Making a Letter Rack


Sue Harker pens a piece describing how to turn a paper holder

Wooden rainbow stacker toy on display.

It is amazing how many household items that are made from a variety of other materials can be made from timber. This project is one of them and you will see how I turn a wooden letter rack made from a thin disc of ash.

The main consideration, as with many of our projects, was how to hold the wood on the lathe. I regularly use the recess method, where a hole is drilled in the centre of the timber the correct diameter for my jaws. I have used this method for the initial chucking method so the pattern can be cut on the front face. The easiest method for reverse mounting the timber is to use a vacuum chuck, which gives clear access to the timber.

However, should you not own one, then a flat disc of timber with sacrificial chucking tenon attached, clad with router matting, would suffice. The disadvantage of this method is that the tail drive needs to be pulled up to provide compression, so the timber remains held against the router matting securing it for all the turning, sanding and finishing. The resulting pip will then need to be removed manually with carving tools or by sanding flat.

Plans & Equipment

Tools

  • PPE & RPE as appropriate
  • Pillar drill with Forstner bit the correct size for your jaws
  • 3⁄8in standard grind bowl gouge
  • 3⁄8in fingernail profile spindle gouge
  • 1⁄8in parting tool
  • Sanding arbor fitted into a battery drill
  • Rotary sanding arbor
  • Vacuum chuck or re-mounting jig
  • 30cm steel rule
  • Clamps
  • B and saw

Materials

  • Piece of timber measuring approx. 240mm diameter x minimum 25mm thick
  • Cellulose sanding sealer
  • Cut and polish
  • Microcrystalline wax
  • PVA adhesive

The making

Wood drilling with spiral wood shavings
1. Find the centre of a piece of timber measuring approx. 240mm diameter x approx. 25mm thick and drill a shallow recess using a Forstner bit the correct size for your chuck. Due to the size of drill being used, the timber will need to be clamped to the pillar drill table to hold securely
Hand turning wood on a lathe machine.
2. Secure the timber in your chuck using the hole drilled earlier. Using a 3⁄8 in standard grind bowl gouge, turn into the round
Woodturning on lathe with tool and shavings
3. Next, position the toolrest across the front face and true up using a 3⁄8 in standard grind bowl gouge. Lay a steel ruler or similar straightedge across the surface to check for any discrepancies and refine where necessary
Woodturning with a skew chisel on lathe
4. Draw reference marks at positions 25mm and 50mm in from the edge of the timber and at a thickness of approx. 15mm on the edge. From the first reference mark, create a cove finishing approx. 5mm from the reference mark on the edge
Woodturning tool shaping spinning wood on lathe
5. Using a 1⁄8 in parting tool presented at approx. 45° to the timber, cut V-grooves on the reference marks and 8mm to the right of both. The 8mm area between the grooves is where the bead detail will be formed
Hand carving intricate wooden pattern on lathe
6. Draw reference marks in the centre of the areas marked to receive the beads. Using a 3⁄8 in long grind bowl gouge, turn the beads, leaving the centre reference marks in place – these will be sanded out later
Close-up of ceramic pot on potter's wheel.
7. Sand the cove and round over the edge at the rim using a rotary sander with a disc of 120 grit abrasive attached. The centre of the timber can be sanded using a sanding arbor fitted into a battery drill. The flat between the beads will require hand sanding. Start with 120, work through grits 7 8 180, 240, 320 and finish with 400
Sanding wooden bowl on a lathe
8. To sand the beads, fold the abrasive disc in half then create a small flat at the fold. Move this flat area across the beads by rubbing the two sides of the abrasive together using your finger and thumb. This action, mixed with the revolution of the lathe, allows the beads to be sanded without altering their profile. Work through the same grits as previously
Polishing wooden bowl with cloth on lathe
9. Apply sanding sealer to the sanded areas and allow to dry before coating with cut and polish. Using a piece of kitchen roll or similar, buff the timber to a sheen
Hand polishing a pottery plate on wheel
10. Next, apply some microcrystalline wax and allow to stand for approx. 20 minutes before buffing to a glossy shine. Remove from the lathe
Hand carving wood on lathe machine.
11. Re-mount the timber for removing the chucking recess and thicknessing the timber, using your preferred method of holding. Here I am using a vacuum chuck to hold the timber so the tail drive can be removed for finishing the surface. True up the face and reduce the surplus thickness. Check the surface is flat using a steel rule as before, refining where necessary. The finished thickness is to be approx. 15mm
Spinning machine polishing yellow and blue disc
12. Sand using a sanding arbor fitted into a battery drill working through the same grits as previously. Apply the finishes as used for the front before removing from the lathe
Person using bandsaw to cut wood.
13. Next, cut the disc into three pieces. Here I am using a purpose-made sled used for cutting finished rounds of timber. The first cut is made at 110mm. Sit the disc in the jig with the rip fence set 110mm from the blade. Run the jig along the rip fence to make the cut. The second cut is 45mm wide so, with the rip fence set at 45mm from the blade, place the cut edge of the larger section of disc on to the jig, butt up to the rip fence and push through the blade to cut
Wood being cut with a bandsaw.
14. Next, cut the cove section off the centre strip along the bottom of the first bead. This is done freehand, ensuring your fingers are always kept away from the blade
Hand holding brown wooden half-circle pattern
15. Using a disc sander or something similar, sand the cut edges. For the curved sections, ensure the timber is held with the same amount of pressure throughout the sanding of the shape. Finish sanding these areas with finer grits by hand. A finish is applied to the centre strip areas where the cove was removed
Wooden bowl clamped during woodworking process.
16. Finally, apply glue to the flat cut surfaces on the centre strip and clamp the front and back pieces to them. Here I am using a purpose-built clamping platform. The back part of the letter rack is placed against the back of the jig, the centre sat on the bottom, and the front piece pushed up to the centre. When clamping, make sure the front piece does not lean towards the centre

Handy hints

Measuring wooden block with metal ruler for precision.
Flat faces. To ensure the front and back faces of the disc are completely flat, lay a ruler across the face to check for discrepancies
Wood lathe machine crafting wooden disk.
Alternative re-mounting method. An alternative method to using a vacuum chuck is a flat disc of timber with a sacrificial chucking tenon attached and a piece of non-slip matting secured to the front face – this will prevent the disc from moving when being held in place. The tail drive will need to be pulled up to securely hold the disc for turning and finishing. The pip that remains either can be cut off with carving tools or sanded

Jigs being used

The cutting jig I have used comprises a flat board surrounded on two sides with a thin strip of timber. One of the open sides of the sled is used to slide along the rip fence. The clamping jig I used comprises two lengths of timber secured together to form a 90° angle. The sides are clad with longer lengths of timber to raise the 90° bed so clamps can be applied, allowing the item to sit squarely on the platform.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Social Media

Instagram Facebook Youtube
Subscribe to our Newsletter

Company Info

The Woodworkers Institute

We bring you the very best of woodworking -
Projects, techniques, tools, videos, magazines and more...
"Make it with us"