# Pendant Turning Tools Technical Details



## Bree (Jan 19, 2010)

OK so you are going to turn a pendant.  You have a drill chuck and an eccentric chuck or backer plate so you can do your hole and main body.  The next question is what tool do you use to round over the edges, dome the main body, and hollow the area around the hole?

I'm sure people have different preferences.  YoYoSpin likes to use his 45 degree skew for most of this.  Others might use their normal skew.  Some seem to use a spindle gouge.  I have heard some using bowl gouges.  I myself was thinking that this might be perfect for a Bedan tool which could do every operation.

What exactly do you use and for what operation or part of the pendant?  Please be very specific and note any things to watch out for.  Also what dimensions do you use for your pendant blanks?

If we could get several successful people putting these technical details into one place, it would be helpful to a lot of us who are new to this type of turning.
Thx!
:wink::wink::wink:


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## turbowagon (Jan 19, 2010)

Here are the tools I like to use:

- 5/8" bowl gouge to go from square to round (with tailstock support)
- 3/8" spindle gouge pulled towards me making shearing cuts to dome the front of the pendant.
- 3/8" spindle gouge pushed towards the center to enlarge the offset hole (or create an offset dished surface)
- skew to round the outside edge (used like a scraper)

Some examples:


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## rjwolfe3 (Jan 19, 2010)

On my Corian pendants I use my Woodchuck for everything so far. I have been playing with a skew some as well. As I experiment more I may use other items.


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## Dalecamino (Jan 19, 2010)

Bree , I've been rounding the edges with my skew , and getting as much surface as I can with it , before moving the tail stock and finishing the rest . After drilling the hole , I use my Spindle master to dish it out . Hope this helps .


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## Bree (Jan 19, 2010)

turbowagon said:


> Here are the tools I like to use:
> 
> - 5/8" bowl gouge to go from square to round (with tailstock support)
> - 3/8" spindle gouge pulled towards me making shearing cuts to dome the front of the pendant.
> ...


 
This is great information... exactly what I was hoping to get.  And your work is excellent.  Thanks for sharing!

And guys thx for your contributions!  I hope a bunch of people can share their tools and techniques so us noob pendant turners can sort out what our options are.
:wink::wink::wink:


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## Bree (Jan 19, 2010)

dalecamino said:


> Bree , I've been rounding the edges with my skew , and getting as much surface as I can with it , before moving the tail stock and finishing the rest . After drilling the hole , I use my Spindle master to dish it out . Hope this helps .


 
A beautiful end grain pendant!  Hey... what are your blank dimensions guys??


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## broitblat (Jan 19, 2010)

I rough with a 3/8 spindle gouge and do most everything else with a skew.

Blanks are usually 1 1/2 - 2" wide.

  -Barry


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## Dalecamino (Jan 19, 2010)

Bree said:


> A beautiful end grain pendant! Hey... what are your blank dimensions guys??


 I got some blanks that were 1/4" x 1-7/8 square .


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## fishlux (Jan 19, 2010)

I'm glad to see this.  I've only made 6, so I can learn a lot from this. 

I used my bowl gouge for nearly all of it on the face-grained, and me scraper for end-grain.  I did use a bedan-like tool for the grooves.

One Gotcha:  Don't use a Forstner bit to drill a big hole on one.  Unless you have some magical method to hold the blank on the sacrificial block.  DS tape won't do it.


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## Bree (Jan 20, 2010)

Do you guys ever use CA glue to hold your blanks on the block?  I had some turner's tape and it was useless for holding the blank on.


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## rjwolfe3 (Jan 20, 2010)

I use double sided duck tape from Walmart. Works like a charm.
The size blanks that I use range from 1/4" - 1/2" thick and 1" - 2" square or somewhere in between.


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## bitshird (Jan 21, 2010)

Bree, I use a woodchuck with a 2 inch radius insert, (but a skew will also work) with my wood mounted to a scrap of Melamine and taped with the DUCK BRAND double sided tape from Walmart,:good: on one of the deluxe pendant backer plates. I've only done a few, but haven't had any come loose yet  I find that just using one tool makes things easier.
I must confess that I do use a parting tool to get the pendant free from the backing plate so I guess I use two tools, also a parting tool or skew would work well for detail cuts as long as they were sharp.


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## fishlux (Jan 21, 2010)

I think my biggest problem with the tape not holding, was that my backer/sacrificial block was too small.  I made it just over 1" diameter, for my wife's pendant.  The order was for pendants 2.75"  I should have used a bigger mounting point.


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## turbowagon (Jan 21, 2010)

I also use the Duck double-sided tape from Walmart.  It holds REALLY well... so well, in fact, that I have a hard time separating the pendant from the waste block after it is done.


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## bitshird (Jan 21, 2010)

turbowagon said:


> I also use the Duck double-sided tape from Walmart.  It holds REALLY well... so well, in fact, that I have a hard time separating the pendant from the waste block after it is done.



I've had that problem also. particularly with a smooth waste block. And it's a lot cheaper than turners tape.


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## Grizz (Jan 26, 2010)

I'm so old school (so it seems), but I use two different size skews for pendants and that's it.  I use skews for most perimeter work, an occasion spindle gouge of course.  I don't know what it is, but my eye seems to be able to see ahead of what needs to be done with a skew.  And of course it helps that I started my turning experience back in the 70's.


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