How to Make a Homemade Lathe Handle

Make a custom lathe tool handle that fits your hand's shape.

A woodturner uses varied tools to shape the wood he turns on the lathe. The tool he uses depends on the cutting or shaping operation he performs. The tool handle's length and shape are also dictated by the tool itself. A woodturner can purchase a tool without a handle, giving him the perfect opportunity to make his own custom tool handle. A tool's owner can shape a tool handle to fit his hand, make the tool to the exact length he needs, and decorate the tool to aid in its identification.

Things You'll Need

• Wood lathe
• 1 ½-inch-square hard wood turning stock
• Ferrule
• Roughing gouge
• Parting tool
• Detail gouge
• 150-grit sandpaper
• Jacobs chuck
• Drill bit set
• Oil finish
• Rag
• Lacquer thinner
• 100-grit sandpaper
• Epoxy
• Soft mallet

Instructions

1. Place a length of 1 ½-inch-square dry turning stock between your wood lathe's centers. The piece's length will depend on the tool to which you will fit the handle, as well as your personal preference. Bowl gouges can have handles between 16 and 20 inches. Detail gouge handles measure about 12 inches, parting tool handles measure 6 to 12 inches, and scrapers have handles between 12 and 16 inches. Choose a straight-grained hard wood without defects.

2. Turn the stock into a round cylinder with a roughing gouge.

3. Turn a tenon on one end of the handle. Turn the tenon to a diameter that is a tight fit for the ferrule. Use a parting tool. Remove the handle from the lathe. Test-fit the ferrule as needed.

4. Turn the handle to its final shape with a detail gouge. The handle's shape can range from a simple cylinder or taper to a series of coves. Create a shape that is comfortable to your hand. Look at the handles on your other lathe tools for ideas. Remove the handle from the lathe as needed. Determine how the handle feels while you are gripping it.

5. Sand the handle with the lathe running at the slow speed using 150 grit sandpaper.

6. Remove the drive center from the lathe's headstock. Install a Jacobs chuck into the headstock. Place a drill bit the same diameter as the tool shaft into the chuck. Tighten the chuck with the chuck key.

7. Place the tool handle with the tenon at the drill bit. Place the other end on the tailstock center. Grip the handle to keep it from spinning. Tighten the tailstock. Turn the lathe on the slowest speed. Slowly advance the handle into the drill bit by turning the tailstock adjustment wheel clockwise. Drill the hole to a depth between one-quarter to one-third the total length of the metal tool.

8. Apply an oil finish with a rag if desired. A smooth finish, such a varnish or polyurethane, would be too slippery.

9. Clean the oils off the steel tool with lacquer thinner. Rough up the surface you will glue into the handle. Use 100-grit sandpaper.

10. Glue the steel tool into the new handle with epoxy. Apply the epoxy to the sides of the handle's hole. Drive the handle onto the steel tool with a soft mallet (See References 2)

Tips & Warnings

• Wear a face shield when using a wood lathe.

References

• Thomson Lathe Tools; Turning Tool Handles; Ron McKinley; 2008
• Forgotten Handles; Do a Good Turn For Your Hands; Alan Lacer

Resources

• American Association of Woodturners