Beginner Ring Sanding Question

[Robert Drisaldi]

I am relatively new to the segmented aspect of turning. My apologies in advance for the elementary type of question. Hopefully, other new segmenters will see a benefit in this thread....

I have completed several vases, bowls, etc. Most of the projects were on the small to medium size. I use a wedgie sled and seg-easy wedges and get great results with my angle cuts. My problem begins with the glue up of my rings. With the smaller projects, (largest ring 4"-5") my process for sanding was: Disk-sand one side flat, glue to the vessel, and true the opposite side once the glue sets; and so on. (using a couple of 5Lb. barbell;l weights for this process. I had outstanding results. Recently I designed and constructed a large vase, with the largest ring's outside diameter of 11". Before beginning this vessel I picked up a used Jet 16/32 drum sander. I figured I could save a lot of time shooting the rings through the sander and move on from the truing up of each ring on the lathe. As I turned each section of the vessel I began to notice very slight gaps between the rings on the outside edge. The inside edges were perfectly flush. I have since built a glue press, hoping to get add more pressure to the rings. I have not used the press yet.
Now for seeking opinions: Assuming the outer edges are not true, should I scrap the drum sander step and go back to my original process? Or, do you think the slight exterior gaps will be resolved with the use of added pressure from the glue press?

Sorry for the length, but I did want to add the back story.

Thanks!

Robert

 

[Mike Selser]

You are getting snipe from your drum sander. Run a piece the same thickness as your ring in front of and behind your ring or run two sticks the same thickness as your ring and longer than the ring diameter on either side of the ring. I always true up the second side on the lathe after glue up. Only takes a few seconds with sandpaper glued to a board.

 

[Ken Sherwin]

I had trouble using a drum sander too. In my case, it would cut shallower at the beginning and end of a ring where there was more wood being sanded at one time and deeper in the middle of the ring where there was less wood. It was just the opposite of snipe. Apparently the frame of the sander was not rigid enough. I had better luck with sandpaper on a board after facing as flat as I could.

What works for me now is to put a 12" flat sanding disk on a live center into a 12" tailstock on my 16" lathe. The 2" offset in the rotating axes makes the setup act like a random orbit sander with a 4" dia. orbit. I've never seen anybody else do it this way but it works wonderfully in spite of how strange it looks.