5/7/2023 0 Comments Laser depth gaugeThe laser needs to be moved periodically depending on the shape of the vessel. The position of the laser in relationship to the cutting edge must be kept perpendicular. You are ready to hollow.Īs with any of the other measuring methods, the measurement must be close to perpendicular to the side of the vessel. The cutting tip is inside the vessel and the light will be outside the thickness. Move the laser holding bracket to shine the laser light dot on the star on the card. Move the card from the work, keeping it at the same angle, and place the card next to the cutting tip. (See Illustration 3) Now place the card along the outside of the hollow form where you will need to hollow and at the angle needed to measure perpendicularly. The star on the card is the laser position. The line drawn near the edge on the business card is my wall thickness and the arrow line indicates the direction that would measure perpendicular through the wall. I use the lines on a plastic card as an aid to show me where to adjust the laser light. The success in measuring accurately is dependent on measuring straight through or perpendicular to the wall. The gap in the calipers is the same as the gap used by the laser. Now the laser measuring process uses the laser and the cutter as measuring points in contrast to the calipers. Figure A above shows the difficulty keeping the perpendicularity with regular calipers. If you measure at an angle through the wall thickness at more or less than 90 degrees, you will get a false reading. It is necessary to keep the measuring at right angles or 90 degrees to the surface at the point where the measurement occurs. In a hollow form or deep sided bowl the standard caliper won’t reach the bottom contours. With the boring bar supported on both tool rests, you can now position the laser to measure perpendicularly, or at 90 degrees through the wall. If you set the laser at one boring bar position and go into the vessel and cut with the boring bar swung around at a different angle you will get a false measurement. Pull the boring bar out of the vessel and support the boring bar on the front and back stabilizing tool rest at the same angle that is needed to cut. Note the angle of the boring bar assembly. To prepare for measuring with the laser system, the first step is to set the boring bar at the angle that you need to get through the little entry hole and put the cutting tip in a position to cut. Now all future adjustments can be made easily by moving or swiveling the laser holding bracket at the end of the tubing that supports it. To set the laser, lock down all supporting hardware so that all you have to move for an adjustment is the bracket holding the laser. Go back lightly now and smooth away any tool marks without reducing wall thickness any further. As the light no longer shines on the turning, it skips off the edge of the form and shines on the floor, you stop cutting! The set gap between the light and the cutter is now the desired wall thickness. When the laser shines around on the side of the vessel, slow down and watch your cutting pace. (See Illustration 1) While the light shines on top of the hollow form, the cutting tip is hogging away wood inside the vessel. The “gap” or distance between the light and the cutter is your wall thickness. You set the laser light so that the beam of light passes by the cutting tip at the distance you want your wall thickness. The whole idea of the laser is really simple. It doesn’t impede the tool movement to get into those hard to reach places you have been dreaming of creating. My laser system can be used to measure anything, any place, any wood, any thickness desired, tiny Christmas ornaments, or huge vessels. I want to open up possibilities, not limit them. Some of the new measuring systems also have limitations. I didn’t get too excited about the old measuring systems because they had limitations and I didn’t want to work within any set of parameters that would limit my creativity. There are many methods of measuring the wall thickness of hollow forms many have been around for quite some time. Lasers have more uses and provide exciting technical short cuts to understand problems such as measuring the bottom of bowls while using coring systems, or showing the shape and depth of the inside bottom contour of any turned form, even though the waste block area. Lasers, lasers, lasers, everyone is talking about lasers! Lasers help measure hollow form wall thickness. Below are excerpts from an article I wrote for American Woodturner magazine about lasers.Īccurate, fast, and fun, but how do we use it?
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