A tool I'd like to see.........

[Odie]

I don't know, maybe there's already such a thing......but, I've been noticing some laser guides for drill presses that appear to put down a line, not a point. I have a use for something like this, if it were attached to a #2 MT. I could instantly see where the center line on a bowl in progress is.....all the way across the entire circumference and interior.

Is there such a critter?

otis of cologne

 

[Odie]

One thing that would be necessary is a way to make sure the MT laser holder goes in the same way everytime......otherwise, the beam wouldn't be level with the centerline of the workpiece on both sides. (must not turn on the axis at all)

I suppose something could be made up to accomplish this, but I can't think of a good way to do it off hand......anyone got any good ideas?

OOC

 

[Mark Warden]

I just saw one of these in the sales flyer on woodcrafts website pretty cheap.Maybe if you make a base that fits tightly in the bedways mount a piece of tubing on it to mount the laser you can use a 4 point drive spur to align the center then every time you put it on the bed it would show center.

 

[Odie]

I just saw one of these in the sales flyer on woodcrafts website pretty cheap.Maybe if you make a base that fits tightly in the bedways mount a piece of tubing on it to mount the laser you can use a 4 point drive spur to align the center then every time you put it on the bed it would show center.

Thanks Mark.....

That is a thought that might have some merit to it.....thanks.

I saw the same Woodcraft internet flyer (I'm on their email list), and I believe it's what initially got me to thinking about this, in the first place........shouldn't do that very much, because every time I get to thinking.....it costs me money! Ha,ha,ha,ha!

OOC

 

[Richard Baker]

Odie, am wondering if you could mount a laser level (magnetic base) on top of the tailstock and align before mounting the work on the lathe. The laser line would be on top of the work, but it would be a center line.

 

[john lucas]

Odie I'm not sure why you would want to have a center line through a bowl. Now it would be handy above the lathe pointing down to help center natural edge bowls or to locate the bottom of a bowl.
It would be handy in a morse taper to check for alignment of the tailstock or the headstock, kind of like a bore sight in a rifle.

 

[Rob Wallace]

I made one....

I use a crosshair laser when I do my "Geometry of Woodturning" demonstration to use as a two reference lines (horizontal and vertical through the main rotation axis) so that when I talk about tool position the audience (and camera) can see the center-line of the lathe, and more importantly, the position of the tool rest and cutting edge of the tool relative to the piece's diameter and rotation. I think it's an effective teaching tool.

You can build one fairly inexpensively by searching for 'laser diode cross lines' on eBay. I bought a few for about $ 6.00 each (shipping extra).

This is the kind of laser diode modules I have:

http://cgi.ebay.com/6-x-650nm-5mW-R...ryZ53141QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

They run on 3V DC from a simple battery pack; I mount the diode in a small piece of brass pipe and run a small wire to a switched battery pack (Radio Shack) that's mounted on the stem of a magnetic indicator base. Once I mount the laser in the indicator base tool holder at the end of the adjustable arm, I can easily attach the magnetic base to the bed of the lathe or the tailstock mount, and quickly position the laser lines on the work.

John Lucas: You can use the old 'string shadow kerf indicator' with a strong light and taught string above the lathe to imitate the 'shadow cut line' of a sawmill's rip saw or gang rip saw. Would work the same as a laser with a bit less complexity.

The crosshair laser works well for me when demonstrating faceplate technique....

Rob Wallace

 

[Odie]

I use a crosshair laser when I do my "Geometry of Woodturning" demonstration to use as a two reference lines (horizontal and vertical through the main rotation axis) so that when I talk about tool position the audience (and camera) can see the center-line of the lathe, and more importantly, the position of the tool rest and cutting edge of the tool relative to the piece's diameter and rotation. I think it's an effective teaching tool.

You can build one fairly inexpensively by searching for 'laser diode cross lines' on eBay. I bought a few for about $ 6.00 each (shipping extra).

This is the kind of laser diode modules I have:

http://cgi.ebay.com/6-x-650nm-5mW-R...ryZ53141QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

They run on 3V DC from a simple battery pack; I mount the diode in a small piece of brass pipe and run a small wire to a switched battery pack (Radio Shack) that's mounted on the stem of a magnetic indicator base. Once I mount the laser in the indicator base tool holder at the end of the adjustable arm, I can easily attach the magnetic base to the bed of the lathe or the tailstock mount, and quickly position the laser lines on the work.

John Lucas: You can use the old 'string shadow kerf indicator' with a strong light and taught string above the lathe to imitate the 'shadow cut line' of a sawmill's rip saw or gang rip saw. Would work the same as a laser with a bit less complexity.

The crosshair laser works well for me when demonstrating faceplate technique....

Rob Wallace

Thank you for adding that, Rob.......

That's very much what I had in mind. I could use something like that to quickly reposition the tool rest height relative to the thickness of the tool I am currently using. I do this now with a wooden block that shows the exact center height.......the only trouble with that is it requires me to slide the banjo away from the work in progress......something I wish not to do under certain specific circumstances. (note: this is why, John)

Do you suppose a couple of standard 1.5v batteries would work to supply energy to the unit? (with an on/off switch in-line).....or, is this what you are describing anyway. If so, where to get a battery pack unit?

I have a #2 MT unit that could be adapted for this purpose......or, they are not difficult to obtain.

Again, thanks

OOC

 

[Rob Wallace]

Hi Odie:

You asked:

Thank you for adding that, Rob.......
< snip! >

Do you suppose a couple of standard 1.5v batteries would work to supply energy to the unit? (with an on/off switch in-line).....or, is this what you are describing anyway. If so, where to get a battery pack unit?

I use a simple battery pack bought from Radio Shack that holds two AA batteries:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062252

This battery holder unit has just enough room to fit in a small micro-toggle switch that I put in series the B+ wire to have an on-off switch. I glued on a block of acrylic plastic to mount the battery pack to the magnetic indicator holder. I did not want to use the tailstock/quill to mount this for demonstration purposes, since I can still use the laser if I need to bring-in the tailstock to get the blank trued-up before I start the demo.

I have a #2 MT unit that could be adapted for this purpose......or, they are not difficult to obtain.

Again, thanks

OOC

If John L. thinks this might be a useful 'turning hint', I can take some photos and submit it to American Woodturner - assuming Betty will continue to publish this part of the journal.

The laser's quite easy to put together and use; I actually first made another similar "dot" laser and adjustable mount that I have adapted for use with my John Jordan hollowing tools. I'll be making yet another laser/battery pack at the end of this spring semester, when I build the laser mount for my Jamieson hollowing rig.

If you have any questions or problems, let me know...

Rob

 

[Bill Boehme]

I don't know, maybe there's already such a thing......but, I've been noticing some laser guides for drill presses that appear to put down a line, not a point. I have a use for something like this, if it were attached to a #2 MT. I could instantly see where the center line on a bowl in progress is.....all the way across the entire circumference and interior.

Is there such a critter?

otis of cologne

Unfortunately, that idea only works on a flat surface.

 

[Steve Worcester]

Do you suppose a couple of standard 1.5v batteries would work to supply energy to the unit? (with an on/off switch in-line).....or, is this what you are describing anyway. If so, where to get a battery pack unit?

I could have sworn I got a 2xAAA battery pack with switch at radio shack. But yes, that will power it.

There is a company that makes pinpoint ones that fit in a drill, for aligning on a drill or mill. That same idea could be adapted to the cross laser easily. You will need to come up with a way to align the laser or the line will go higher or lower as you move the tailstock out. (I love inventin').

 

[john lucas]

Rob I'm currently putting together the tips for Betty right now so you are always welcome to send something. Just make the photos large so I don't have to write back and ask for larger image files.

 

[KEW]

Otis,
If I follow you, your objective is to project a line on the tailstock side of whatever you are turning.
Note that this has a horizontal line function.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=90980

I don't have this exact item, but I have combined a horizontal line laser with a tripod to assist layout of some projects and it worked well. This package is cheaper (unless you already have a tripod). Just set the tripod behind and off the end of the lathe.

The tripod would be a bit of a space hog, but you could probably come up with another way to mount it if space is tight.

 

[Joe Greiner]

I have a laser level like the one Kurt W cites, but bought elsewhere and probably cost a little more. It uses two AAA's in tandem. I've used it only for landscaping work, BTW.

The "line" function in all of these is produced by an auxiliary lens, whose only issue of compatibility is the means of attachment to the front of the laser body. Making the "line" horizontal, vertical, or anyplace else is left to the ingenuity of the user, unless it's built in by the factory. Horizontal levelling isn't too difficult, but will be no better than the levelling of the transit body itself: Just swing the transit, and see if the projected line meets a predecessor point.

Joe

 

[Odie]

I could have sworn I got a 2xAAA battery pack with switch at radio shack. But yes, that will power it.

There is a company that makes pinpoint ones that fit in a drill, for aligning on a drill or mill. That same idea could be adapted to the cross laser easily. You will need to come up with a way to align the laser or the line will go higher or lower as you move the tailstock out. (I love inventin').

Steve......

I don't understand. If the laser is mounted to the center of the MT in the tailstock, wouldn't the laser beam be correct, no matter where the tailstock is located?

OOC

 

[Odie]

Otis,
If I follow you, your objective is to project a line on the tailstock side of whatever you are turning.
Note that this has a horizontal line function.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=90980

I don't have this exact item, but I have combined a horizontal line laser with a tripod to assist layout of some projects and it worked well. This package is cheaper (unless you already have a tripod). Just set the tripod behind and off the end of the lathe.

The tripod would be a bit of a space hog, but you could probably come up with another way to mount it if space is tight.

Thanks for adding that, KEW.....

That looks pretty big, and probably wouldn't work for what I had in mind.

Yes, correct.....project a horizontal line on the tailstock side of what's being turned. This would be useful for me to adjust the tool rest to match different thicknesses of whatever scraper or gouge I'm currently using......as I switch between one another......without moving the location of the banjo. (I hope I've explained that so it's more understandable!)

The laser diode modules that Rob Wallace showed us just might do the trick for my purposes.

Thanks for all the responses here, and if there is any more comment, I'd be very interested in additional input.

Thank You......

otis of cologne

 

[Steve Worcester]

Steve......

I don't understand. If the laser is mounted to the center of the MT in the tailstock, wouldn't the laser beam be correct, no matter where the tailstock is located?

OOC

Since you are making it, the assumption is that it will not be in prefect alignment. If the center is just a mm off, say low, as you slide the tail stock back, it would get exacerbated and go even lower. You would need the ability to adjust the laser, say with grub screws.

 

[Rob Wallace]

Since you are making it, the assumption is that it will not be in prefect alignment. If the center is just a mm off, say low, as you slide the tail stock back, it would get exacerbated and go even lower. You would need the ability to adjust the laser, say with grub screws.

What I do (and wrote about what works for me, above) is simply use a magnetic dial indicator base with adjustable arms and attach this (magnetically) to a handy place on the lathe. It can be adjusted very easily if re-positioning is necessary. The need to build an adjustable holder in the MT2 fitting in the quill of the tailstock, etc would probably work, but would take more time and money than a $ 10 or $ 15 dial indicator holder would cost, and for me would be WAAAY to complicated to start wasting time building, just for positioning a reference laser beam. The discussion about using tripods, etc just to get a laser reference line is overkill by far, IMHO. It just isn't that complicated. The 'KISS' concept should be at work here....

I have been using this kind of cross-hair laser mounting method for some time in my 'Geometry of Woodturning' demonstration..... it works fine.

Have a good weekend!

Rob Wallace