Today I will put my lathe to the test by making a small wooden mallet, which will come in handy to work as a luthier or in small woodworking projects.
I’ll start by drilling holes in this piece of wenge wood with the column drill.
Since these pieces aren’t wide, I will turn them at high speeds, so first I’ll have to detach the disc sander as well as its bench.
After marking the centres, I place the piece in the lathe and I’ll apply a little oil to make the turning smoother.
I adjust the toolrest’s height, tighten all the knobs, and I’m ready to begin. Wenge wood is quite hard, so I’ll advance slowly.
I take advantage of the lathe’s rotation to sand the wood. I’ll start with the mallet’s handle. I’ll use curly maple for the handle, which is a semi-hard wood. The combination of dark and light wood is always pleasing to the eye!
Now I’ll fit this part of the handle into the hole in the mallet’s head.
I put the disc sander back in place to finish sanding the mallet. Then, I glue both parts together. I’ll put it in the lathe to smooth out the joint.
Now all that’s left is to apply a little homemade oil finish and it will be ready!
