Well done on your efforts Joe!
Beech is wonderful wood to turn as it's very close grained and tough. It easily sands to a nice finish and is excellent for such things as tool handles. Ash is often used, and although the grain is more open, it sands to a nice finish. (BTW, there is a saying in woodturning that you should 'sand the shape of the wood - not sand the wood to shape!). Hammer shafts are often made of hickory, as it too is tough, and to a certain extent is flexible so absorbs shock. Stair spindles are often made of hemlock - not pine. It has straight grain, very few knots, turns well and is suited to 'production turning' on copy lathes. Skilled production turners who will make small batches of bespoke stair spindles to customers' exact requirements for house restorations, turn to such a high standard that they get an excellent finish 'off the tool' - that is little or no sanding is needed.
One of the nicest woods to turn is yew, which is very close grained and takes a nice finish, and has very distinctive heartwood and sapwood, which made it prized for English longbows - the 'WMD' of their day. It's strong in compression and tension, but isn't very tough for such things as tool handles.
As to hazards, the risks from beech are where it's spalted. Some woods - notably beech, readily 'spalt'. That is they have spidery black lines running through the timber which some people find attractive, but it's caused by a fungus which is said to be carcinogenic - it should not therefore be used for such things as salad bowls or fruit bowls. Iroko is wicked stuff to turn as the dust is s fine as snuff.
Dust is an ever present hazard - some turners use a powered helmet with visor and built-in air filter, and some forum of dust extraction. I have a dust extractor and an air filter suspended from the ceiling in the workshop which comes on each night for a couple of hours to keep the dust down. I only turn the dust extractor on when I'm sanding, and also wear a proper face mask - not one of those daft disposable paper things that look like bra cups, the only purpose of which is to fool our wives (if we have one) that we're taking sensible precautions.
For occasional turning, a household vac with the extension nozzle near the workpiece is fine. You should sand at a much slower speed than turning speed - if the sandpaper in your had gets hot, too much pressure or too high a speed is being used. It doesn't matter so much on spindle work, but on a bowl, it risks cracking it.
When sanding - whether it's a radio cabinet or a woodturned item, you can only get a proper end result if you 'go through the grits'. This is to go from say 120, to 180, 240, 320, 400. It's not a bit of use going from say 120 to 400 - you'll never get rid of the score marks. I should add that on a veneered cabinet, we should use a cabinet scraper - not sandpaper or it's inevitable - especially on rounded corners, that we'll go through the veneer, which is only 0.6mm thick in the first place. (A paint scraper is NOT at all the same thing as a cabinet scraper!).
That's my two penn'orth. (Well, a shillings worth I guess!)
Rambled and dribbled Yorkie.
Beech is wonderful wood to turn as it's very close grained and tough. It easily sands to a nice finish and is excellent for such things as tool handles. Ash is often used, and although the grain is more open, it sands to a nice finish. (BTW, there is a saying in woodturning that you should 'sand the shape of the wood - not sand the wood to shape!). Hammer shafts are often made of hickory, as it too is tough, and to a certain extent is flexible so absorbs shock. Stair spindles are often made of hemlock - not pine. It has straight grain, very few knots, turns well and is suited to 'production turning' on copy lathes. Skilled production turners who will make small batches of bespoke stair spindles to customers' exact requirements for house restorations, turn to such a high standard that they get an excellent finish 'off the tool' - that is little or no sanding is needed.
One of the nicest woods to turn is yew, which is very close grained and takes a nice finish, and has very distinctive heartwood and sapwood, which made it prized for English longbows - the 'WMD' of their day. It's strong in compression and tension, but isn't very tough for such things as tool handles.
As to hazards, the risks from beech are where it's spalted. Some woods - notably beech, readily 'spalt'. That is they have spidery black lines running through the timber which some people find attractive, but it's caused by a fungus which is said to be carcinogenic - it should not therefore be used for such things as salad bowls or fruit bowls. Iroko is wicked stuff to turn as the dust is s fine as snuff.
Dust is an ever present hazard - some turners use a powered helmet with visor and built-in air filter, and some forum of dust extraction. I have a dust extractor and an air filter suspended from the ceiling in the workshop which comes on each night for a couple of hours to keep the dust down. I only turn the dust extractor on when I'm sanding, and also wear a proper face mask - not one of those daft disposable paper things that look like bra cups, the only purpose of which is to fool our wives (if we have one) that we're taking sensible precautions.
For occasional turning, a household vac with the extension nozzle near the workpiece is fine. You should sand at a much slower speed than turning speed - if the sandpaper in your had gets hot, too much pressure or too high a speed is being used. It doesn't matter so much on spindle work, but on a bowl, it risks cracking it.
When sanding - whether it's a radio cabinet or a woodturned item, you can only get a proper end result if you 'go through the grits'. This is to go from say 120, to 180, 240, 320, 400. It's not a bit of use going from say 120 to 400 - you'll never get rid of the score marks. I should add that on a veneered cabinet, we should use a cabinet scraper - not sandpaper or it's inevitable - especially on rounded corners, that we'll go through the veneer, which is only 0.6mm thick in the first place. (A paint scraper is NOT at all the same thing as a cabinet scraper!).
That's my two penn'orth. (Well, a shillings worth I guess!)
Rambled and dribbled Yorkie.
Regards, David.
BVWS Member.
G-QRP Club Member 1339.
'I'm in my own little world, but I'm happy, and they know me here'
BVWS Member.
G-QRP Club Member 1339.
'I'm in my own little world, but I'm happy, and they know me here'
