Home made lathe steady rest

[Cherryville Chuck]

Here is a home made steady rest from Lee Valley to aid in turning small spindles on a wood lathe. The wheels it uses are in the link. I have some and they have a bearing center so they turn very freely. One of these days I'll get around to trying them as home made Board Buddies. https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/discove ... OY8,95JD,1

[HandyDan]

I made one a few years back and used inline skate wheels on it. Also made a two wheeler that works well on spindles.

image.png

For the two wheeler I also have a set of Razor Scooter wheels for it because the are a bigger diameter.

image.png

image.png

[HandyDan]

When turning spindles it is surprising how much less chatter you get if the drive end is set in a chuck. Less tension is needed on the tail end.

[Cherryville Chuck]

What you need to discourage is the tendency for it to set up a resonant wave in the turning. That can cause it to start whipping wildly when it hits the wrong speed and frequency. That's why the 2 wheeled setup works. I guess the difference in using a chuck as opposed to a drive spur would be in the amount of tension needed. I'll have to keep that in mind.