WOODTURNING DEPTH GAUGE

[morsa]

Depth gauges used in woodworking are not generally useful for measuring the depth of a hollow made in a bowl or other pieces at the wood lathe. There are several homemade depth gauges for this purpose on the net.

This version I show was made with a discarded printer bar (calibrated in tenths of an inch), a piece of cedar, a brass screw, a “T” insert nut, and a piece of acrylic.











morsa

[kbalch]

Thanks morsa! I've added your Woodturning Depth Gauge to our Height and Depth Gauges and Wood Lathes categories, as well as to your builder page: morsa's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Woodturning Depth Gauge by morsa

tags: lathe, depth gauge

[jere]

A great measuring tool! simple but should be very useful for not hollowing through long or narrow vase "blind" stlye bowls.

[morsa]

Thanks jere.
Indeed, it is practical and reliable. Before making this tool, I used to use two rules: one resting on the edges of the piece, and the other, perpendicular to the first, to measure the distance from the bottom to the rule.
To use the tool, you can measure the depth of the hollow as you advance; as alternative you can set the desired depth in the gauge and hollow until this limit.

[DIYer]

Now I want to knock myself on the head for not raiding all the printers I've thrown away. Using that graduated rod is clever!

[morsa]

Thanks DIYer.
I'm addicted to dismantle gadgets that no longer work (including those that my friends give me) and to reuse components. In addition to this gauge, with discarded printers bars I've made some gouges for the lathe, a drill bit extension, a necklace hanger, an auxiliary device to hold small parts in the router, and I still have a good supply of steel bars (among many other parts that I keep). Later I will post pics of these tools.

[DIYer]

Looking forward to seeing those repurposed bits, morsa.