I made my first Bottle Stopper out of pecan with the help of the fine folks at Stainless Bottle Stoppers. Check out the video below.
Thanks to Stainless Bottle Stoppers for making it easy for me to get started in bottle stoppers. I met them at the Atlanta Woodworking Show and mentioned I had never made one before. One thing led to another and they sent me home with a free kit as long as I would share a video of making my first bottle stopper. If you need some bottle stopper supplies, visit Stainless Bottle Stoppers for some great Made in USA products.
This project turned into a friendly competition between me and Freeman Woodworking. We turned our first bottle stoppers, then shared pictures for people to vote on which one they like best and enter a giveaway for a Starter Kit on the Stainless Bottle Stoppers Instagram. Go vote and enter if the deadline has not passed!
I created this fancy Christmas Ornament on my lathe for the 2014 Christmas Ornament Challenge hosted by Carl Jacobson and Alan Stratton. I usually only turn pens, so this was definitely a new challenge for me. Watch my video submission below.
I started by cutting 5 pieces each of red cedar and curly maple that were 2.25" wide by 4.5" long. I glued them together, offsetting the ends by 3/4" to create a diagonal block. To make it easier, I glued up two blocks of 5 pieces, then glued those together later.
Once the glue dried, I cut a 2"by 2" turning blank from the block on my bandsaw. Since I would be mounting it on the lathe between centers, I cut two centered shallow grooves into the end of the blank to help the drive center get a better grip.
I used a roughing gouge to turn the blank until it was round. Then I alternated between my roughing gouge, bowl gouge, and skew chisel to begin shaping the ornament. As a general rule, I think things look more pleasing to the eye if they are in groups of three. So, I turned three triangular shapes that get progressively smaller toward the tip.
On the top of the ornament, I turned three coves that mirror the three triangular shapes. I also added a little bead at the top where I could drill a hole and tie a string for hanging. I sanded the ornament smooth and turned both ends down to about 1/8" thick. I stopped the lathe and cut the ornament away with a knife.
I think it turned out really good for being my first time turning a Christmas Ornament on the lathe. Best of all, my wife loves it and she wants me to make some more! Yippee, that means more shop time for me! Have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
This week I was trying to come up with an Easter project and I thought that turning an egg on the lathe would be a great skill-building opportunity. I brought out my basket of red cedar log slices and selected the perfect piece.
It took me about an hour to turn the egg and finish it with Hut Crystal Coat. This is one of the reasons I love using the lathe, you can start and finish a project in hardly no time. The egg turned out great and my wife loved it, so now she wants some more! Sounds like I will be getting lots more practice on the lathe and that's alright with me! Happy Easter!
I've been playing drums since 1973 and I've broken lots of drum sticks. I'm new to the lathe and have turned many pens, so it was only natural to attempt to make my own drum sticks.
I used solid cherry because it is somewhat durable, yet turns nicely on the lathe. I made my first one off-camera just to see how it would turn out. It was successful, so I recorded the process when turning the second one.
The sticks are 16" long and about 1/2" thick. The sticks were easy to turn; however, the middle of the stick did flex from the pressure of the cutting tool. Next time, I might try using a steady rest to apply some opposing force to the tool.
It was very rewarding to play drums with my own handmade sticks, so I will be making more in the future.
I'm a woodworker and a drummer and I love it when I can combine these two passions of mine. I play drums regularly in an Atlanta cover band called Riff Raff, so I go through a lot of drumsticks. I'm always trying to find new uses for broken sticks, and I've discovered that they are perfect for making pens!
I've been making custom pens out of drumsticks for the past 6 months. I usually turn the pens into different shapes on the lathe which removes the manufacturer's logos. This weekend I turned a pen for a drummer friend of mine who asked me to leave the logos intact. I shared the picture on Vic Firth's Facebook page and received quite an overwhelming response. The pen is a little longer than the regular pen size because I worked around the logos, but it turned out really cool.
Apparently there is a demand for pens made from recycled drumsticks, so I created a listing on The Carmichael Workshop's Etsy Store where you can order a custom pen made from your recycled drumstick, furniture, trees, broken heirloom, or any chunk of solid wood that you send me.
If you are new to my website, thanks for visiting and please check out my Carmichael Workshop YouTube Channel where I feature how-to woodworking videos. Below is my latest video showing many of my past projects. As always, please support your local woodworkers and musicians! Thanks, Steve...
