Replies

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Apr 22, 2008 02:17pm | #1

   It's the same way you get to Carnagie Hall. 

   A template that can be mounted directly behind the turning to keep the elements lined up helps of course. 

   Mechanical duplicators tend to do a lousy job, and require quite a bit of "final touch up" to look passable.  But that's the hard part, getting to that point is easy. 

2. 
   blewcrowe | Apr 22, 2008 02:33pm | #2

   Like Steve said, a duplicator. Another way is make a cardboard or masonite template (half) of what you want, then cut and keep referencing it against the piece in progress.

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Apr 22, 2008 03:26pm | #3

   Template yes, duplicator no.  Just to be clear. 

3. 
   BruceS | Apr 22, 2008 04:06pm | #4

   As the others have said, practice!  A good duplicator that at its best does a poor job, and will cost you about as much as the lathe.

   Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

4. 
   JohnWW | Apr 22, 2008 06:44pm | #5

   Take the first turning you made and mount it on a pair of simple shop made brackets so that it is just behind the blank mounted between the centers on your lathe, this will give you a visual shape to follow.

   The second thing you can do is cut narrow grooves at critical points along the length of the spindle, using calipers to get the diameters at these points correct, then you shape the spindle to fair the curves into these points. Any good book on turning will describe both of these techniques and a dozen other approaches.

   Final point, on furniture with hand turned spindles, say all four legs off of a table, the turnings were rarely that well matched if you put them right next to each other. Almost all turning that you have ever seen was made on automated machinery and shouldn't be judged as the standard for hand turned work.

   John White