A card scraper?

[rbdoby]

I admit that I know enough about turning to be dangerous. I crank up my lathe about once every 3 months. Not enough to stay in practice.

I've been playing with a bowl I roughed out about a year ago. After throwing out of the lathe twice and glueing it back together it became a practice piece. I had the curve of the sides looking nice but it had those unseemly little ridges I always get from lack of practice with my bowl gouge and skew chisel.

Time for the ol' 80 grit gouge!:gar-Bi

But wait, this is a practice piece, let's try something different! The curve of the bowl is fairly gentle so I grabbed one of my trusty card scrappers. Moved the tool rest out of the way, slowed the lathe to the lowest speed and made a pass with the card scrapper. Sort of like making a light shearing cut with a skew chisel.

It faired the curve and left a very smooth finish! Has anyone heard of doing this or am I completely out in left field?

Rick Doby

 

[timf67]

I'm like you, a turning novice. But I have used a card scraper for finishing slimline pens. Not sure how safe they are to use on a lathe,:dontknow: but it worked for me...

 

[jimwill48]

Not to sure that I would want to do it. Sounds like on catch away from some badly cut fingers.

James

 

[Ozzie-x]

Any time I turn something on the lathe and I don't get hurt and the workpiece turns out OK, I consider it a success. :swoon:

 

[Mike Davis]

I use a card scraper with the lathe on the lowest speed and running in reverse. I figure that way if it catches it will pull away from me.

 

[DavidF]

Hmmm, not sure I like the idea of the Skew on a bowl?????? a scraper, maybe, but a skew?

 

[WDHTRIM]

now i know why i cant get things smooth on the lathe you guys have been holding out on me with this card scraper trick:tongue2:.jk but its a cool idea although not the safest ive heard. dont think ill be trying it till youve been at it awhil and still got all your parts maybe not even then:nah:. but i love to see people thinking of new ways to approach old problems. nice to know we are still human and able to reason or way through a problem and not just auto respond with what weve been taught is right. good luck and keep at it you may just create the next must have turning tool before its over. sound like a cool approach if it wasnt so dangerous or i wasnt so chicken id try it.

 

[nelsone]

Since you're dealing with a pretty small burr, I don't see it as a problem, kind of falls into the why not category. If it works, Great!

 

[rbdoby]

Here's a picture of the bowl I used the card scraper on. I removed the tool rest from the lathe and used the lowest speed on the lathe, 500 rpm. I would have liked for it to be slower. Used a light touch and kept the corners of the card scraper well away from the wood to prevent a catch. Held the card scraper at about a 45° angle to the axis of the bowl to get a shearing cut.

The bowl is holly and finished with carnuba wax buffed with a coat of paste wax.

Rick Doby

 

[gator]

I use a card scraper with the lathe on the lowest speed and running in reverse. I figure that way if it catches it will pull away from me.

I agree with Mike about using the scraper so that it is scraping with the rotation. However, if your lathe is not reversible you could scrape on the lower side of the workpiece rather than on the top side.

George

 

[DavidF]

That's a very nice piece Rick, what are the dimensions?

 

[rbdoby]

David,

It's about 6" tall and a little under 5" in diameter. When LOML first saw it she asked me who made it! She had never seen holly and thought it was plastic.

Rick Doby

 

[DavidF]

David,

It's about 6" tall and a little under 5" in diameter. When LOML first saw it she asked me who made it! She had never seen holly and thought it was plastic.

Rick Doby

That's funny! the number of times Carol has looked at a finish that is virtually perfect (not necessarily mine!) and said "that finish is so good it almost looks plastic" I normally kick her at that point....

 

[CarvedTones]

I am with Ed on this one; I don't see it as being all that risky (adding little or no additional risk to turning). The burr is tiny and is not likely to catch. Because of the difficulty in maintaining an angle on a round piece that would keep the tiny burr in play, I suspect that beautiful finish is largely the result of burninshing with the edge rather than scraping with the burr.

 

[CaptnA]

I've used scrapers on the lathe with no problems. I have done things that didn't work out so well and thankfully (through no reason of my own) still have fingers and major body parts intact.
I will at times use a skew on a bowl. Sometime there just isn't a great option, at least in my tool inventory.
Very nice piece of turning. I turned a piece of holly and it finished well enough to get the "plastic" label as well. is that a compliment or a slam??

 

[willarda]

I know several turners who will use a blockplane on the lathe to smooth out a cylinder. You hold the plane at a skewed angle to the cylinder (not at right angles to it) to get an amazingly smooth cut. Sort of like a skew but without the chance of catching. The only problem is catchng the heel of the plane on other design elements on the turning.

Using a card scraper is just like using a lathe scraper tool except that you can hold it at a skewed angle to the turning. There should be no risk of catching unless the diameter of the turning is greater than the length of the card scraper. Since the scraper is not resting on a tool rest, you do not have the same sort of support that you wold have with a lathe scraper tool. I would say that the safest way to use a card scraper is with the turning rotating towards you. If it rotates away from you then if there is a catch or the turning pulls you, it will pull you across the turning. The other way, you are pulled right off, towards the lathe bed.