Turning chess pieces - help!

[Greenvilleguy]

I guess it happens to all turners -- we love to turn bowls, weed pots, etc. with no plans. We just go where the wood leads us. It's creative, it's fun. Then, all of a sudden, someone asks if we can turn candle sticks or something that requires a plan and some precision!

Well, my son has asked for a chess set. Can I turn it? Of course I can! (maybe?)

Putting my stifled creativity aside, here is my question:

I can turn all the pieces one at a time by drilling a hole in each blank and mounting them separately on a pin chuck or screw chuck, but does anyone know how I could turn multiple pieces at once in more of a production process? Turning multliple pieces on a single spindle, creates parting off issue.

For instance, I could turn pawns 4 at a time leaving some wood between each one, but I'd have to saw then apart off of the lathe and then sand and finish the top and bottoms off of the lathe. Is this better?

Anyone turned a chess set?

[dickg1]

I recently completed a set of "canes" for the daughter of a circus performer. Each "cane" (it's a pair) is comprised of a four foot long 5/8's steel rod on top of which is a 3 and 7/8"s inverted "pear". The object is for a person to do hand stands on these "canes".

To create the "pear" I produced a 12" long, four inch square white oak blank. I turned both "pears" from this blank, leaving a square portion at each end and in the middle. The narrow end of each "pear" faced toward each end. Once the turning was finished, I horizontally bored a 2 and 3/4" hole in each end. Since the entire unit was square and I had the arbor marks in each end, it was simple to find the center of each "pear". I used my bandsaw to cut out the middle blank and then the ends. A final touchup on the back side of the sander positioned vertically, and epoxying the steel rods to the "pears" finished the job.

She is now doing hand stands on the "canes" and my wife and I have free tickets to the circus!

Plan your job, leaving sections square, then cut away what is not needed.
It made my job a lot easier, maybe it can do the same for you.

Have fun!

Dickg1

P.S. It occured to me that this would have been a lot harder without my SS. To do this job, I used the saw,
jointer, SS mounted planer, lathe, horizontal borer, bandsaw and sander. All in the space of a bicycle!

[paulmcohen]

I would want to mount them between centers, this is the perfect use for the lathe duplicator. You bandsaw the outline of a pawn then quickly make 16 identical copies. If you try to make too many you will need a steady rest to support the middle.