Any Old Thing
Lathe Tool From Salvage Hardware
© Frank Ford 2006; Photos by FF
I wanted to turn a recess in a piece of plastic to support a two-inch clear acrylic sphere, and being in my usual hurry to get the project done, I figured I could make a quick form tool out of just about any old piece of steel since I was cutting ultra high molecular weight polyethylene, and I would probably not need the tool again.
So I rummaged around my slavage hardware drawer and found a washer that was
just the diameter I needed. After I cut it roughly in half, I ground
a section of it using the little table on my grinder set at whatever angle
I used last:
In a matter of a few seconds I had a sharp cutting edge and some relief on about an inch of the circumference:
My new lathe tool made quick work of this job, and I was able to fit the ball nicely:
