At the October meeting, a member brought in a spindle (magic wand?) he was working on and having a serious problem with chatter. Other than the usual “sharp tools” and “take light cuts” and “ride the bevel” advice, there are three things that can be done to help get smooth cuts.
The first is to crank up the speed as fast as you dare – and then a little more. The extra speed makes for a smoother cut.
The second is to use your finger, wrapped all the way behind the tool rest, as a “steady” behind your tool cut. (For an example of this, see Cindy Drozda‟s finger supporting a cut on her finial in last month‟s YMMV -- on page 11 of the October MCW Newsletter.)
The third, and perhaps not obvious, is to reduce the mounting pressure between centers. More pressure will cause more problems. Turn the tailstock back to where it starts to slip and then advance it only by a small amount – just enough to get it to spin while you cut. I got this interesting advice on the Wood Central forum from John Lucas at www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/turning.pl?noframes;read=163564.
Give it a try, and see if you don‟t agree. And if you don‟t, tell us about it! YMMV is your soap box.
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