For Xmas 2008, I received a midi-lathe. So for Xmas 2009 I used it to make several of my gifts to others. In the photo above you can see two pens in Honduran rosewood and some mystery wood (from the Woodcraft Classic American kit), a 4-in-1 screwdriver in maple (from the Rockler kit), a two screwdriver set in cocobolo, and a 6-inch pepper mill in walnut (from a Woodcraft kit). I also made a matching salt shaker for the walnut pepper mill, a 4-inch pepper mill and salt shaker combo in jobillo, and a pair of chrome wine stoppers in maple and European pear (from this Woodcraft kit).
The screwdriver set is unique because it is probably the only cocobolo project I’ll ever turn. Many people experience varying levels of allergic reaction to the wood dust from cocobolo, and I’m no exception. Luckily my allergies only result in a mild skin rash that fades after a day, but I don’t need to take any risks for a hobby like this. Plus allergic reactions like that usually increase in severity with repeated exposure.
The shanks on the two screwdrivers are 6-inch screwdriver bits from Lee Valley. For some reason, they only sell Phillips-head and square-head bits in that length, so the slotted end in the photo is actually the back end of a square drive bit that has been ground down on the bench grinder. The copper ferrules come from a single 3/4” copper pipe coupling that I cut in half. To clean up the rough-sawn edges and polish up the outside of the ferrules, I made a mandrel that fits in my scroll chuck. I don’t have a photo of it handy right now, so I’ll just try to describe it. It has a tenon whose diameter tapers from slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the ferrule to slightly larger at the headstock. I cut an “X” in the end of the tenon with a handsaw, then tapped the rough ferrule on the tenon with a mallet, and wedged the tenon tight by hammering in a small Phillips head bit at the center of the “X”. Then I turned the edge smooth with a round nose scraper and sanded the outside of the ferrule with various grits of sandpaper to clean up the finish.
Additional photos can be found on our smugmug page. If anyone wants more details on how I turned any of these items, please let me know in the comments. I’m happy to elaborate.