Myford ML8 advice and wood ID help requested

[HappyPixie]

Two questions from a complete newbie.

I've inherited a green Myford ML8 which hasn't been used for several years. I bought a Super Nova chuck and did a quick bowl out of (probably) mahogany and my second piece is this weird wood (below) which I'm trying to turn into a small urn. My father in law - whose lathe it was - had lots of odd bits of wood around and this was in a cylinder and was really heavy. It was covered in a dark coating of filth but after I got through it there was this light yellowy wood with a dense resinous core. This heartwood makes shavings like a sharp knife scraping a candle, like ribbons. There's pronounced smell, too, but I can't identify it - neither the wood not the smell!

Can anyone hazard a guess at the wood. Not having anything to go on, or even knowing why, I would have said olive.

My second question is what kind of oil can I use for the bearings. During my work on this piece there were some squeaks and groans. They stopped when I tightened the headstock against the drive bit thingy. I've got good old 3-in-1 oil but thought I'd ask first before using the first thing to hand.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Robbo3]

Looks like laburnum. Was the bark smooth?

There's an ongoing thread on wood ID
- wood-id-t76854.html

 

[winemaker]

Nice wook no idea what the wood is, I use car gear oil, as it was recommended to me,

 

[paulm]

From the description of the wood I'm thinking it may be lignum vitae, not sure about that particular lathe and lubrication.

Cheers, Paul

 

[Tazmaniandevil]

I use automatic transmission fluid on my ML8. It's a total loss oil system apparently, so is designed to lose oil. It needs to be topped up regularly. I just fill mine until full.

Wood species I can't help you with, sorry

 

[Dalboy]

From the description of the wood I'm thinking it may be lignum vitae, not sure about that particular lathe and lubrication.

Cheers, Paul

My first thought as well.

When you turn it does it leave a shine straight from the tool and also does it clog the sand paper when sanding

 

[procell]

Does it sink in water? if it is lignum vitae it will sink. Also from experience using it before I took up turning it will blunt tools in short order. It looks a lot lighter than any Lignum I have ever seen though.

 

[KimG]

It's not Laburnum at least, Lignum look a distinct possibility though, it looks very fresh, was it turned green?

 

[HappyPixie]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Robbo: No bark visible as it came as a pre-turned blank for some other use - I suspect as a pipe interior stretcher. I saw the other wood ID thread but thought it might be rude to hijack it by throwing in another weird lump.

Procell: Nice test. Filled sink and it sunk! The remainder of the blank is 95mm Ø by 165mm long and weighs 1460g. It not only blunts quickly, it leaves a hard clag on the lip of the tool that needs pinging off with a thumb nail.

Thanks to Winemaker and the wood Womble for oil advice.

Dalboy: Yes, it clogs the sandpaper; and

KimG: not turned green. My father in law's shed has a bag of these round blanks of different weights. They've all been there for years and as mentioned above probably had another life in the industrial plumbing trade before he got them. This piece was probably the heaviest and I assumed the hardest.

Thanks y'all.

Steve

 

[Dalboy]

In that case I definitely vote lignum vitae.

You don't want to turn this really just send it to me and I will turn it and blunt my tools and clock my sand paper :twisted: :twisted: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Seriously keep it for something special practice on some other hard woods

 

[KimG]

Not old Bowling balls are they by any chance Steve? I mean when you say round, do you mean like a ball? If they are Balls then that is pretty much a clincher for Lignum, though I would bet on Lignum from the pic anyway, plus Procell's suggestion, see if it sinks, that too would be a sure test. Dalboy doesn't really need it, he is just fixated, I on the other hand have a dire need!

 

[Dalboy]

Dalboy doesn't really need it, he is just fixated, I on the other hand have a dire need!

I don't know I could always make a couple of nice carving mallets :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[HappyPixie]

Intrigued by the interest and you're right, I should do my learning on cheaper and less taxing material.

I just spent some time mooching around the wood database (http://www.wood-database.com) and I'm leaning towards Argentine Lignum Vitae.

Here are a couple of images of the remaining lump. You can see the dark coating on the end remaining from its previous use. It is so hard I couldn't hammer the drive thingy into it properly and it span around.

I shall file this until I have acquired more skill and until I've thought of what to do with it. Any suggestions?

Cheers

 

[KimG]

Save it till you have a really good project for it, lignum takes some very fine detail and is excellent for such things.

 

[Normancb]

The recommended oil for the ML8 is Nuto H32, a light hydraulic oil. You can get it from Myfords or via eBay

There is no need to fill the reservoirs. Just squirt a few drops in to each bearing at the start of a session. The bearings are very good and are standard sizes so can be replaced easily enough.

Gear oil is really too thick and engine oil is not well suited to this job.