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Introduction
I like flea markets and antique shops because I get a lot of ideas for
projects from other people’s “junque.” For example,
a neighboring town holds a huge community yard sale/flea market twice
a year. While walking through the sale many years ago I spotted this small,
beat up, yet overpriced candlestick that I really liked. It was a relatively
simple thing but also had some very nice lines to it. Instead of paying
too much money for it, I made a quick sketch of it in the notebook that
I always carry with me and went home to make my own. My wife and I both
liked the design so much that we used a pair of them as altar candles
when we were married. I used some very old, air-dried walnut for the project
pictured here. Air-dried walnut has that rich chocolate brown color and
often contains streaks of reds, yellows, oranges, and greens that the
steamed, “one-color-fits-all” walnut available at most lumber
yards often lacks.
Prepare the turning stock
I started the project by squaring up stock so I had two pieces of wood:
one measuring 1-1/2” x 1-1/2” x 5” for the spindle and
the other 7/8” x 4-1/4” x 4-1/4” for the base. I also
cut another piece the same dimensions as the base stock to use as a backer
block for the faceplate. I don’t like to screw holes in the base
of turned objects—they can usually be avoided with a little extra
work! In order to eliminate them from this project, I glued the two 7/8”
pieces of stock together with a piece of thin paper that I cut from an
old manila folder sandwiched between them. This allowed me to drill the
pilot holes for the screws that held the stock to the faceplate in the
waste block and allowed me to remove my turning easily when I was finished.
The manila folder is strong enough to support the stock while it’s
spinning on the lathe but still thin enough so as to not interfere with
the turning. I treated the paper just like the wood when I glued the assembly
together. I spread glue on both surfaces and clamped the entire unit together
with handscrews. I like to use adjustable handscrews (sometimes called
parallel clamps) for this because they apply even pressure to the joint.
Because this will be turned on the lathe, I allow the glue to cure at
least overnight—or better still, for 24 hours—so I don’t
have to worry about the joint separating while it’s spinning.
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