Hi everyone, I’m looking for a fun way to make barley twist legs. It’s all fun if you know how to execute your design. I don’t want to do tons of rasping. Actually I’m looking at a picture of a seventeenth century French harpsichord in a book called the International book of wood by Simon and Shuster, and wondering how they did this? What were the lathes like? I guess you could hammer your gouge all the way around the spiral. Is there anything written about these old practices? These legs have a large and small twist alternately spiraling around (very nice).
Could I slow the lathe right down and use a power tool of some sort? Maybe a custom ground wooden plane? I really want to take the elbow grease effort out of it(rasping and sanding). Time is a consideration. Are the router attachments that mount an the lathes any good? I seem to remember that they limit your design to a particular helix ect. I want the tool to cut the design. I don’t want to cut the design the jig dictates.
Has anyone ever done this on the table saw using a moulding head and a pin to follow a small groove? I read about this in an old Deltagram magazine but haven’t tried it yet.
Woodworking for art and fun, Mike.
Replies
You lay out the helix ,cut it to depth with a tenon saw and carve it with a gouge .All with the wood in the lathe centres turning it by hand. Surprisingly it isn't that time consuming after the first one.When you get really good go for clockwise and anti clockwise then double start. The real star of this is Stuart Mortimer who I've seen turn a tiny goblet 1" in diameter and cut a double start spiral inthe 4" long 3/16 diameter stem in twenty minutes.
Try it you may like it
Jako
Zebra,
I think there are lathes that move the cutting tool along the length of the piece being worked, and that horizontal movement is coupled to the rotation of the piece. Machinists lathes use this feature for cutting threads for bolts. I've never seen a woodworking lath that does this, but I think they're out there.
jdg
Hello
If you want a mechine to cut those barley twist legs look at the legacy mill. it will do it and much more.plus on there e-mag. (I belive vol.2 ) they explain how to do the twist by hand. CHECK IT OUT at legacywoodworking.com
I bought the modle 1000 and love it!
CHECK IT OUT FOR YOUR SELF!!!
C.A..G.
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