Replies

1. 
   wizenedwizzard | Aug 26, 2012 11:15am | #1

   Swenson, Four (4) points on each.  Curious to see what you come up with.  Thanks.

1. 
   roc | Aug 26, 2012 02:53pm | #2

   I fear the worst

   Things may not be going well.  Difficult project.

   Probably cut it while square ?

   At first I was thinking a wrap around aluminum template.  Fun to layout with drafting tools and make it come out right.

   Shoot !

   Computers have taken all the fun out of drawing plans.  I don't even get to use my electric power eraser.

   I am thinking along the lines of round metal parts.  Not good.

   Probably an easier way with a fence or two on the bandsaw.

   Come in Swenson

   Are you there man ?

   Are you all right ?

   Can you give us your coordinates so we can get a fix on your position?

2. 
   roc | Aug 26, 2012 03:12pm | #3

   Oooooh Man !

   Interesting avatar.  From a distance while it was small it looked like a gargoyle with his back to us doing something extremely rude to another gargoyle.

   Then I enlarged it to have a closer look.  (It's the voyeur in me )

   :     )

   Now I am really scared !

   Is that a pentagram behind the hillbilly with all the artillery and chemical enhancement ?

1. 
   swenson | Aug 26, 2012 07:55pm | #4

   roc

   Haven't had time for the shop, got roped into a political event.  I'm thinking it is an easy cut on a light square blank, and the same cut on a dark square blank and then you swap the bottom parts of the cuts  into each top, therefore giving you two blanks, white over black and black over white.  I can see it in my mind's eye I just have to go down to the shop and try it.  I think the cuts will start on the corners with the blanks turned up forty five degrees from the table and the fence set at the angle for the slope of the pointed parts.

2. 
   swenson | Sep 04, 2012 04:59pm | #9

   rude gargoyle

   Roc

   Piece of advice.  Don't ever take an ink blot test.  They will lock you up.  "Waddaya talking about, Doc, I don't have a dirty mind, you are the one with all the filthy pictures."

1. 
   roc | Sep 05, 2012 12:45am | #11

   Ink Blots A GoGo

   ha, ha, ha, aaah, ha, ha, ha,

   Hmmmmmm

   you could be right

1. 
   swenson | Sep 05, 2012 01:54am | #12

   But wait! There's more!

   I now think that since after the first four cuts on the corners leave the two sides stuck together in the middle of the inside of the blank, I now think that if there was a hole down the middle of the blank, like in a duck call, the cuts would free up the two parts when they cut into the hole.

   Next test will be turning the first test round on the lathe and then trying the hole down the middle theory,  Stay tuned.  Don't get discouraged by the rough look of the first test, it was only to see if the process would work.  I can see this being cut with a very thin Japanese pull saw at some point in the future.

2. 
   roc | Aug 26, 2012 08:05pm | #5

   Ah

   Thank Bob

   Carry on.

3. 
   wizenedwizzard | Aug 30, 2012 06:42pm | #6

   Hmmmm...

   Hmmmmm...  Perhaps this one is not so easy??? 

1. 
   swenson | Sep 04, 2012 11:20am | #7

   It's not easy because I keep getting roped into other things by my wife.  I just finished a complete walk in closet redo with ClosetMaid hardware including having to tear out old built ins, spackling and priming and painting.  Took me seven days.  I will get down to the shop and try this joint.  Who said retirement gives you more time to do things?  NOT TRUE.

2. 
   swenson | Sep 04, 2012 04:37pm | #8

   The test worked...

   ...well, it kinda worked.  I set up part of a jig I sometimes  use to cut tails on the bandsaw.  It has a 6 to 1 slope.  I put a V block against it and a scrap of almost square 2X2 on the V block as a test piece.  Holding the V block against the jig, and moving them together thru the blade, I made corner cuts down to the middle of the test scrap on each corner.  Boy did this look right except I couldn't pull them apart, and everything slid around while cutting and got dangerous.  Then I got rid of the jig and freehanded two opposite corners all the way thru to the other side.  That cut off two of the spikes on the end with four points, but it cut the two parts free of each other.  Then it was a simple matter to glue the two points back on.  The pictures look like a mess because I did a lot of it freehand.  When I make a jig that doesn't slide appart when in use I'll be able to make perfect cuts, but for now the good news is that plan A seems to work.  Done with dark and light woods, and then turned on a lathe, I think this is going to look great.  The bad news is that there is no plan B.

   
4. 
   swenson | Sep 05, 2012 12:15am | #10

   end grain

   In your OP you said glued end-grain to end-grain.   Now that I have cut one I realize that there is no end-graIn involved at all, unless you count the very tip of each point.  The cuts are almost rips, leaving almost face grain and a better glue surface.

5. 
   hammer1 | Sep 05, 2012 09:54am | #13

   Your "star" joint is commonly

   Your "star" joint is commonly used in making billiard cues and is known as a "long splice joint". Many cue makers today, use CNC lathes. These can also allow cutting inlays to mimic the splice joint. Of course, the joint can be cut by hand but it's not easy. Here is a good picture of the mating pieces being cut in stages. At the top of the web page under Informative, there are some interesting articles. I like the one about CNC vs Hand made.

   http://www.arnotq.com/pages/21/21.html

1. 
   wizenedwizzard | Sep 06, 2012 10:06pm | #14

   Thank you hammer1 for this information.  I checked out the site you referenced and will follow-up to see what I can learn.  Much appreciated. 

1. 
   JamesMe | Oct 16, 2013 05:52am | #16

   Start learning joinery

   Visit this site http://www.carpentrycourses.org/ , it can be very usefull for people like you.

   good luck.

6. 
   swenson | Sep 07, 2012 01:41am | #15

   That was fun trying, but now I want to use long splice star joints on my file handles.