Making wooden knobs.

[Retired]

Hi,

Here’s an interesting little project I’ve just taken on. I’m attempting to make clones of an original wooden radio knob on behalf of fellow forum member “Vinrads” four such knobs being required.

I own both woodturning and metal turning lathes so this would appear to be a push over; surely there can’t be much involved as it’s only a matter of chucking four bits of wood and reducing them to size adding a decent finish completing the job easily in a couple of hours?

These knobs are quite special having facets or flats as finger grips arranged octagonaly with all edges nicely rounded; to the front there is a turned single bead. The original knob appears to be turned from a meranti kind of timber of which I have plenty in stock; and is finished with a dark brown lacquer of some kind.

Vinrads very kindly sent me the original knob so yesterday I was itching to make a start. It was raining so I didn’t want to pull the car out of the garage and decided to work around it. Outside it was just above freezing so I pushed my large combination woodworking machine up to the car allowing access to the lathes and switched on the oil filled electric radiator together with a CD of decent 60’s songs on the radio and I was soon feeling quite cosy. It’s a while since I turned any knobs.

I selected a length of 3/8 dia. Brass bar stock and cut off 5 lengths at 5/8”. I started to face these in the Myford metal lathe but decided they looked a bit too light not allowing much wall thickness for subsequent drilling and tapping to accept a grub screw. Next I pulled out a length of ½” dia. Brass bar stock and once again cut off five lengths. Facing these in the Myford I thought it looks a bit on the heavy side? Measuring with the digital calliper revealed it to be 9/16” Oh dear now too thick; I wanted ½” dia but had non in stock although I still had the 9/16” bar. It was still cold in the garage but by now I was enjoying myself. At this point I thought about drilling blind holes to accept these inserts and checked my large assortment of drill bits; having measured the depth of the hole and the total thickness of the original knob I was now in trouble; all my drill bits would break through before reaching the correct depth for the inserts due to the length of the bit points including the spur point bits. I could grind a ½” dia bit down greatly reducing the point but this meant pulling the car out to gain access to the grinder.

Then I remembered I had a special 12mm bit that might be ideal with a short brad point. This bit would do the job at a pinch but now I needed suitable 12mm dia. Brass rod. Nothing for it but to start over and I turned five 12mm blanks on the Myford; these were faced; centred; through drilled axially at 5.5mm then run through with a ¼”reamer. Three hours later I finally had 5 brass inserts in my hand. In fairness I had two false starts; was very limited for space and had put all my tools away for winter. Normally I would never work with machinery in such confined space especially whilst wearing a thick coat but this wasn’t normal; it was Yorkshire mid winter and I had an interesting project on the go. Here are the pictures so far and more notes will quickly follow as I’ve been making progress today spending an hour in the garage.

Kind regards, Col.

[Retired]

Hi,

With the brass inserts completed I wanted to get into the garage today to do more work on these knobs; it was dry so I could pull the car out which was luxury allowing me to use the Startrite Combination Woodworker. I pulled the Startrite into the centre of the garage and plugged it in. From my stock of timber I pulled out a previously used length of 7/8” thick Meranti which had been fully varnished and known to be decent timber. I ripped this on the circular saw to 1 ¼” giving 1/8” allowance. It was then passed through the thickness planer removing the varnish from one face then turned over and run through once again to reduce it to 5/8” thick giving plenty of length to play with.

Taking care to ensure the marks were down the centre I used a pointed tool adding indents where the holes needed drilling allowing plenty length between each indent. The special 12mm drill bit was chucked in the drill press; a scrap piece of MDF was nipped in the machine vice to rest the timber on whilst being drilled and the depth stop was set by bringing the bit down onto the timber burying the short point then holding the bit in contact whilst one of the brass inserts was used to adjust the stop; this was done with care as a mistake could see the bit break through whilst drilling as a blind hole was needed.

The holes were quickly drilled without fuss and a last small job was to grip each brass insert in the engineering vice and drag the hacksaw blade causing deep scratches into the brass; this would afford better grip for the glue; Normally I would have enjoyed taking my time and knurled the brass in the lathe but working like this wasn’t normal. Then I could tidy up; put the tools; Startrite and car away bringing the brass inserts and bit of drilled timber up into the bungalow.

After dinner I had a go at multi-tasking because I defrosted the fridge whilst I glued in the inserts using epoxy. I did this in the kitchen after first protecting the work surface with sheets of paper. Masking tape was applied to the drilled face of the timber to protect it from epoxy as it is to be stained later. Match stick was used to mix the epoxy and apply it to the drilled holes then the brass inserts were firstly located by using a bit of wood to push them into their respective hole ensuring they went in straight then a quick trip into the workshop where they were driven fully home using the large woodworking vice; two inserts were done for the first trip into the workshop followed by the remaining three brass inserts. Now after some four hours in total a short length of timber with five brass inserts added is sitting on the computer table where it is warm to let the epoxy harden. Expecting trouble along the way five knob blanks have been made although only four are needed. The inserts were a nice snug fit into the holes; too tight and the timber would have split. I’m a bit concerned about the thickness of the timber where the bit point penetrated; it might be prudent to add a curve to the front middle section of each knob just to be sure otherwise a small hole might appear when the knob is turned to size. A spare is available to experiment with. This is the project to date; next job will be to rough out the blank knobs on the bandsaw taking it another step towards success. This is such a wonderful hobby and I hope my story is of interest.

May I please add that I do not take in paid work; Vinrads very kindly offered to pay for these knobs but occasionally if I notice something that takes my interest and I’m between projects I will freely volunteer to have a go to help a member out; apart from my time such projects as this cost me very little but give immense satisfaction; much better than falling asleep watching rubbish on TV.

Kind regards, Col.

[Retired]

Hi,

Its slow going but I‘m still making progress. Yesterday I managed one and a half hours in the garage before the cold got through to me.

Making octagonal shaped radio knobs isn’t as easy as it would appear as accuracy is needed or the knobs will end up looking strange; all the facets/flats need to be the same length as each other and concentric around the knob’s axis or the rounded sections between each facet will be unbalanced.

To ensure such accuracy I decided to once again use the idea I came up with whilst machining the gears for my wave winder restoration and use paper templates. The principle is simple but coming up with the idea in the first place was the difficult bit.

I’m still learning TurboCad basics causing me much frustration whilst I tried various ways of trying to draw an octagon inside circles. I could draw concentric circles dead easy and with great accuracy in seconds but adding an octagon took it to a whole new level. TurboCad is brilliant and selecting “polygon” I entered 8 for the number of sides but then the fun started because the next input was length and/or angle? I really wanted to add the 1.0625” between two opposing lines as this measurement was known but this function wasn’t available; I tried drawing parallel lines in the hope of dropping the octagon neatly between the lines; I zoomed the drawing in order to make it easier but again had problems. I tried magnetic point; I tried using snap and in the end set the drawing up using the grid taking the cross of the grid on 2” x 2” as the datum and tried using snap which worked great for the circles but didn’t want to play when I tried adding the Octagon so trial and error finally won through and the drawing was then rubber stamped to give multiple templates; I had tried placing the octagon inside and outside of circles but couldn’t get it to centre exactly; across the flats measured 1.0625 and the maximum dia measures 1.125”. When I printed the templates off I ended up with a blank sheet of paper? In my eagerness to get stuck into drawing I had overlooked setting up the page details so more time was lost whilst I transferred the template drawings onto a page that could be printed. Yes I have a great deal to learn using TurboCad and can hear the members familiar with CAD howling with laughter but it’s not so long ago that I couldn’t even draw a straight line whilst using TurboCad.

Using sharp scissors I took my time and cut out eight paper templates; I had taken the trouble of adding the inner circle at ½” dia to match the outer dia of the brass inserts. These brass insets are not driven fully home as the spring clip on the original knob stands proud.

Previously when I’ve made wooden knobs I’ve cut the blanks out first then spent ages aligning to drill the tapping holes; this time the obvious hit me; dill the holes whilst the inserts are still in the length of timber; a square was used to add lines and the hole centres were pricked; so simple if pointed out but easily overlooked whilst trying to plan each stage. I have a stock of 4BA socket grub screws so pulled out a 4BA nut and set about finding a drill bit that was a nice sliding fit but even this took ages; I tried all the bits in the garage and eventually found a suitable bit in the workshop so finally I drilled all five holes at tapping size using the drill press with the timber mounted in the machine vice.

Transferring the timber to the big engineering vice I ran a 4BA tap through using a tap wrench. Tapping brass dry like this always puts me on edge as the tap creaks and groans as it makes progress through the brass and care is needed not to break the tap.

The ½” dia holes needed cutting out in the templates so I chucked a short length of suitable steel in the Myford and turned a punch; resting the paper templates on MDF the holes were then accurately punched out. Double sided tape was added to the timber and the templates were secured.

The blanks were then roughed out using the large Startrite bandsaw taking care not to cut right up to the lines; after previously cutting a lot of metal the bandsaw blade could have been sharper but by now I had become too cold to carry on; feeling like this changing a large bandsaw blade didn’t appeal to me although I didn’t rush whilst cutting out the blanks as this would have been highly dangerous; I used a push stick to keep my fingers well clear of the cutting area because I wanted to retain all my fingers and both thumbs; the saw doesn’t care whether it cuts metal; wood or me. I now have five knob blanks ready for the next stage.

8am this morning I thought it was the middle of the night as I got up in a black hole and once again it is perishing outside; the question is do I continue in the garage today?

Kind regards, Col.

[Aerodyne]

Another fascinating thread, Col. Your craftsmanship is an example to us all.
p.s. I know just what you mean about tapping brass dry! All too easy to snap the hard tap. Oil or cutting grease would mark the wood, but what about a smear of finishing wax on the tap?
-Tony

[John M0GLN]

Originally Posted by Aerodyne

Another fascinating thread, Col. Your craftsmanship is an example to us all.
p.s. I know just what you mean about tapping brass dry! All too easy to snap the hard tap. Oil or cutting grease would mark the wood, but what about a smear of finishing wax on the tap?
-Tony

I think 'Russian Tallow' was always recommended for tapping brass.

John

[Mike Phelan]

When I'm turning, drilling or sawing brass, I use an old candle; it works well and soon melts.

[Aerodyne]

The problem is that Col is tapping the brass through the wood. My concern was the possible staining or discolouring of the wood, should most typical lubricants - paraffin, etc - be used. Candle wax or tallow might therefore spoil the appearance, whereas actual wood finishing wax should be OK unless a non-waxed finish on the completed knob is required.
-Tony

[Retired]

Hi,

This is so kind of you Tony and I’m pleased you are enjoying the thread. Your suggestion of using finishing wax to lubricate the tap whilst tapping brass is excellent and normally would work extremely well with a tap going directly into brass but in this case I decided to tap dry due to only using a tapping size drill going right through the wood and brass; I wanted to keep the hole which will ultimately show in the knob as small as possible so didn’t run a clearance bit through the wood; this meant that the hole through the wood is also tapped at 4BA and the wood highly likely wipe the tap clean as it progressed.

I do agree with you Tony that wax makes a good lubricant and I use it to lubricate timber being turned in the lathe where the timber is mounted onto the dead ring centre of the tailstock; one day I’ll remember to buy a revolving centre with a No 1 Morse Taper!!

I don’t wish to show how to make knobs appear more difficult than it actually is and put others off from having a go. Had the weather been warm this project would have been completed in much shorter time but what I am trying to do is give a blow by blow account of all the work and stages involved along the way. Patience and care is needed as it is so easy to slip up and make a silly mistake at each stage thereby having to start over; this is especially so whilst working in less than ideal circumstances.

I’ve moaned long and hard about the weather but this afternoon I was actually sweating whilst working in the garage; I had taken the fan heater in with me and compared to previous sessions it was soon feeling tropical and to warm myself up further I decided on a method of adding the facets to the knobs but this involved making a rest for my home made belt sander so here are the details.

I have been giving a great deal of thought as to how to add the facets/flats to the knobs and although I have plenty of machinery to choose from the job still appeared difficult. I could have set the router up but this would mean making a jig allowing indexing as would using my saws and planers. In the end I thought about using my home made 4” belt sander but this still needed a rest so today I made a rest for it from heavy black steel.

The main section was made of 2”x2” angle iron involving some welding and drilling. I cut the metal using my hacksaw just for the exercise and I’ve seen mention in other threads of members having difficulty using a hacksaw but I find an hacksaw to be a very accurate tool and include a picture of one of the cuts through the angle iron using it; all it takes is practice and I reach for the hacksaw many times whilst I’m woodworking as it is now so natural to me.

With the welding completed and all sharp edges fettled the rest was attached to the belt sander and aligned using an engineers square. My hands were filthy but I wanted to see if this would in fact work after all the effort expended. WOW!! It was brilliant and I had to be extremely careful not to remove too much whilst sanding each facet down to the template line; the sander is fitted with a 60 grit belt so has left deep scratches but hopefully these will be removed by subsequent hand sanding; all I wanted to do was to test this method out and the result can be seen in the pictures; I noticed slight differences in lengths of each facet but the lighting was very poor whilst sanding so next session with clean hands I can touch them up but the method works and works well; in fact I bet it only took five minutes to add facets to all five knobs as the belt sander fitted with the 60 grit belt is very aggressive indeed.

My fingers are well and truly crossed that I can now turn the knobs to complete them without mishap.

My friend Alan Beckett very kindly informs me that drawing an octagon within a circle only requires a couple of mouse clicks whilst using AutoCAD; thanks for this Alan; I feel sick!! Alan would have been happy to do the template drawings for me but it’s so good to struggle and adds to the general interest as I attempt to learn new skills and gain experience in front of the world. Today turned out very well indeed.

Kind regards, Col.

[Aerodyne]

Like you, Col, I find a hacksaw an ideal fine woodworking saw and a full-size hacksaw presents little in the way of control problems (not so with those handy but wayward junior types).
Coming along nicely, this project.
-Tony

[Retired]

Hi,

I hadn't realized other posts had been added whilst writing up the story so far; sorry guys so here goes again.

Thanks John for the Russian Tallow information; I've not hard of Russian Tallow for many years.

I agree Mike that a candle is very useful and being wax works as Tony suggested; a candle is also wonderful for rubbing on drawer sides and bottoms making the drawers slide more smoothly.

Thanks Tony; you picked up on the tap going through the wood first before actually reaching the brass therefore causing complications and this was my sole reason for tapping dry but it was rather bad on the nerves listening to the tap complaining. By the time I had made the belt sander rest my hands were very dirty and I was rather worried about staining the wood but as I intend to finish by hand sanding proceeded and added the facets. This is great fun; thanks everyone.

Kind regards, Col

[AlanBeckett]

Col,
That looks very promising. However, one thing I'm going to have to send to you is a tap wrench more compatible with 4BA. That one looks more suitable for 1/2" Whit
I think people worrry too much about breaking taps. I've managed it once in about 50 years, and that was pure incompetence on my part. Of course a degree of care is needed, and I usually use a dab of splendid but horrible tapping compound that I've had for about 45 years. But equally I don't usually bother with brass.
Good luck with the grooves.
Alan

[Retired]

Hi,

Nice one Alan, I couldn’t find a big tap wrench so had to make do with this one. Like you Alan it is many years since I broke a tap but 4BA with this wrench was pushing it a bit making me nervous as the tap groaned and creaked. I was taught never to use cutting tools that had previously been used on steel to cut brass with unless they were first re-sharpened and as these BA taps must be over 50 years old I’m not surprised this tap complained loudly but it did the job.

I’m now nearing the finish with this project and all has gone well so far; I made five knob blanks and now have five knobs that are looking good.

Today I chucked a short length of 1/4” silver steel in the woodturning lathe (Record DML 24”) and mounted the knob blanks onto this securing with the grub screw. I tried reducing the corners between the facets using a spindle gouge but it was difficult to judge how much material I was removing and the finish was poor. I decided to try turning the knob front whilst I thought about knocking the corners off and taking careful measurements using my digital vernier calliper I set about turning the circular bead using a 1/8” sharp parting tool; this worked well and at this stage I didn’t try to round the bead as the original wasn’t a true bead.

Adjusting the tool rest the outer edge of the front face was rounded over using the spindle gouge taking very light cuts followed by rounding over the back outer edge. By now I had come up with the idea of simply using abrasive paper to round the corners between the facets and was surprised how well this worked; the abrasive paper was used freehand but had more accuracy been required the paper could have been wrapped around a length of timber.

Using 240 grit abrasive paper the knobs were given a good sanding and removing the corners of the bead with the lathe at speed completing this stage. The next stage was to remove the belt sander marks and this proved quite difficult as I don’t have a disc sander so I placed a full sheet of 240 grit abrasive paper onto the cast iron table of the bandsaw and tried to draw the knob across this but found control was very poor. I settled for taking the harder option of hand filing each facet after first mounting the knob in the engineering vice rotating for each facet; 40 facets later the facets looked a lot better.

The weather was slighter warmer today but I had the fan heater switched on for comfort but was deeply troubled by the doom and gloom; I thought there was going to be cloudburst it was so dark; with both garage strip lights switched on I couldn’t see what I was doing so pulled out my 60W inspection lamp and set this up at the tailstock end of the lathe; this was slightly better but still there were many shadows especially whilst trying to take measurements and when the tool was applied but this was as good as it was going to get until July so I carried on best I could.

The knobs are not perfect but considering the conditions I’ve been working in they are certainly acceptable; some belt sander marks remain on the facets but are slight and possibly un-noticed by anyone else.

The last job today was to stain the knobs and I’ve used a spirit stain in order not to raise the grain; the stain chosen is Jacobean Dark Oak and the knobs look dark but this is because the stain is still wet but once dry I’m confident it will be good match to the original. I wanted to spray these knobs with auto clear lacquer but by using spirit stain the lacquer will possibly react adversely so to be on the safe side once the stain dries it will receive a couple of sealing coats of shellac then lacquer can be applied safely over the shellac.

This is only one way of making wooden knobs and with hindsight I could have done certain stages differently especially adding the facets as the 60 grit on the belt sander was much too aggressive but these belts are the only ones I have in stock so were pressed into service. Possibly a better job of the facets could have been made by mounting a faceplate sanding disc on the lathe using finer grit abrasive but again I don’t posses such a luxury although I’ll make such a sanding disc this year to supplement my belt sander.

Had the knobs been plain round without facets they would easily have been made on a warm day in a couple of hours but these took a great deal more effort to make; the paper templates were first class and a huge aid in producing decent facets; this is the second time now that drawing paper templates has proved worthwhile and the job would have been far more difficult without as a jig would have had to be made; with better lighting and a finer grit on the belt sander together with taking more time to adjust the belt sander I feel perfect knobs could easily be produced in reasonable time using the method outlined in these notes. Turning the first knob on the lathe took ages but by the time the fifth knob was mounted confidence had been gained and this knob was easily turned in less than five minutes.

What an interesting little project this has been and apart from frostbite and feeling frozen at times it has been most enjoyable; I’ll record all measurements for future reference as it could be fun to have a go at producing a batch of knobs later on in the year if the global warming ever appears. I’ll post a final picture once the finish has been applied. Can you spot the original knob in the picture?

Kind regards, Col.

[AlanBeckett]

I think they'll pass Col
I'm sure the next 50 would be a lot quicker. What do you think the going rate would be?
A final picture with them back on the set is required of course.
Alan

[Aerodyne]

Very inspiring, Col, showing just what can be done even in conditions as adverse as the ones you encountered. Smart looking final product, too. They may prove to be the best part of the radio!
-Tony

[vinrads]

Hi Colin, i have been following the progress of the knobs i must say words fail me , the trouble you have gone to ,and your enthusiasm is a lesson to us all ,the way you find a solution to the most difficult of problems.

I must say the knobs look splendid i look forward to fitting them on the radio ,i will be taking some pictures and post them here ,

Thank you kind regards Mick.

[David G4EBT]

Excellent end result Colin!

Had you not given a step by step progress report with pics, simply seeing the finished knobs utterly belies the time, effort and skill involved. The degree of accuracy called for when making a batch of items which will be on view, and in close proximity to each other, is more akin to engineering tolerances than woodturning. An interesting and challenging project, completed in difficult circumstances, all done in the best ethos of the forum - to help a fellow member and 'kindred sprit'.

(And no - I couldn't spot the original!)


David.

[AlanBeckett]

Mick,
As you're 'half way' I think we should convene for a formal 'fitting'
Alan

[Billy T]

Originally Posted by Retired

Can you spot the original knob in the picture?

Amazing workmanship under very difficult conditions.

My guess is the knob standing up on the left.

I had to enhance the image, but it is still a guess.

Cheers

Billy

[Retired]

Hi,

I feel most humbled by all your very kind comments which are appreciated and encourage me to do even better projects.

Alan; you raised a very good point regarding the going rate for knobs. I’d like if I may compare two opposites; one where someone gets their hands dirty (me) and someone working in an office.

For my part; I was trained in mechanical engineering but over the years have gained considerable experience in many skills; I not only use machines that I bought as scrap and totally rebuilt converting them to run on 240V or from my home wound 3 phase transformer but I also enjoy making small machines such as the 4” belt sander from offcuts and scrap metal. Since adopting radio as a hobby I’ve enjoyed learning scraping; veneering; French polishing and finishing all by trial and error; all during my working life I have never achieved £10 per hour in fact falling well below this even whilst being in charge of three departments at work. I mostly still regard myself as a novice with much to learn but with patience and determination I usually succeed in what I try to achieve and some of my projects are way beyond what is classed as normal but this to me is the appeal of taking on such projects. Taking in all I’ve learned for almost half a century and the time and effort put in making these few knobs if I was to charge £10 per knob this could be considered expensive by the person wishing to buy one.

In comparison take my solicitor; sitting at his desk in comfort in a warm small office the size of a single bedroom. He is not at risk from injury due to dangerous machinery; he doesn’t have to visit scrap yards or other merchants to obtain materials; his main risk is in receiving a paper cut if he isn’t careful. A computer; pen and writing paper are his basic tools together with a printer plus calculator to add up his bill. Two years ago his fees were £180 per hour plus VAT making it £211.50 per hour. We paid £300 for him to draw up our wills. He made two mistakes one was getting Bronwyn’s name totally wrong mixing her up with another client.

I don’t wish to demean our solicitor in any way but how has his training differed from mine? I went to the school of hard knocks aged 15 working underground as an apprentice; he went to university; we were both taught our respective skills parrot fashion. He is still focussed on his basic skills; still behind his desk and most of his work will be routine such as the will writing. He could carry out his job in a one bed roomed flat.

I learned my basic skills but went on to learn many more skills and am still leaning. For my part I wouldn’t exchange places with him for £1.000 per hour; he is chained to his desk doing the same thing day in day out whereas I can do anything I like and I take full advantage of this; I’m not scared of dirty hands and it’s fun climbing around scrap yards in the snow.

So what is the going rate for a hand made wooden radio knob such as these; assuming everything was perfect and I could start from scratch gathering timber and brass and work right through to applying the finish; this could not in my opinion be done easily in a day so eight hours work as a round figure; say £80 for me and £1,692 for him. As long as I have enough money to live on I’m happy because there is so much in life that is wonderful that money can’t buy. Two years ago I arrived home with a car load of steel offcuts costing a tenner; as I parked up my neighbour popped across to show me his new Porsche Boxster; since then he has had a Merc and now runs a large 4WD BMW; I am happy for him he works for them; I still have my offcuts and am still making things out of them; give me the offcuts any day.

Sorry to ramble on but this is my take on life and deep down I’m happy; if I had a great deal of money I would miss so much because simply buying items is just too easy. I’m more than happy to help Vinrads out because I’m not out of pocket and even taking all the time and effort into account all it has really cost me is a bit of timber; a short length of brass and a bit of electricity; what I have gained is many quality hours of playing with my toys whilst adding to my experience. This project has taken longer than it should due to the weather which by the way has started to snow again.

I know you are a very highly skilled Woodturner David and we still have your gift of a beautiful bowl turned out of London Plane on display and I think you would agree that turning a one off is reasonably easy but many wood turners shy away from repetition turning because it is so difficult to produce near copies. If these knobs were made of metal I would have found it much easier to copy them very accurately because I could have used the inbuilt accuracy of my engineering lathe but wood turning free hand to fine tolerances takes patience and practice; one simple slip with the tool is all that it takes to ruin many hours work: I’d love to show a picture of your excellent bowl but fear it might be considered off topic.

Many thanks Billy for enhancing the picture of the knobs and yes it is the knob on the left that is the original; it is slightly lighter in colour due to the others still being wet with stain. I had already edited the pictures using Gimp 2 because when I took the pictures without using flash they came out extremely dark but using the flash it washed them out; such is our climate.

By going into such detail it is my sincere wish to encourage others to have a go using the old skills and techniques that are rapidly dying out; this is my way of trying to put a bit back for all the generous help I’ve received from members; thanks to everyone.

Kind regards, Col.

[David G4EBT]

Originally Posted by Retired

Hi,

...I think you would agree that turning a one off is reasonably easy but many wood turners shy away from repetition turning because it is so difficult to produce near copies.

Kind regards, Col.

How true is that!

Making several items that are similar in size and appearance is one thing, and if it's a pair of candlesticks set apart on a mantlepiece or a pair of table lamps set apart on bedside tables, any imperfections aren't so noticable. But a set of wooden radio knobs which are a focal point, set close together on the front of a radio cabinet, where even slight variations would be immediately apparent, is another thing altogether.

The term 'amateur' has two connotations: firstly, someone who isn't a professional and isn't up to a professional standard: secondly, someone who turns out work to a high standard, every bit as good as a pro, but for whom time isn't of the essence, and who does it for the love of the work - not for the financial rewards that it might otherwise bring.

Your efforts, and the end results epitomise the latter meaning Colin.

Now you can get your glue pot on the hotplate and get weaving on the telly cabinet!
(Or stand by for further knob commisions!)


David