Big Brother Bother

[Bemused]

I received a Hamlet Big Brother hollowing tool for Christmas, well it turned out to be the little brother but I can live with that.

This uses a ring or cup cutter with a bevel cum shroud that sits above the cutter.

I had read some were that ring cutters should be sharpened from the inside edge so I used a Diamond hone to get a working edge. Some time latter I found that it is recommended to sharpen the cutter from the outside edge?

First attempt with the brother was disappointing but looked more promising when I got the cutter block and shroud the right way round! I tried a few test cuts on some dry close grained wood and whilst it was apparent that the tool required a different technique than my trusty bowl gouge I had a few good cuts and turned a small goblet from dry Hawthorn 3" high 1/16th wall as a test piece. Ended up getting the outside in order with a bowl gouge as the Brother had left some tool marks but it was a move in the right direction.

Now I thought to turn a proper piece and got the wet Laburnum out of its poly bag and onto a screw chuck and use the new tool in earnest. This is were the disappointment set in again, I was getting some cuts but the cutter completely clogged after just a few inches of cut. I gave up in the end and returned to the trusted bowl gouge.

Any advice on use of this tool or urls would be great.

Tony

 

[Blister]

Can you post some photos of the cutter end of your BB tool

Top / front / underneath etc

Most of these cutter heads only need a very fine cut or they will clog

Or its like trying to get a 6" wedge through a 3" letter box , it goes in so far then jams

 

[CHJ]

Do I read that correctly ? You attempted to sharpen the cutter before you used it !
These cutter bits should be sharp as supplied and have several hours of turning in them by gently rotating them to present a new cutter face before you ever need to touch them.
Assuming you have not moved the cutter geometry significantly by grinding, it sounds, as already mentioned, as though you have not mastered the adjustment of the shield to the fine clearance required.

In use remember that the shield is the bevel contact not the lower cutter surface and the tool needs subtle rotation clockwise to take it from bevel rubbing only to cutter biting

 

[TEP]

The Big Brother fitted with the Little Brother cutter is the only specialised hollowing tool I use, all others are home made.

There are probably folks far more expert at the tool than I, but what I do is, always sharpen the outside of the cutter by honing. If you put it on a grinder it won't last seconds. If you have a grinding table and a steady hand it is possible to grind very carefully a second bevel on the reverse of the cutter, this way you get two bites at the cherry, so to speak.

I prefer to 'hang' the cutter beneath the bar, I always felt that to have the cutter on top imparts a twisting motion to the tool. ALL shielded ring cutters 'clog' the apparent clog usually clears as soon as you begin the next cut. The only time I clear mine is when putting the tool away.

Where some folks make a mistake is that in presenting the tool to the wood, they try using the cutting edge. How to present the Hamlet tool is to twist the tool anti-clockwise to rub the shield, then slowly twist clockwise to bring the edge into play. Same as you do with any other turning edged tool. This way you can have a slightly bigger gap and use the 'twist' to control the depth of cut.

Hope this may help a little.

 

[Bemused]

A big thanks to everyone I think I have cracked it.
Certainly better to hang the cutter below and the twist technique works a treat.
Now I have got the hang of its its jut a matter of polishing the technique.
I am a very happy bunny

A pic of the cutter

A pic of a hollow

Oh and did I say thanks for your help,

 

[OldWood]

Can I pick this thread back up please? I too got a Little Brother for Xmas - it was a recommendation from a professional as an inexpensive way into hollowing as I already had a HopeWoodTurning handle.

The down side of going this way is that there are no instructions, and my first attempts are not going the way I would like. I suspect that I would be best if I tried using it on the outside of a shape rather than inside and maybe spalted beech may not be the best wood to try hollowing this way and with no experience.

I can appreciate using the cover as the bevel and rolling the tool into the work, but I'm not getting anything that could be described as a cut. Just how much projection should the cutting edge have ? I've tried several settings and all I get is chatter. I was also finding that I do have to tighten up the hex head screw very tight as the edge then just disappeared under the cover.

Appreciate any help please.

Rob

 

[Paul Hannaby]

The gap between cutter and guard should be a fraction of a millimetre. Try adjusting until you can take a full depth cut without losing control.
If the cutter is tending to clog, make sure it is still sharp, a blunt cutter will clog far quicker than a sharp one. Sharpen on the outside only.
Also, you may find this page useful http://www.hannaby.com/hamlet.html

 

[OldWood]

The gap between cutter and guard should be a fraction of a millimetre. Try adjusting until you can take a full depth cut without losing control.
If the cutter is tending to clog, make sure it is still sharp, a blunt cutter will clog far quicker than a sharp one. Sharpen on the outside only.
Also, you may find this page useful http://www.hannaby.com/hamlet.html

Many thanks Paul. I went back to the piece after posting the query and did make some progress. However having read your webpage, I feel that I am maturing as a turner in that I had looked at the tool and recognised the very problem you have addressed, and wondered just why it was made so deep - strength I assume. That doesn't mean that I am any good as a turner, but that I am remembering what I have read and am occasionally putting it into practice. The workpiece is some 75mm external diameter and I'm aiming at a 3mm wall thickness, so the initial wall hollowing cuts were chattery, but the ones for the bottom OK, which reflects your analysis.

Again many thanks - I do have a resistance to modifying something after it's first half-hour of use, but may well do so after 2 hours. :wink:

Rob

 

[Bemused]

Rob, have you seen the utube vid for the tool

 

[nev]

may be of interest...
http://www.woodworkersinstitute.com/page.asp?p=2185