrell they would make a nice little necklace. Good idea and very creative way to use up waste wood.
Here's a thought for your live center, I've got a set from Wood River with different inserts including one with a small extended tip.
I wanted to make a replacement pawn for a small chess set that a friend had. I used a wood dowel to start, but had to use the tailstock to hold it steady. I dipped the tip of the insert into some liquid electrical tape (Home Depot, FYI) and just using light pressure, it held it steady without leaving a mark.
Just something to think about.
That's a good idea. I use a foam ball but it gets in the way with small pieces. I'm filing your idea away in the back of my mind for later. Thanks. :-)
I agree wholeheartedly! No such thing as scrap wood 😆
Is this a good way to start learning wood turning? Or is this more of an advanced thing? You make it look so easy!
Hard for me to say. :-) Starting with a bigger piece of wood is probably better for a beginner. :-)
+Mike Waldt has a series of videos for beginning turners. Check out his channel.
Bro... beads? Beading is a huge hobby. Make custom beads, sell them on etsy! I'm serious. Hand made custom, rare wood, beads! You'll be a millionaire before you know it! LOL!
Custom Beads and Buttons!
The thing you made, looks like a really cool knob for one of those over size push pins, for cork notice boards.
You could make the whole board and sell it with the pins!
Thanks for another great video!
+itchy robot, really? I didn't know beads were a big thing. I was going to make a beaded necklace for my wife I just haven't gotten around to doing it.
check out the website etsy, and just do a search for beads, custom beads and wooden beads, in the craft supply category.
I see sandalwood, and hazelwood blanks.
Your rare wood beads could be the main pendant in a necklace.
Make pretty cylindrical shaped designs and put the hole through the top, across, like a cord, not along the cylinder.
I'll bet you could even be s supplier for one of the artists that make jewelry.
Beading is huge, and you could be a custom rare wood bead designer, just with your scraps!
Good luck mate! I really hope you get something like that going. then you'll have a real use for every little bit of wood that you kept!
All the best!
***** thank you! I'm gonna look into this, for sure. :)
Love it...... hahaha... but that takes some good turning skills and yes great practice....
Thanks...
And eyeglasses. :)
Cool idea! But it seemed your drive center was slipping a lot especially starting out. I would think you could use something like a 1/16" threaded rod or a small bold with the head cut off held in your drill jaws and threaded to the piece like a tiny screw chuck. I'm guessing that would also let you work with the tail stock removed at the end there to eliminate the little hole made by the center. May be an interesting idea to try. Great video though!
Thank you, Alex! I was using very light pressure on the tailstock in order to prevent a split, but a small screw would have been better. I just don't have any tiny screws long enough to work. :-)
It’s a great think piece. I guess we should always be jotting down snippets of ideas. Rod handle butts for one.
Thanks -- great ideas here. Nice way to make beads -- the kind we'd string together like pearls. Drill the hole maybe 3/4 way through, then cut (carefully) down to the side of the drive center to part off (puling the bead off the end when done. Could even make a 2" wooden tool rest for this sort of work...
Awesome! looks like the end bit on a pull-cord light switch!
Thank you. :) I usually make those a bit bigger than this one, but it does work for that.
Enjoyed!! You need to make some tuny tools to go with your tiny woodworking :)
Thumbs up as well
you have some beautiful work; ty for sharing with us
Thank you. :) And you're welcome.
I use my scraps from pen blanks to make refrigerator magnets, I first do a counterbore the size of the rare-earth magnets I have on hand. Then I make a mandrel out of a dowel with a tenon the same as the counterbore and from the back side of the dowel I drill a small hole then I attach the blank with a small screw t the dowel. Then chuck the dowel with the blank attached and turn to shape, sand, and finish. Then unscrew the finished turning from the dowel and glue the magnet into the counterbore.
Brilliant, pure brilliance. Why not make caps to protect the end of the darning needles! The cap could be the same wood as the needle.
Thanks for sharing an original video.
Cheers
Andy
Sorry I meant Crochet Hooks, good luck.
I see beads for necklaces. Great video and idea.
Brilliant! Thank you for sharing.
you could have made chess board king? lol but you have done a great job with that tiny bit of piece.....great to watch...cheers
:-) Thank you.
It's nice to see someone doesn't waste wood scraps. Here in England, our nursery schools use wooden beads and cord to teach hand/eye co-ordination. Perhaps the scraps could be used to make beads and donated?
Absolutely. :)
Great use of scraps that would normally be tossed out!
Nathan
Thanks! I can't throw it out if there's a chance of making it into something pretty.
I am a machinist and do the same thing with small metal scraps of non-magnetic metals. Best thing I do is turn it in to a little thumb type thingy, drill a hole, glue in a magnet, and use them to hold notes and drawings on my machines. I buy magnets bulk on ebay.
You've got me thinking... Thanks. :)
Thanks for the info. My woodturner friends save even the round pieces that you cut off the end and I go through their trash to find them. Make jewelry or glue the pieces together to make a sculpture. Little dolls, blocks for the grandkids. endless things you can do with a tiny block of wood.
I agree. It's not scrap until I can't make it into something pretty. :-)
Good for the clickers on the bedroom fan... Or even chess pieces well the more rounded ones pawns rooks castles and the like
woodworking is pretty interesting!.
In the beginning you had the perfect shape for a bell.
That's a good idea... miniature bells. I like it. :)
out of those small pices you could make necklace pieces, wristband charms, ankle bracelets, just a few ideas.
I hadn't thought about bracelet charms... Good idea! Thank you, Toby. :)
It sounds as if your lathe headstock bearings are knackered !. Would it be a bit easier if you made your drive pin a bit larger in diameter say 3/16" or even 7/32"and held the pin a bit closer to the drive chuck? You would not get so much deflection then
with a slightly larger diameter piece of scrap you could make some very nice control knobs for guitars and guitar amps, would need a brass insert with a 1/4th' hole in it for the shaft, and a set screw to hold it on, i would love to have a nice set of tiger wood, or curly maple, or maybe even purple heart tophat knobs to go on my amp, control knobs made from exotic woods fetch a pretty hefty price on e-bay, just a thought,
I've made a few knobs, but never with a brass insert. Gives me something to think about. Thank you.
lazaruscome4th
European style or Pandora style beads would be a money maker for sure.
Beads are on my list. :) I keep meaning to make a few, but I haven't yet.
A perfect pawn for a tiny little chess set!
A chess set is on my "one of these days" list. :-)
would make a perfect light pull
glue them all together and turn a bowl, salt and pepper shaker or something
Those skew catches were very scary! What did you do with the off cuts from this project?
I saved 'em, of course! Gotta be good for something someday. ;-)
+Roundabout Woodworks lol
Good evening, all. I'm coming late to the party, as usual, but this video popped up just after I'd offered to make small to tiny components for a friend to build jewelry out of.
Two comments and a question:
To a turner, there's no such thing as scrap, only very small stock.
Corollary: if something is too small to be turned or used, it's not scrap, it's dirt.
Could some of the flex and chatter be reduced or eliminated if the wire drive were run back so that the left side of the workpiece was very close to or against the chuck jaws? I'll have to try it and see.
You could make a chess set out of the tiny left overs. If you do can I have the first set. Love your wood working skills.
I just figured you're drilling a pilot hole any way maybe the screw would be better when you pull the tailstock away. Just a thought. But you would only lose one scrap.
You're right. If I ground the point of the screw flat it shouldn't split. It would hold better than my drive center. I'm going to give it a try.
Today on tiny turning: thumbtacks
I most definitely have the wood hoarder disease, in total of 5 big rubbermaid drawer storage cabinet along with a 3'x3'wooden bin full of tiny to small cut offs of woods from cherry to cocobolo and everything in between. Perhaps a little drive center like this one, is what my "precious" has been waiting for.
It hasn't made a dent in my "supply" but at least the pile isn't "scrap" anymore. :)
Waste not, want not. Takes a fine touch to do things that small.
Yup. Easy does it. :-)
How many of those tiny knobs do you have? Do you have sets of 4 that look close enough to be a set? If so how many sets do you think you have? How much would you charge per set of 4?
I don't have a set ready for sale, but I could turn a matching set of four knobs for you for $20 + postage to wherever you are.
You could make some awesome wood beads out of those tiny scraps.
That's why I started saving them. :-) I just have never gotten around to making any. One of these days for sure.
being a mechanic I'd use those for custom knobs or switches in a custom dash. perfect idea. let me know about cost on a five pack of those.
I'd need shaft sizes before I could offer a specific bid, but probably $5 each.
awesome. ill get with you on that soon, the project has been on the back burner for a while.
How about using a screw to attach the piece. You could use a long one like what comes with curtain hardware, cut the hook off and chuck it like your drive spur.
That's a pretty good idea, but with such a small piece of wood I worry about splitting.
Fishing reel crank. some of those are beautiful.
Great idea! Thank you. :)
yes and a wooden fly reel spool to go with it
I'm Cujo.... and I'm a wood hoarder.
LOL
Is there any more authentic camera angle than that at 8:45, right thru the beard whiskers ?
Doesn’t get more true
John, Hi, you could make small cups, beakers vases,etc for dolls houses,I know my grand daugter would love them for hers so I'll give it a go cheers malc.
That's a really good idea! My kids are grown and no grandkids yet but I'm filing your idea away for later. :-)
it certainly uses up the odds and sods wood wise,i too cant throw wood away,as soon as you do you need it,cheers malc.
Skill builder for sure.
Yes. :)
The term is actually 'Master Craftsman'. It is an antiquated term, but as you have seen, it is quite relevant.
I would like to see a bead with a floating ring in the center. Have you tried that?
I've never done a loose ring on a bead. I've done a few loose rings, but always on a cove. If the tip of the tool is small enough it should be easy. I'll probably have to make a tool to do it - especially at this size. When I get time, I'll make a video about it. Thank you, Lynne. :)
Thank goodness, I thought I was the only one! Regards
Not by a long shot. ;) Thanks for watching.
I don't keep or turn pieces quite as small as you turned but, the slightly bigger ones I use to make key chain fobs.
Good idea. I always say it isn't scrap til you can't make something from it. :-)
Could you turn thimbles? Wooden fingerpicks for guitar-players?
Thimbles would be no problem, but I'd need slightly bigger pieces of scrap. Finger picks... I'm not sure a lathe is the best tool for making finger picks. I might try anyway. :-)
Roundabout Woodworks I'd thought that a finger-pick is a sort of thimble with a lot missing. Okay, I admit it's a bonkers idea but I thought it might appeal to you.
Mark McCluney it does appeal to me. :-) I'll give the idea some thought.
Lamp or vase for dollhouse? I'm a wood horder also.
The first thing I thought of was "Chess pieces" when you began shaping.
Yeah, I get that a lot. :) Someday I'm going to make a chess set, but it won't be a surprise. :)
you could try some sort of jewelry too. A nice pendant or earrings.
Earrings are definitely on my to-do list. :) I already have the hooks, I just need to turn the parts.
I think they could turn out very nice. (Pardon the pun)
You made want a small lathe. Of course if I had a small lathe, I'd want a big one.
Lots of uses for these. Like everyone else I thought of chess pieces. I had to go far down the list to find anyone else that mentioned pushpins, but didn't see anyone mention zipper pulls.
I don't know why I hadn't thought of zipper pulls, but that's a great idea! Thank you. :)
I believe one could make a living making various tiny turnings, but I suspect you wouldn't be interested in that.
Marketing isn't one of my strengths, but I'm always interested in increasing my earnings.
As a person who makes dollhouses I can think of many uses.
Why not make thimbles from them? It is amazing how many people collect them.
chess pawn looks good
I find my cutoffs that are 6 inches and under make grate kindling to start the woodstove in my shop. I guess if I did not have a woodstove I would save smaller pieces like I do in the summer sometimes.
It doesn't get cold enough here to build a fire. :) Sometimes I wish it did.
Roundabout Woodworks
I regret burning them until I look at the thermometer and is says 0 degrees.
endlessmountainwoodworks Wow! I'd burn my scraps too! That's way too cold for me. My hands get stiff around 50.
Roundabout Woodworks
On saturday it is supposed to be -15 to -20. That is before windchill. I start burning when it hits 30 or colder.
endlessmountainwoodworks My freezer doesn't even get that cold! On the plus side we have lots of mosquitoes. I'd rather have cold. :)
you could use the small bits to make beads for a necklace. just a thought!.. great work,.
Good idea. :-) Thank you.
+Roundabout Woodworks Better idea: turn out some fancy beads for your beard.
Dangit_Bobby Nope. :)
I liked that first shape
Sometimes I can't tell whether a shape is really right until I get it off the lathe. I'm never afraid to change it up before it comes off. I haven't lost anything with scrap. :-)
I really tought you were going to turn it into chest piece. Nice job :)
Thank you. I will make a chess set someday. :)
Some say hoarder, others say pack rat, I say archivist ;-). Interesting video, I wonder how a used drill bit might work in place of the steel wire. There`s food for thought here, by the way Cool Whiskers. Mike
Archivist... I like that! If the bit was ground to a similar profile it work, probably better than the wire. Thanks, Mike!