Stiker turning troubles!

[kenturkey89]

Hey guys,

Ever since I got my lathe a few months ago I've spent all my time making pot calls but not strikers.  I bought a bunch of different dowels from Brookssidegamecalls to see what woods I like with certain surfaces, then I planned on buying some of the woods I liked to turn some one piece strikers of my own.  The problem is, I've had some troubles with chatter and strikers splitting on my while turning, and I'm not sure what's going on.

I don't have a 4-jaw chuck yet so I do my striker turning between centers with the bell portion on the tail stock end.  Can you have the tail stock in too tight?  Does it matter whether you turn the bell or dowel portion first?  I split a cherry striker today that I attribute to dull tools so I touched them up today and will see what I can come up with tomorrow.  Any advise in much appreciated!

Brian

[Bonjour]

I do believe that tightening the tailstock too tight will attribute to a lot of problems. Just think of taking a long stick and putting one end on the ground and pushing down on it, it will bow under the stress just like a striker will do with too much pressure on it. I bring my tailstock up tight and then back it off so that there is just a little pressure on it to keep the blank locked in. As far as turning, I would start at the striker tip and work it back to the bell in sections of an inch or 2. That leaves a good solid amount of wood that gives support to the thinner section. I would not try to turn the whole dowel in one shot because there is not enough strength in the wood to keep it from chattering and wobbling under the pressure of your tools. I would also recommend turning slower at first to help keep the chatter down. I usually turn strikers anywhere from 1000-1500 rpms and have better results than turning faster. I do use a chuck to turn strikers because I can turn the tip and the end down to where I want it without much sanding required to get them to where I want. Hope this helps you out with your turning.
Ryan

[handcannon]

Over tightening will do it and dull tools do not help. One other thing you may want to check is to see if your centers line up and are even. If you slide your tail all the way up and the centers do not meet dead center, you will have some chatter.

[KryptoniteKills]

I have been turning wood for three years and have learned everything the hard way. I too had troubles with chatter and sometimes still do. Softer woods will cause more chatter than harder woods since they do not  have the structural integrity to withstand the pressure of the tool against them. Yes, dull tools will cause more chatter because you are using more pressure to get the tool to cut the wood. Make sure your tools are absolutely sharp. I use a 3/4 roughing gouge to turn my strikers...not the norm but it works for me. I also turn the bell end first leaving more wood at the tip end for support. If you turn the tip first and turn it down to a small diameter then the whole while you are turning the bell you are straining the small diameter of the shaft and soon...SNAP. If you are fairly new to turning I would suggest buying a good book on turning and do some reading. Make sure the grain is running the right way...between centers. Just a few off the top of my head. Hope it helps.

[kenturkey89]

Thanks for all the great info guys.  I haven't been able to try turning any more strikers because I've been making pots and pens out of some new cocobolo that I got!  I will remember the things you all have said and hopefully I'll be able to successfully turn my own one piece strikers!  Thanks again

[pappy]

Ok, I don't know if it was said but, if you hold your other hand, not the one with the chisel of course, behind the striker as you are turning it, and gently applie back pressure this will help you on the chatter, super sharp chisels are a must and I use a round nose scraper, 1/4" and 1/2" to turn my strikers. Make sure the bevel edge is up against the wood and the cutting edge is ther just enough to peel off the wood. Set your tool rest to where the top edge of the too is just below top dead center and as the piece gets smaller move in the tool rest and raise it enough to keep that original postion. I turn between centers, but in my headstock I have what is known as a dead center that  has a nipple on it, like the one in this ebay auction, the one on the top.
http://cgi.ebay.com/LATHE-DEAD-CENTER-MORSE-TAPER-2-PLUS-ANOTHER-my-7-/320571954169?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa393d3f9
I filed the end down to a taper to accomidate my duck call barrells and use it for strikers, just don't over tighten them.