Two questions really:
For those of you making non-metal whistles (Wood, PVC, etc.), what are you using to cut or chisel the labium?
for those using Delrin or other polymer fipple blocks, are you turning the rod stock down on a wood or metal lathe? I hear that when turning polymer with hand held tools there is a significant tendancy to experience “Dig-In”.
Any information would be much appreciated 
Thanks,
Loren
Not exactly the answer for your question #2, but I use both machine tools (like faced bits) and wood bits (router to be specific) to shape delrin. I do use the compressed variety of Delrin, but it shouldn’t matter as far as machine processes go. I haven’t turned much of it (since my fipples are square), but when I have I have used a metal lathe with standard cutting tools.
Erik
[ This Message was edited by: ErikT on 2001-12-03 11:02 ]
Loren, I use a chisel to shape the labium, and I have turned some Delrin using a machine lathe. It works great.
Are you making whistles now?
Ronaldo
What’s a labium on a whistle? Apart from being Latin for “lobe”, I mean…
The labium is the same thing as the blade.
Loren,
The approach I use on both PVC and wood blades is to rough them in using a fine 1/8"
diameter rotary file in a dremel tool. The cutter is cylindrical and has about 8 cutting
edges throughout its’ length. You have to be a bit careful but it will do the grunt phase
quickly. To finish the blade, I wrap wet or dry paper (220 to 400 grit) around a thin metal blade. It could be a nail file but thinner is better as it allows you to get into the corners when cutting for a curved windway.
I turn delrin on a metal lathe and it cuts fine. My hunch is that you would want to be very careful with handheld lathe tools as the
cutters do tend to self feed even when drilling the stuff. It does not respond well to abrasive sanding but will take a nice finish with wet or dry used wet.
Good luck
I usually file the labium on PVC and metal whistles. (Using hobby and jewelry files)
I turn the Delrin rod on a machine lathe - starting out with 1" diameter black Delrin from US Plastics.
[ This Message was edited by: Daniel_Bingamon on 2001-12-03 20:57 ]
I’m making wooden whistles. I form the labium with steel and/or diamond files, finishing with very fine wet or dry sandpaper(400 grit).
Delrin turns beautifully on my metal lathe, but next time I buy stock for my 1/2"ID D whistles, I plan to simply buy it .5" diam, instead of turning it down from .75". I bought that to be on the safe side, but the diam arrived exactly .75, so I figure the .5 should be accurate too. One less step to worry about…
Hey great, thanks so much guys, very helpful info indeed.
No Ronaldo, I’m no whistle maker at this point - just doing some tinkering at the moment. You know how it is, you think to yourself - “I really like this thing about one whistle, and that about another, and wouldn’t it be cool if…” and the next thing you know you’re thinking to yourself “well what the heck, I gotta have a go at it” The road to damnation I’m sure
Chauncy (the mystery whistle smith), you must have a steady hand! I must admit though, I’m tempted to have a whack at using the Dremel for a little blade and window roughing. Hmm, better practice on some scrap wood and PVC first though…
Okay, one more question if you don’t mind guys: Can anyone hit me with some links for info, sources and pricing on metal lathes? I need one and I have to admit to being mostly uneducated in this area. I haven’t had much trouble find information on woodturning and wood lathes, but machining and Metal lathe info has been much harder to come by 
As always, thanks in advance
Loren
Loren,
“Grizzly” is the name of a machine lathe that pops up often among flute makers so you might try that one. Supposedly it is reasonably priced and not as heavy as some lathes on the market.
Ronaldo
Both Sherline and Taig are good ‘desktop’ lathes if you don’t want a big upfront investment to just play around.
Loren,
Here are some links to manufacturers or industrial outlets that sell mini or micro metal lathes.
http://littlemachineshop.com/LMS/default.php
http://www.grizzly.com/index.html
Grizzly’s metal lathe page:
http://www.grizzly.com/fcgi-bin/lookup.fcgi/products/lookup.cfg?q=specs&kw=Metal%20Lathes&kw2=pdf
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/552834/102-2456628-6176138
https://www.wttool.com/wtool/default.asp
wholesale tool has a nice selection:
https://www.wttool.com/wtool/product.asp?dept_id=16590&pf_id=30030030p&sdept_id=95%2C1355%2C16590
http://www.emachinetool.com/index.cfm
sells sherline:
http://www.emachinetool.com/new/catalog/vertical.cfm?DestinationCategory=Mini%20Engine%20Lathe&ProductID=470
information & prices on taig lathes:
http://www.casco.net/~felice/taig.html
[ This Message was edited by: Tony on 2001-12-05 05:10 ]
FWIW, my metal lathe is a 6X18 Sears/Atlas- same as the one used by Glenn Schultz. These are not made any more, but there are a ton of them out there: mine came via eBay.
Loren,
Is the lathe just for whistle parts or do you have other ventures ?
First off, I want to say thanks to everyone for all the helpful links and info, this is a tough decision for me, so every bit of info I get helps.
Tony,
The Lathe would be for turning wood, metal and polymer parts for whistles and flutes, as well as making the neccessary tools needed for the construction cylindrical and conical bore instruments - you know, specialized reamers and such.
Since my current available space is more limited than I’d like (isn’t that always the case?) the smallest, lightest lathe I can get away with would be best. Seems many of the smallest lathes have a very short distance between centers, which might force me to make 3 section Low D’s instead of the ususal 2 section design. I know many wood lathes have optional bed extensions, is this also true for metal lathes?
Thanks again!
Loren
[ This Message was edited by: Loren on 2001-12-08 12:36 ]
My thoughts are to work with the polymers to create an instrument more resistant to temperature and humidity changes.
[ This Message was edited by: Tony on 2001-12-08 12:44 ]
Tony,
I’ve noticed that several of the mini and midi wood lathes offer inexpensive bed extensions, so I was hoping maybe the same would be true for the metal lathes.
You idea about buying off size material lengths might have merit, but I’m not sure the cost savings would off set the time and effort required to cut and fit an extra set of tenon/socket per whistle. Don’t know for sure really, suppose I’d have to look into it.
At some point I’d like to take a crack at a cone bore Low D whistle, but not right now, that’s more of a long term project. I’d be looking to make cylindrical whistles and conical bore flutes first. Might try to whip up a whistle head for my Copley flute some day, just for kicks
Of course this is all just talk at the moment, can’t do much without the tools…
Loren
My Lathe is a Bradford, it was made in Cincinnati in 1920’s.
A lot of instrument makers buy used South Bend lathes. They would work fine for the size of the work that your doing. Also check out Harbor Freight. http://www.harborfreight.com
Taper reamers can be made from flat metal stock, contact your local machine shop to have one made.