Turning Long Wood Rods
To turn a long wood rod of small diameter is not an easy job for the amateur, and a suitable tool for the purpose is seldom found in the amateur’s outfit. The tool illustrated can be easily made from materials that are always at hand. A block of hard wood, A, is first provided, and a hole, B, large enough to admit the square strip from which the rod is to be turned, is bored in the end, whereupon the hole C, which has the diameter of the finished rod, is bored through the block. The hole D is next bored at right angles to the axis of the hole C, and so placed that its edge just touches the outer edge of the hole C. This hole is to receive an ordinary gouge, and must be of such size as to receive the gouge snugly.
A Block of Wood Fashioned to Hold an Ordinary Gouge for Turning Small Wood Rods
The gouge is ground back far enough on the under side to make the cutting edge level with its back, and then beveled off on the inside to a sharp edge. The gouge E is placed in the hole D with the cutting edge on the center line, as shown, and held in place with a wood plug, F. A little soap applied to the bore C will prevent binding.
To use the tool, a strip of wood is pointed sufficiently to allow it to enter the hole C a short distance. The strip may be rotated by holding it in the chuck of a lathe while the tool is held in the hand, using the handle of the gouge to prevent its turning with the stick.—Contributed by J. A. Brearley, Washington, D. C.