— Nova Woodturners' Guild —

Hints and Tips....

Richard Ford's Set-Up Sketch and Router Settings Sheet. Can be used to make Bravery Bead boxes.

The FAD Plans
(The above link allows you to download a copy of a self-extracting Zip file of eight PDF files to your default download folder). Move this file to its own folder and double click it to extract the PDFs.
Windows Defender may try to prevent an unrecognized app from starting; in that case, select "More info", then "Run Anyway" and finally "Extract".
These PDF files contain all the drawing information needed to build your own FAD.
NOTE: In this design, the top of the table is 2 1/4" below the center of the headstock.

RJF Segment and Straight Stave Calculator 2018-03-18
(Clicking on the above link will download a copy of the spreadsheet to your default download folder.)
The Excel file will calculate all the cutting information for regular segmented rings or straight stave vessels. It will also adjust the cutting information if you wish to glue parallel strips between each segment or stave or have parallel gaps.

RJF Tapered Stave Calculator 2018-03-18
(Clicking on the above link will download a copy of the spreadsheet to your default download folder.) This Excel file will calculate all the cutting information for tapered or conical stave construction. It will also adjust the cutting information if you wish to glue parallel strips between each stave or have parallel gaps.

Sandpaper Grits Compared: A useful chart comparing CAMI and FEPA sandpaper grits.
Recommended Drill Speeds: Wood magazine's chart showing recommended drill speeds and uses for different types of bits.
Millimetre / Fraction / Inch Conversion Chart: Useful for finding the right drill bit.

Apache OpenOffice: this is FREE and is a replacement for Microsoft Office. It will read and export documents and spreadsheets (my main use) in microsoft format, and also save in PDF format.
You can get it here.
(Recommended by Richard Ford.)
LibreOffice: this is a new version of OpenOffice (and yet still free); there have been many, many improvements implemented (but at the cost of the software using more computer resources). It can be used to make documents ("word processor"), spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and has a database feature. It will read and export documents and spreadsheets in microsoft format, and also save in PDF format.
You can get it here.
(Noted by Jim Diamond, who despises word processors and only uses them under great duress.)
Graph Paper Generator. Read the two ReadMe files first: the program author's Read Me and Norm Jolivet's ReadMe.

These videos were made at a NWG demo in September 2017.

Dave McLachlan passed along a tip he has been using to make collets of different sizes using 3/4" birch plywood. Disks of plywood are sized to fit inside your chuck jaws and drilled with a specific-sized hole in the center to hold smaller work pieces. Slots are cut from the outer edge of the disk toward the center — but not all the way to the inner hole. Then slots are cut between the first slots from the inside hole out outwards — but not all the way to the edge of the disk. The disk is placed in the chuck jaws loosely and the work piece inserted in the inner hole. When the chuck jaws are tightened the slots allow the disk to compress, gripping the work piece firmly. Download the templates here.

Do you have any suggestions about the Guild or this website? If so, please click the box…

An archive of old newsletters and a few other documents is found here.