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Threading Jigs

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I am considering getting a threading jig. I have tried the hand held, but didn’t get good results. Also would like to thread softer woods like cherry and walnut using CA or a harder. The main jigs I have found is the Baxter, Chefswarekits, and one on Ebay from the UK. The Baxter is for sure a nice jig but I don’t have the $$ for it. The Ebay is relative inexpensive and may not hold up well. The Cheftswarekit has good reviews and within my budget.
Questions

Anyone use the Chefsware kit thread jig and is it a good value?

How easy is the setup and success rate?

I am considering buying both the 10 tpi and 16 tpi option. any reason not to buy a specific tpi?
 

brian horais

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I have the Chefware EZ Threading rig and am happy with it. I bought it with the 10 tpi and 16 tpi shafts. It is well made and comes with all the parts needed (except for a threaded rod to fit through your drive end to hold the cutting bit - but this is easily purchased at your hardware store). The unit is precise, but like any add-on, it takes some setup to get it aligned and some practice to cut the desired depth of threads. I've made threads on softer wood and used CA glue to harden the thread area. All in all, I think it is a nicely made unit that gets the job done. Seeing it in action at a woodturning symposium a few years ago is what sold me. Here's a couple of images of some threads I've made with it. Hope this helps.
 

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I don't use any of those type jigs however for going on 30 years I have made my own jigs and the cutting is always done with a cutter being driven by a router. I have cut threads in all kinds of wood including eastern white pine and no matter what wood you use any thing finer than 12 pitch is a bad choice. The problem with finer pitches is the close tolerances necessary such that the thread can not be loose enough to accommodate seasonal dimensional changes, with the result that a sommertime project may fall apart in the winter or a winter project jamming up in the summer. Buy the 10 pitch and don't waste money on the 16 pitch. The soft woods or any species that tend to crumble can be hardened with CA and it works best if you do 1 or 2 partial cuts then apply the CA with the work piece turning slowly and don't use accelerator.
 

john lucas

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I have very the Baxter and love it. Best jig out there. I also own one of the early models.of the chefware kits. I was in on the testing when they were being developed. I think the newer version is an improvement that makes it a very good.little jig. I use to use it when I travel because it will.fit any lathe. I have several posts.of different sizes for it..
 
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I have a Chefware kits jig ... perfectly happy with it. As Brian Horais pointed out, there is some setup and it takes a little practice to get it dialed in.

I don't use CA glue ... I stabilize blanks with Cactus Juice in a vacuum chamber, cut the threads in them, then use them as inserts in my turned vessels.
 

john lucas

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Unless the wood is really soft it's not necessary to use CA for the threads. I frequently do walnut and mahagony that isn't that hard with no problems. Cherry, maple and harder woods like Dogwood and Bradford Pear thread great. If I must use CA I usually cut the treads about 1/2 depth then put CA on. then cut to full depth, add some more and then make a final pass at the same dimension.
 
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Here's an example of using resin-stabilized maple as a threaded insert in an urn.
Threads.JPG
 
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Here's an example of using resin-stabilized maple as a threaded insert in an urn.
View attachment 34958
I don't understand why you would bother to use an insert on a segmented piece since the continuous side grain is excellent for cutting threads.
IMG_0680.JPG DSC00685.jpg These 2 urns show the possibilities; Pic 1 is a solid body with a segmented lid, Pic 2 is a solid lid with a segmented body. The other plus is the nature of segmented layers due to the longitudinal seasonal movement is the smallest percentage: example walnut is 7.8 tangential, 5.5 radial and 1.4 longitudinal, therefore seasonal movement of a segmented ring is negligible.
 
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Well, first off, Brian, I love those multiple center boxes you did.... So, where's the video??? I may have to experiment to find out....

I have the Bonnie Klein jig, which is not manufactured any more. I believe the Baxter jig was some what of a new and improved version of Bonnie's jig. It does take some learning, and I haven't done that video yet. I should probably get the Baxter jig so I can compare. With the method I learned from Bonnie, I made a bunch of waste blocks that were glued onto a 1 by 8tpi locking nut, and glued the box blanks onto that. This made it easy to do multiple boxes at once without having to use a chuck and do them one at a time. Made sense to me, but again, no experience with the chuck method.

Not familiar with the Chefware set up. Is that the one where you use a chuck, and then pivot it out of the way of the cutter to check your fit?

When cutting the threads, I never liked the CA glue for softer woods. I would use paste wax and/or walnut oil. It seems to lube up the wood nicely, and I could get clean threads with that method. I may have been too sloppy with the CA glue.

I have always used 16tpi cutters. A little less adjust on the shoulders of the boxes to time the threads. With boxes less than about 1 1/2 inch diameter, There was not enough wood movement that getting the lid off or on was ever a problem. Much over that 1 1/2 inch, then there were fit problems, but for me, that involved going down to Sacramento from Oregon for a craft show. I have done some myrtle and big leaf maple boxes with friction fit lids, and after about 2 years, the lids still spin and have the 2 second drop off fit.

What do you all finish the inside of your boxes with? Bonnie would use the Bulls Eye spray lacquer. Any penetrating oil would leave a smell that never seemed to go away...

robo hippy
 

john lucas

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I just use minwax wipe on poly. After I turn the inside with the #4 Hunter it's really clean and needs almost no sanding. then I just pour a little poly in and wipe it around.
 
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I don't understand why you would bother to use an insert on a segmented piece since the continuous side grain is excellent for cutting threads.

Two reasons: I make the inserts up in small batches ... right now I have 5 sets of inserts on the shelf ready to install. And I like them.
 
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Thanks for the responses. I had to take care of some medical things. Reading the responses lead to another question. What is the largest diameter you can thread? I believe from my research, about 1 3/4” is the largest diameter with the Bonnie Klien jig. I would think the Baxter also has a limitation, but can’t find what that is. Those two have their own mounting system where the Chefswarekit uses the banjo. I am hoping the Chefswarekit you can thread larger than 1 3/4”.
 
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Well, first off, Brian, I love those multiple center boxes you did.... So, where's the video??? I may have to experiment to find out....

I have the Bonnie Klein jig, which is not manufactured any more. I believe the Baxter jig was some what of a new and improved version of Bonnie's jig. It does take some learning, and I haven't done that video yet. I should probably get the Baxter jig so I can compare. With the method I learned from Bonnie, I made a bunch of waste blocks that were glued onto a 1 by 8tpi locking nut, and glued the box blanks onto that. This made it easy to do multiple boxes at once without having to use a chuck and do them one at a time. Made sense to me, but again, no experience with the chuck method.

Not familiar with the Chefware set up. Is that the one where you use a chuck, and then pivot it out of the way of the cutter to check your fit?

When cutting the threads, I never liked the CA glue for softer woods. I would use paste wax and/or walnut oil. It seems to lube up the wood nicely, and I could get clean threads with that method. I may have been too sloppy with the CA glue.

I have always used 16tpi cutters. A little less adjust on the shoulders of the boxes to time the threads. With boxes less than about 1 1/2 inch diameter, There was not enough wood movement that getting the lid off or on was ever a problem. Much over that 1 1/2 inch, then there were fit problems, but for me, that involved going down to Sacramento from Oregon for a craft show. I have done some myrtle and big leaf maple boxes with friction fit lids, and after about 2 years, the lids still spin and have the 2 second drop off fit.

What do you all finish the inside of your boxes with? Bonnie would use the Bulls Eye spray lacquer. Any penetrating oil would leave a smell that never seemed to go away...

robo hippy

I don't use a finish inside mine . I just sand to 800, then use a homemade sanding abrasive paste, then Doctors Woodshop microcrystal wax.
 

john lucas

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the Baxter with the 16TPI thread is limited to about 2" or more. I would have to go and measure. There is a lot of adjustability. I have not looked at the other thread pitch attachments to see if they are limited or how much. I guess I need to call Vic and find out. I've been thinking about getting a courser thread to do larger sizes. With 16TPI you only have .032" thread depth so wood movement can get to be a problem if you choose the wrong wood and make the box too large. That's why it's limited to about 2". With an 8 TPI thread you have a much deeper thread so can feasibly do a much larger box before fit becomes an issue due to wood movement. I have some very course thread chasers but have never had wood large enough and hard enough to turn a box that big to see how it works.
 
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There have been some comments about doing larger threads say 3" or larger, which should not be a problem if the piece is only 3" deep. The other consideration would be hanging a 10" high by say 8" diameter urn on the klein style jig would seam to overwhelm the jig. When threading a piece such as the urn in my avatar the actual thread cutting is can be up to 16" from the headstock mount when using my Lablond metal lathe so to dampen vibration I hold my left hand rubbing against the work piece. The piece in the photo between the chuck and the piece extends out about 16". I realize that most turners can't have a setup on a metal lathe, but this may be the reason that GRJensen likes his inserts.
IMG_0858.JPG
 
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... but this may be the reason that GRJensen likes his inserts.

True ... a 1/2" thick blank generates a lot less vibration than a 16" piece hanging off the jig. I also do some threaded inserts in Corian.
 
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Definitely good info from everyone. The more I read the post the more I realize what I didn’t know. I guess for me I was thinking mostly of lidded boxes. So a diameter between 2 1/4” and 2 3/4” would be in the range I’m thinking. 2” is great for an urn, but to me on the smaller side for a lidded box. I understand Geralds approach using threaded inserts. For urns I use the brass plumbing fittings. I think the diameter is between 1 1/2” and 1 3/4”. I believe Mike Peace has an article and/or a video on a home made jig that I will take a harder look at.
 
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My Baxter Threading Jig is good out to 5". The jig for lathes 10" to 12.5" goes to 3". For all the rest of the lathes12.5" to 28" they all are 5". My jig was purchased for one of my 16" lathes, after I bought it I asked Victor if he could make an adapter so I could use it on my 3520b. He said yes and I can now use it on all but one of my lathes (I have one lathe that has only a 10" swing). There are very few add-on pieces of equipment for lathes that can be matched up to the quality of this threading jig. When you buy from Best Wood Tools you can be assured your getting the best!
 
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My Baxter Threading Jig is good out to 5". The jig for lathes 10" to 12.5" goes to 3". For all the rest of the lathes12.5" to 28" they all are 5". My jig was purchased for one of my 16" lathes, after I bought it I asked Victor if he could make an adapter so I could use it on my 3520b. He said yes and I can now use it on all but one of my lathes (I have one lathe that has only a 10" swing). There are very few add-on pieces of equipment for lathes that can be matched up to the quality of this threading jig. When you buy from Best Wood Tools you can be assured your getting the best!

Thanks for the info Bill. That is a vote for the Baxter. I didn’t realize the baxter had that much range. Maybe save some more.
 
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