Wow I’ve been working on this belt grinder on and off for a year…well I’m about to get it finished. I’ll post pictures.

Well it’s been awhile so I’ll brag a bit. Did the Trent Bosch and David Ellsworth class and learned a bunch and really improved my technique and finished product. Tried to take the end of my thumb off while doing something stupid on the lathe, that’s about healed up. Taught a very nice guy from Mo. for 2 Sundays had a great time. Was getting ready for a show next weekend, but now won’t be able to attend as I going up to the Southern States Woodturning Symposium. Should be fun, going as a helper to a vendor. Hope others will start using the Groups again!

Next week, Wednesday, Thrusday and Friday I will be driving down to Lakeland, Fl for a class with Trent Bosch on bowls and hollow forms and then in March I will be taking a class from David Ellsworth at the same location. I will post pictures if anyone is interested. I will also try to take copius notes and try to put them in a coherent form for those who like that kind of stuff.

I’m looking for some suggestions. I’ve started surface carving on some of my bowls and vessels. Took a class from Dixie Biggs, great instructor. Now I’m coming to the hard part the finishing. I have a wild cherry bowl, this is my practice piece, and I carved leaves and it’s about done. The ”back ground” behind the leave is heavily textured and I want to stain or paint it dark so the leave stand out. Question would you use stain or paint. Most of the wood is fairly tight but wild cherry also has the nasty habit of having sections of open tubes, I know not the technical term, that will go through a piece. I’m open to suggestions. I can post a picture if that would help.

I’m building a new belt grinder for some of my tool making. It will have a 2 x 72” sanding belt, driven by a 2hp motor and all kinds of attachments. If anyone has a resourse for wiring up VFD’s and 3ph motors to Single phase I would really appreciate it. I have a single ph 2 hp 3450rpm motor I’m putting on the grinder but in the future I want a variable speed and the above set up seems to be the most cost effective. I’ll post pictures as I go along.

Just a bit of an update on my handle rant.. I made a new one that is 22+” long for my large carbide bit tool. Nice and heavy. I was dreading putting the PVC hose on the pipe as the last time I used black pipe is was a bit of a pain. Well I put the hose in the oven at 225 and the pipe in the freezer. I know the pipe isn’t going to shrink, but when you take it out of the freezer you get a fine layer of frozen water and the hose slips right on and in a couple of hours the hose tightens up and will not go anywhere. Very cool.

I have a question… I picked up a nice molding plane up in The Villages, Fl. a few days ago, made by N. E. Tool Works, Groton, CT. I can’t seem to find much on the maker. Anyone have any information on this guy I would really appreciate it.