Tap for worm screw?

[Aaron J]

Does anybody use a tap after they drill their hole in the pot blank for the worm screw? It seems like I'm having a hard time getting the block flush to the back of the chuck

[FDR]

Yes, I do. I tap a center hole in the blank then screw the blank onto the chuck and turn the outside face of the blank flat. I unscrew the blank and  turn the blank around, turn it round  then turn the new face flat. I usually turn off enough wood to set the overall depth of my pot blank (I usually use a 3/4"  deep blank) . Now both faces are parallel to each other and both are perpendicular to the threaded hole. I then continue to hollow out and  make my pot.

[Aaron J]

I went to the hardware store with my worm screw to try and find a tap, they looked at me like I was crazy saying they have never seen a tap for my thread size. It's the worm screw that came with my Nova G3 chuck

[FDR]

I use a 3/8 course thread bolt.  Do you have a face plate for the lathe ? I screwed a wood block to the faceplate and turned it round. I then used a drill chuck to drill the proper hole for the 3/8 tap. I removed the face plate and tapped the center hole with a 3/8 tap and screwed the bolt into the block from the back side (Thru the faceplate mounting hole)). I now have a screw chuck, a flat wood plate with a 3/8 bolt sticking out. I drill/tap my pot  blank with the same drill/tap and  and screw it onto the bolt that is sticking out tight and turn away.

The worm  that comes with your chuck is a wood screw and will not have a common tap.  If you have a collet chuck you can also use it and just cut the head off a bolt and catch the bolt body in a collet and do the same thing as describer above without the face plate.

You might want to look at the turkey call tutorials for additional ways to make a pot call. Here is a link to one:

http://thogamecallsforums.com/index.php/topic,2614.0.html

and the link to the tutorials:

http://thogamecallsforums.com/index.php/board,110.0.html

Fred

[Aaron J]

That is a great idea, I have a faceplate and this is the route I will go from now on, thanks for the idea. Excuse my ignorance, but what is the nut and washer for? Also, when you put the bolt through the back of the first piece of wood that is attached to the faceplate, how do you keep that bolt from tearing out of the first piece of wood?

[Aaron J]

Sorry I just seen you said through the faceplate mounting hole, thank you!

[FDR]

You can use the nut and washer if you drill a clearance hole for the bolt through the pot. Then you do not have to have your own tap.  The problem with that approach is that the pot will not run true if it is either rotated/removed/reinstalled or reversed.
 If you tap the pot center hole you can remove and replace the pot or reverse it and it will pretty much run true. I tap the hole and then turn both sides true first. Then when you reverse the pot to work the back it will still run true.

The tapped hole also helps in working the sound board pedestal to the correct height on the lathe. The pot stays tight as you work down the pedestal.

Sorry, that was the only picture I could find that showed the concept.

Fred

[Aaron J]

Thank you for the clarification!

[Mann Lock @ Hollow Wing Calls]

I have a 1/2 bolt that I use too...  Makes it a lot easier.  I end up cutting out the whole center of my pots so it works best.